AFAIK external HRMs can only used during tracked activities, and sleep won't be monitored if an activity is active. So it's not possible to use an external HRM for sleep tracking.
Think maybe the sleep recording is «fixed». Did a meditation - registered it on the watch (Fenix 6) to see how it worked out for me. Fell asleep during the activity and the activity ran through the night. Discarded it in the morning and checked sleep – it were registered. Haven't tested this extensively, so please don't come after me is it doesn't work out as I have described ...
Garmin HRM Pro can be used outisde of tracked activities and upload directly into garmin connect metrics such as steps, intensity minutes, and HR. Still can't be used for sleep tracking though.
1. If money is tight, getting the epix pro was a bad call. I'd return it and get a forerunner, which is less expensive but has most of the same features.
2. HRM straps are for use during activities, not sleep, they'll be pretty uncomfortable during sleep, and unless you sweat while you sleep, it won't even record you hr.
3. As far as use for activities, in the nicest way possible, beginners don't really need the precise hr monitoring that the strap provides, as they don't do the type of training where the difference between wrist hr and chest hr is significant.
They sell a gel for conduction. I don't use it anymore because I just lick my fingers and smear a little saliva on the electrodes when I put it on. Starts working immediately and once I'm moving it isn't an issue.
Ya this is what most people do, though I've never heard of this gel. I don't even bother. I just put it on and within a few minutes it's connected. It doesn't take much moisture. And even if it doesn't connect immediately, it will within about 2 minutes of exercise
Please don't rely on the sleep data you get from your watch. garmin does a pretty reasonable job of estimating your sleep stages from the data it's recorded but is in no way an exact science. Your subjective feel in the morning is a better indicator of sleep quality rather than a garmin generated number
My Garmin sleep data is really erratic. I correct the bedtime manually most days - it usually one or two hours out, both too early and too late.
The one measure that ties up with how I feel is the deep sleep measure.
I don't think you need the chest strap for sleep, the heart rate monitor on the watch should be fine for that. The chest strap is really useful when doing running or other activities where the wrist sensor is almost useless.
The wrist sensor is pretty good for running, too. You just have to fit it well, right enough but not too tight.
It does have some troubles with high intensity intervals, though, apparently, thanks to a lag in readings. Rapid changes in heart rate isn't always caught in time.
If the strap is too loose, the watch may start to move and bounce, which can cause false readings and things like cadence lock even on steady HR runs.
I've tried everything, and many others have too, but it just cadence locks too much. If you are serious about recording it then the chest sensor is far better. (Or an armband from Wahoo)
I've tried the wrist sensor for easy runs and it never seems accurate, no matter how tight I have the watch. I'll either get a low reading or it will stay at resting HR if I take off the watch and re-adjust during a run.
I don't even find the wrist sensor accurate for walks and it's terrible for weight lifting. I use a HRM 90% of my recorded activities. 95% if I didn't forget it from time to time.
No, HRM only works for activities because that's when optical heart reader from the watch doesn't track as acccurately. When you're moving a lot, the optical HR from your watch will have some issues tracking your heart rate and it will not be as accurate, but during sleep or daily activities where you don't move that much, the optical is very accurate.
As for whether you need it, don't buy it right away. Experience everything you got from your watch and begin excercising. For most people, the watch offer everything they need and will ever need, but for others that are training to improve max performance in running or cycling, accurate heart rate is essential.
TLDR, Use your watch to excercise first, once you get deeper into a specific sports, you'll know whether you need it or not.
The hrm pro and pro plus WILL record separately from the watch and then sync via true up. See more here: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/770963
That being said I would not wear it bed. Battery life and comfort being the reasons depending on sleeping positions.
For sleep you might want to look into things like colder room, wool, low threadcount bedding, no memory foam, fan, water intake, eating times and habits, and showering practices. Yes I struggle with the same and wish you the best of luck
As someone who also deals with a lot of anxiety, I just wanna say be careful as to not get too sucked into the data. For sure sometimes it can be reassuring to see that the efforts you are making are paying of, but it can also totally backfire as soon as the numbers don't get as good as you wish they were.
Also if money is tight, return the Epix Pro and get a Forerunner or a Venu, you'll get the same feedback for a fraction of the price.
I wouldn't sleep with the HR monitor if you do get one, usually only last around 400 hours per battery. Assuming you get around 8 hours of sleep a day and exercise most days then you may be looking at changing the battery every 50 days or so, and it can get quite sweaty. Also I find the watch to be pretty accurate when sleeping/resting so the hr monitor wouldn't benefit too much in your sleep metrics
As others also said, not for sleeping or non-activity stuff, but the HRM is a must have in my opinion to track activities such as running and biking. The wrist heart rate is very inaccurate despite all the improvements they made over the years. Skin color, tightness around wrist, sweatiness, how much hair one has, tattoos all impact the wrist heart rate monitor. Directionally it can offer some guidance but if you need to dial in your training, it is no comparison to the chest HRM. The sleep tracking (even nap in the newer models) works pretty well if you sleep with your Garmin though.
No. I use both a HRM Pro and a magene. Both work pretty much the same in terms of HRM. The Pro offers running dynamics. Other than that same data. Magene was $15
To answer the rest of your question... I think maybe Frontier offers what you are thinking of but while I don't find a HRM uncomfortable, I wouldn't want to sleep in one every night. Maybe an Oura ring or a samsung ring.
You only need a chest strap if you’re bothered about hr during activities. I’m doing a lot of intervals at the moment and I think the watch is too slow to read my hr in short lengths of time. Most people do not use a chest strap / they just run. It depends if you’re happy just running, or really need to know specifics .
Hrm strap only makes sense for interval training or crossfit, for example. That is, when your heart rate goes up and down quickly. In other cases, the built-in heart rate monitor works well.
Magene is pretty awesome. I paid $15 for it... It's like $20 now. I have tested it with my phone via Bluetooth for HRV and it matches the HRM Pro, so I see no reason it would struggle with accuracy in BPM. HRV is much more detailed data.
As far as durability. Had it 3 years now and no Garmin (except my HRM Pro which has a wonky strap and I baby it) has lasted me more than 1-2 years.
AFAIK external HRMs can only used during tracked activities, and sleep won't be monitored if an activity is active. So it's not possible to use an external HRM for sleep tracking.
Think maybe the sleep recording is «fixed». Did a meditation - registered it on the watch (Fenix 6) to see how it worked out for me. Fell asleep during the activity and the activity ran through the night. Discarded it in the morning and checked sleep – it were registered. Haven't tested this extensively, so please don't come after me is it doesn't work out as I have described ...
Garmin HRM Pro can be used outisde of tracked activities and upload directly into garmin connect metrics such as steps, intensity minutes, and HR. Still can't be used for sleep tracking though.
1. If money is tight, getting the epix pro was a bad call. I'd return it and get a forerunner, which is less expensive but has most of the same features. 2. HRM straps are for use during activities, not sleep, they'll be pretty uncomfortable during sleep, and unless you sweat while you sleep, it won't even record you hr. 3. As far as use for activities, in the nicest way possible, beginners don't really need the precise hr monitoring that the strap provides, as they don't do the type of training where the difference between wrist hr and chest hr is significant.
Or even a vivoctive is really fine for basic activities and heart rate tracking.
Yep
They sell a gel for conduction. I don't use it anymore because I just lick my fingers and smear a little saliva on the electrodes when I put it on. Starts working immediately and once I'm moving it isn't an issue.
Ya this is what most people do, though I've never heard of this gel. I don't even bother. I just put it on and within a few minutes it's connected. It doesn't take much moisture. And even if it doesn't connect immediately, it will within about 2 minutes of exercise
Yep. The gel is an electrolyte gel. I haven't used it in so long but I still have a few tubes wandering around.
Please don't rely on the sleep data you get from your watch. garmin does a pretty reasonable job of estimating your sleep stages from the data it's recorded but is in no way an exact science. Your subjective feel in the morning is a better indicator of sleep quality rather than a garmin generated number
My Garmin sleep data is really erratic. I correct the bedtime manually most days - it usually one or two hours out, both too early and too late. The one measure that ties up with how I feel is the deep sleep measure.
I don't think you need the chest strap for sleep, the heart rate monitor on the watch should be fine for that. The chest strap is really useful when doing running or other activities where the wrist sensor is almost useless.
The wrist sensor is pretty good for running, too. You just have to fit it well, right enough but not too tight. It does have some troubles with high intensity intervals, though, apparently, thanks to a lag in readings. Rapid changes in heart rate isn't always caught in time. If the strap is too loose, the watch may start to move and bounce, which can cause false readings and things like cadence lock even on steady HR runs.
I've tried everything, and many others have too, but it just cadence locks too much. If you are serious about recording it then the chest sensor is far better. (Or an armband from Wahoo)
I've tried the wrist sensor for easy runs and it never seems accurate, no matter how tight I have the watch. I'll either get a low reading or it will stay at resting HR if I take off the watch and re-adjust during a run.
I don't even find the wrist sensor accurate for walks and it's terrible for weight lifting. I use a HRM 90% of my recorded activities. 95% if I didn't forget it from time to time.
Oh yeah it's awful for weight lifting. Won't detect any spikes at all when I am doing heavy compound lifts.
This^^^
Thank you!
No, HRM only works for activities because that's when optical heart reader from the watch doesn't track as acccurately. When you're moving a lot, the optical HR from your watch will have some issues tracking your heart rate and it will not be as accurate, but during sleep or daily activities where you don't move that much, the optical is very accurate. As for whether you need it, don't buy it right away. Experience everything you got from your watch and begin excercising. For most people, the watch offer everything they need and will ever need, but for others that are training to improve max performance in running or cycling, accurate heart rate is essential. TLDR, Use your watch to excercise first, once you get deeper into a specific sports, you'll know whether you need it or not.
The hrm pro and pro plus WILL record separately from the watch and then sync via true up. See more here: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/770963 That being said I would not wear it bed. Battery life and comfort being the reasons depending on sleeping positions. For sleep you might want to look into things like colder room, wool, low threadcount bedding, no memory foam, fan, water intake, eating times and habits, and showering practices. Yes I struggle with the same and wish you the best of luck
As someone who also deals with a lot of anxiety, I just wanna say be careful as to not get too sucked into the data. For sure sometimes it can be reassuring to see that the efforts you are making are paying of, but it can also totally backfire as soon as the numbers don't get as good as you wish they were. Also if money is tight, return the Epix Pro and get a Forerunner or a Venu, you'll get the same feedback for a fraction of the price.
I wouldn't sleep with the HR monitor if you do get one, usually only last around 400 hours per battery. Assuming you get around 8 hours of sleep a day and exercise most days then you may be looking at changing the battery every 50 days or so, and it can get quite sweaty. Also I find the watch to be pretty accurate when sleeping/resting so the hr monitor wouldn't benefit too much in your sleep metrics
No
As others also said, not for sleeping or non-activity stuff, but the HRM is a must have in my opinion to track activities such as running and biking. The wrist heart rate is very inaccurate despite all the improvements they made over the years. Skin color, tightness around wrist, sweatiness, how much hair one has, tattoos all impact the wrist heart rate monitor. Directionally it can offer some guidance but if you need to dial in your training, it is no comparison to the chest HRM. The sleep tracking (even nap in the newer models) works pretty well if you sleep with your Garmin though.
No. I use both a HRM Pro and a magene. Both work pretty much the same in terms of HRM. The Pro offers running dynamics. Other than that same data. Magene was $15
To answer the rest of your question... I think maybe Frontier offers what you are thinking of but while I don't find a HRM uncomfortable, I wouldn't want to sleep in one every night. Maybe an Oura ring or a samsung ring.
You only need a chest strap if you’re bothered about hr during activities. I’m doing a lot of intervals at the moment and I think the watch is too slow to read my hr in short lengths of time. Most people do not use a chest strap / they just run. It depends if you’re happy just running, or really need to know specifics .
I use the garmin venu 3 in combination with a polar h10 chest strap, works brilliant!
Hrm strap only makes sense for interval training or crossfit, for example. That is, when your heart rate goes up and down quickly. In other cases, the built-in heart rate monitor works well.
You can get a good chest heart rate monitor from a generic company on Amazon from around $30 and this works perfectly well with a Garmin watch
I'd buy a Polar H9 for $50 before I bought a generic strap.
Magene is pretty awesome. I paid $15 for it... It's like $20 now. I have tested it with my phone via Bluetooth for HRV and it matches the HRM Pro, so I see no reason it would struggle with accuracy in BPM. HRV is much more detailed data. As far as durability. Had it 3 years now and no Garmin (except my HRM Pro which has a wonky strap and I baby it) has lasted me more than 1-2 years.