How to measure your heart rate on a Garmin watch

Your heart rate is an important indicator of overall health, so it’s a good idea to keep tabs on how it’s ticking. Here’s how to do that with your Garmin watch.
When trying to look out for your health, it can be crucial to know how your heart rate is doing, especially when exerting yourself. That’s why a heart rate sensor is such a key feature of many wearables, and you’ll find its presence across many of Garmin’s devices.
But how do you use this function? Fortunately, it kicks in automatically, and so this guide will show you how to get it working.
What you’ll need:
- We used the Garmin Forerunner 255, but you can use any Garmin watch with a heart rate tracker
The Short Version
- Set up your watch, and wear it on your wrist
- The watch will automatically measure your heart rate
- You can look at the data on your watch or in the Garmin Connect app
Step
1Set up your watch, and wear it on your wrist
Presuming your watch is new, you’ll have to first perform the set-up process as prompted on the screen. This includes confirming the system language, pairing it with your phone via Bluetooth, and creating or logging in to your Garmin account. Once it’s all in order, you can wear it on your wrist as you would a normal watch.
Step
2The watch will automatically measure your heart rate
After a brief period of time, your watch will be able to record your heart rate, without being prompted, thanks to the sensor on the bottom of the watch which can measure it 24/7.
Step
3You can look at the data on your watch or in the Garmin Connect app
Once your heart rate data has been recorded, you can check it via the watch itself, by scrolling up from the home screen, or by taking a look in the Garmin Connect app on your phone.
Troubleshooting
The NHS states: Most adults have a resting heart rate between 60 and 100bpm. The fitter you are, the lower your resting heart rate is likely to be. For example, athletes may have a resting heart rate of 40 to 60bpm, or lower. See a GP to get checked if you think your heart rate is continuously above 120bpm or below 60bpm, although it may simply be that this is normal for you.
Garmin states that “your personal data belongs to you, and you control what you shared and with whom you share it” on its privacy policy page.