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Kettlebell Wrist hr

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Gary W

Gary W

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So i bought my first wrist based HR watch, Garmin forerunner 45.

Now i know they are never going to be super accurate but when doing my KB swings etc it doesn't seem to get anywhere near what my hr actually is.
For example this morning i was at 130bpm and the watch showed 86bpm!

I've arranged for it to be returned assuming its faulty but just went for a run and it was pretty accurate!

So it seems it just doesn't like kettlebells!

Anyone else found this and maybe a reason why?
 
I’ve never found wrist based hr monitors to be accurate enough for my needs and if you ever plan on tracking your HRV (heart rate variability) you’ll definitely want to invest in a chest strap. There’s several factors that can affect accuracy with wrist worn types that uses LED optical sensors to measure blood flow for hr. Play around with positioning for one thing. Everyone has their own sweet spot but generally the higher you can get it away from your wrist bone the better. Try it about two finger widths above your wrist bone and see how that works. You also want to make sure it’s tight but not so tight that it impedes blood flow.

I don’t have experience with the Garmin but some watches can take up to a few minutes to lock on accurately and work best after a proper warmup period. During cold weather your body attempts to keep your body temperature stable by directing the blood flow from arms and legs towards the core of your body. The reduction in blood flow to the arms can make it more difficult for the sensor to measure heart rate accurately. If you frequently have cold hands, a proper warmup before exercising may be needed to improve accuracy.

Also arm movements and flexing muscles such as gripping a kettlebell or tennis racket can change the accuracy of the sensor readings. The optical sensors don’t like dark tattoos either. They’re probably just fine for running but for gripping kettlebell work I would invest in a chest strap to pair with the watch. Then again maybe you just got a bad one.
 
Thank for the tips!

Its going back and a new one will be with me tomorrow so guess I'll find out if its faulty or just not suitable for kb work.

I actually wanted if for running really anyway and it seemed ok for that purpose
 
Gary Wilson said:
Now i know they are never going to be super accurate but when doing my KB swings etc it doesn't seem to get anywhere near what my hr actually is.
Click to expand...

Writs Heart Rate Monitors

As you noted, they are less accurate.

Distal and Proximal

1) Distal Reading of Wrist Heart Rate Monitor: The primary reason is they they are farther away from you heart.

That is the reason that Treadmills, Ellipticals, Bikes, etc Cardio Fitness Equipment hand help heart rate reading are inaccurate, as well.

2) Proximal Reading of Chest Strap: a Chest Strap Heart Rate Monitors sit right on top of your heart, which makes it incredibly accurate. Chest Strap Monitors are around 98% accurate.

Wrist-worn Heart Rate Monitors Less Accurate Than Standard Chest Strap - American College of Cardiology

"...wrist-worn monitors are less accurate than the standard chest strap," said Marc Gillinov, MD, The Judith Dion Pyle Chair in Heart Valve Research, Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio and the study's lead author. "We found these devices can equally over- and underestimate heart rate. The error ranged from +/-34 beats per minute to +/-15 beats per minute, depending on the type of activity."

Chest Strap

...as Offwidth states, it is the better option.

Kenny Croxdale
 
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