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Additional information on Firstbeat Sports Cloud and Garmin Health API

  • Updated

What happens when a Garmin Connect profile has been linked with Firstbeat Sports? 

When an athlete records an activity using a Garmin wearable this information is stored to the Garmin device and is synced to Garmin Connect. An ‘activity' here refers to the data stored between when you press the ‘Start’ and ‘Stop’ buttons on the Garmin device.  

Linking the Garmin Connect with Firstbeat Sports means that the activity data will automatically sync to Firstbeat Sports. Once synced, a file containing the ‘activity’ information recorded using the Garmin wearable is now uploaded and analyzed in the Firstbeat Sports server. This may take a couple of minutes. 

Analyzed results are visible on the Firstbeat Sports Cloud and on the standalone Desktop client. 

Important details relating to Heart Rate Variability and VO2Max data 

Some Garmin wearables support the recording of Heart Rate Variability (HRV). To include HRV data in the recorded activities, the user must use an HR strap and make sure logging of HRV is enabled in their Garmin wearable device. In some Garmin Device models, this setting can be found in the menu by following “Physiological Metrics” ⟶ “Log HRV”. Doing so allows the use of extra metrics for analysis in Firstbeat Sports. 

Activities that don't include HRV data are not visible in the Firstbeat Sports apps or Firstbeat Sports Monitor but they are visible in the Firstbeat Sports Cloud. These are usually activities that were recorded using an optical HR sensor. 

VO2Max results are calculated for the “Running” sports type only and not for running sub sports like Trail Running. 

Measurement naming 

Garmin device users select an “Activity Profile” when starting a workout. For example, “Running” or “Pool Swimming”. After syncing data to Firstbeat Sports, the name of this Garmin Activity Profile is replicated and included in the name of the Firstbeat Sports Measurement. 

Handling of duplicate measurements 

It is possible to use both a Firstbeat Sports Sensor and Garmin device to record data at the same time. Doing so will mean an athlete has duplicate data on the same activity. This can happen when athletes pair a Firstbeat Sports Sensor with a Garmin wearable device.  

In case of duplicate measurements, recordings made with a Garmin device are preferred over Sports Sensor data.

Current limitations 

Garmin activity may contain information such as; GPS data, cycling power, running cadence, etc. which are not used in Firstbeat Sports. Metrics that are not currently used in Firstbeat Sports are not visible in the Sports Cloud at this time. 

If activities are edited/deleted in Garmin Connect, these changes are not synced to Firstbeat Sports. 

A Garmin wearable device can also collect data such as the amount of sleep hours, stress, etc. This data is available via Garmin APIs but not part of a Garmin activity file. Thus, this kind of data is not currently available in Firstbeat Sports.

If you need any further assistance with this, you can contact Firstbeat Support.

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