Garmin Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd., are excited to announce the Forerunner 225, the first Garmin GPS running watch that measures heart rate at the wrist. The Forerunner 225 will integrate with industry-leading optical heart rate technology, developed by Mio. Mio is an award-winning performance wearables brand which understands the needs of demanding athletes and are acclaimed for EKG accuracy. The Forerunner 225 features a colourful graphic interface displaying runner’s heart rate zone and beats per minute at a glance and with a built-in accelerometer distance and pace data will be displayed for indoor running without the need for a separate foot pod. To keep runners active between workouts, it doubles as an activity tracker counting steps, calories and distance. A move bar with vibration alert reminds users when they’ve been too inactive and sleep monitoring for ample recovery.
“After more than 10 years of developing GPS running watches we are very excited to introduce our first wrist-based heart rate device,” said Walter Mech, Garmin Southern Africa CEO. The public has become more aware of the importance of training according to one’s heart rate and this has been a device which Garmin supporters have been waiting for. Reading your heart rate is now convenient, accurate and even more comfortable.”
CEO of Mio Global, Liz Dickinson adds “We are proud of our partnership with Garmin. When the leading brand in GPS teams up with a leading brand in wrist-based heart rate monitoring technology, it’s a win for athletes at all levels.” More and more, athletes are recognising the role that heart rate plays in their training intensity and efficacy and it has become evident that heart rate is a must-have feature in wearable technology.”
How it Works
To measure heart rate at the wrist, the Forerunner 225 uses a built-in optical sensor that shines light into a user’s skin and measures the amount of light returned. Due to slight changes as blood pumps through the wrist, the sensor detects those changes and uses an advanced filtering process to determine reliable and accurate heart rate. The Forerunner 225 has a light seal on the back of the watch which blocks out ambient light and ensures a more accurate heart rate reading.
Easy to Understand Heart Rate Data
The Forerunner 225 displays a colourful gauge to show a runner’s zone and beats per minute in real time, allowing them to easily follow training programs that require set times or distances within a certain zone. The gray, blue, green, orange and red areas on the gauge show runners at a glance if they are in the warm-up, easy, aerobic, threshold or maximum heart rate zone. Zones are pre-set based on the user’s age-based max heart rate estimate but can also be customised directly on the watch or in Garmin Connect.
Stay Active and Connected
The Forerunner 225 keeps runners on track with their training programs and encourages them to stay consistently active throughout the day. The watch is water resistant to 50 meters1 and boasts a battery life up to four weeks in watch mode and seven to ten hours with GPS and wrist heart rate active. The Forerunner 225 is optimal for training long hours in all conditions. When indoor, it has a built-in accelerometer allowing runners to capture accurate distance and pace data without needing a separate foot pod accessory. Users can also utilise advanced workouts which let runners of all levels create custom, goal-oriented workouts with vibration alerts for time, distance, calories and heart rate to push themselves to their highest potential.
Between workouts the Forerunner 225’s activity tracking features monitor valuable data including steps, distance, calories burned, and sleep, and its move bar with vibration alert provides motivation to stay active all day.
Forerunner 225 also has connected features for automatic upload to Garmin Connect, a free community where users can save, plan and share activities. When paired with a compatible smartphone2 the Forerunner 225 will automatically upload a completed run to the Garmin Connect Mobile app for post-run analysis and instant sharing on social media sites. Runners can also use live tracking to allow friends and family to follow along during training or on race day to see stats in real time.
The Forerunner 225 will be available in black/red and will be available at the suggested retail price of R4 099.
1 For more information, see Garmin.com/waterrating.
2 See Garmin.com/BLE for a list of compatible phones.
