How does the Apple Watch warn about high heart rates if it only measures once every 5 minutes? Doesn’t that mean it could miss a lot of important data?
It’s designed to catch abnormal heart rates when you’re at rest. Taking 12 samples an hour while you’re sleeping or inactive is usually enough. If it misses something in one interval, it’s likely to catch it later since irregularities often repeat.
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
Garmin watches measure multiple times per second.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
Garmin watches measure multiple times per second.
What does that mean? Your heart beats less than once per second. Does it measure continuously or just more frequently? Saying it measures multiple times per second doesn’t make sense.
@Remi
Garmin’s website says their optical HR monitor samples your heart rate multiple times per second, 24/7. So it’s constant. Apple Watch does it multiple times per second but only every 5 minutes.
@Remi
Sampling multiple times a second is useful for tracking heart rate variability (HRV). It gives a clearer picture of your heart’s activity and can reveal health insights that lower sampling rates might miss.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
Garmin watches measure multiple times per second.
Yeah, my answer wasn’t based on experience. 288 times a day seems enough for trends, but you and the person who posted this might be right.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
I think 5 minutes is too long. People’s heart rates change a lot as they move around.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
I think 5 minutes is too long. People’s heart rates change a lot as they move around.
It’s a trade-off between data and battery life.
Indy said:
Every 5 minutes seems reasonable. That’s still 288 measurements a day.
I think 5 minutes is too long. People’s heart rates change a lot as they move around.
It does change, but are those changes significant? I’ll ask my cardiologist soon. Also, Apple’s support page says:
- Background readings are taken regularly when you’re still.
- The frequency depends on your movement, sometimes as often as 1-2 minutes apart.
- During workouts, it measures continuously.
It doesn’t just take a quick reading. It measures for about 30 seconds each time.
If your heart is beating irregularly or too fast for a while, the odds of catching it with measurements every 5 minutes are pretty high.
Roux said:
If your heart is beating irregularly or too fast for a while, the odds of catching it with measurements every 5 minutes are pretty high.
I was really sick once and had a monitor. My dangerous arrhythmias only lasted 6 seconds, so my watch never caught them.
@Kai
Dangerous?
Yes. It’s called vtach.
No watch would catch that. You’d need constant monitoring.
Yes. It’s called vtach.
No watch would catch that. You’d need constant monitoring.
Some watches can, depending on the duration, according to my cardiologist.
@Kai
This is what I’m worried about.
Cortland said:
@Kai
This is what I’m worried about.
Only a cardiologist’s monitor would catch it. That’s how I found out.