Fit watch?

Grumpy_chap

So, my MiL has asked to borrow a blood pressure monitor that she can wear to track all day. 
She does not want to spend any money so asked if she can borrow an old tracker.  Our old trackers are in the bin, and did not track blood pressure anyway, only heart rate.

We do have an OMRON blood pressure monitor that we can lend her.  It is a battery-operated device similar to those in hospitals with a cuff that pumps up and then release down and shows blood pressure and pulse.

I didn't think that wearable blood pressure monitor is a thing, but an internet search this morning reveals they are available but not cheap.  There is an OMRON at around £500 and a couple of Fitbit / Garmin devices listed that have "blood pressure" in the headline at around the £250 price point, though I can't see that they actually have any sensors added to do the measuring so maybe they use an algorithm to give some approximation.

Does anyone know anything about wearable blood pressure monitors and if they are a "thing" that really exists and works?

If we were to assume that MiL actually really wants all-day heart rate (pulse), but does not want to spend any money, is there any reason she should not just go for a budget device such as this one?
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/goji-active-gfitbk20-activity-tracker-black-small-10196703.html
You can't much for less than £15.

I wouldn't buy that item for myself as the FitBit Inspire 2 seems to be around £50, Fitbit Inspire 3 at £85, Fitbit Charge at £100 and the Garmin Vivosmart 5 at £110.  

If the very budget product will be disappointing, but budget is a significant factor, I assume the best solution would be one of the lower cost Fitbit products.  Now, we were unimpressed when we had a Fitbit and ended up exchanging for Garmin, but at this price-point the Garmin is double the price so the Fitbit seems like a good solution.

Does anyone here have any experience of budget wearables with heart rate (or, ideally blood pressure) monitoring?

Emmia

Grumpy_chap said:

My Garmin Vivoactive 3 appears to have installed an update overnight and added tracking for the menstrual cycle.  

I have checked my user settings and it says " male"

Does anyone know how I can disable this functionality?

You can disable it in in the linked app, and you can remove it from the watch screens - I'm a woman, but I don't use/want any apps to monitor my cycle.

Emmia

Grumpy_chap said:

Thanks @Sea_Shell - I understand all that but was hoping that there would be a way to get all the health tracking of a fitness watch but without needing the actual watch so it could go in a totally hidden place and leave the wrist free for a "jewellery" watch.  Obviously, that would mean the actual watch and messaging etc features could all be done away with, so it might create further flexibility in how the device would be designed. 
Clearly, this is a market opportunity waiting to be exploited.

Garmin have the lily range which offers some of the functionality in a prettier package

https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/p/698519

Personally, I've got a Fenix 6S pro, and have upgraded the strap to the rose gold coloured stainless steel band.

Sea_Shell

Emmia said:

Grumpy_chap said:

My Garmin Vivoactive 3 appears to have installed an update overnight and added tracking for the menstrual cycle.  

I have checked my user settings and it says " male"

Does anyone know how I can disable this functionality?

You can disable it in in the linked app, and you can remove it from the watch screens - I'm a woman, but I don't use/want any apps to monitor my cycle.

It doesn't cope well with menopausal women and those with irregular cycles!! 😉

15 weeks and counting 😲🤣


I've also disabled HR as it's getting to the weather when I'm wearing long sleeves (with thumb holes) so can't wear it against skin and access the buttons.

Emmia

Grumpy_chap said:

So, my MiL has asked to borrow a blood pressure monitor that she can wear to track all day. 
She does not want to spend any money so asked if she can borrow an old tracker.  Our old trackers are in the bin, and did not track blood pressure anyway, only heart rate.

We do have an OMRON blood pressure monitor that we can lend her.  It is a battery-operated device similar to those in hospitals with a cuff that pumps up and then release down and shows blood pressure and pulse.

I didn't think that wearable blood pressure monitor is a thing, but an internet search this morning reveals they are available but not cheap.  There is an OMRON at around £500 and a couple of Fitbit / Garmin devices listed that have "blood pressure" in the headline at around the £250 price point, though I can't see that they actually have any sensors added to do the measuring so maybe they use an algorithm to give some approximation.

Does anyone know anything about wearable blood pressure monitors and if they are a "thing" that really exists and works?

If we were to assume that MiL actually really wants all-day heart rate (pulse), but does not want to spend any money, is there any reason she should not just go for a budget device such as this one?
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/goji-active-gfitbk20-activity-tracker-black-small-10196703.html
You can't much for less than £15.

I wouldn't buy that item for myself as the FitBit Inspire 2 seems to be around £50, Fitbit Inspire 3 at £85, Fitbit Charge at £100 and the Garmin Vivosmart 5 at £110.  

If the very budget product will be disappointing, but budget is a significant factor, I assume the best solution would be one of the lower cost Fitbit products.  Now, we were unimpressed when we had a Fitbit and ended up exchanging for Garmin, but at this price-point the Garmin is double the price so the Fitbit seems like a good solution.

Does anyone here have any experience of budget wearables with heart rate (or, ideally blood pressure) monitoring?

My understanding is that an accurate continuously wearable blood pressure monitor is technologically very difficult. Garmin have one but it looks huge, (like a smartphone strapped to your upper arm with a thick band) - and I'm not sure if it just works on demand (when activated manually like your Omron) or offers continuous monitoring. 

I have an A&D medical device BP monitor, but that's like ones in the Doctors Surgery, it's portable, but not wearable.

Personally if she's really after an all day pulse / blood oxygen I'd go for one of the garmin bands as they're more accurate than the fitbit.

Emmia

Sea_Shell said:

Emmia said:

Grumpy_chap said:

My Garmin Vivoactive 3 appears to have installed an update overnight and added tracking for the menstrual cycle.  

I have checked my user settings and it says " male"

Does anyone know how I can disable this functionality?

You can disable it in in the linked app, and you can remove it from the watch screens - I'm a woman, but I don't use/want any apps to monitor my cycle.

It doesn't cope well with menopausal women and those with irregular cycles!! 😉

15 weeks and counting 😲🤣


I've also disabled HR as it's getting to the weather when I'm wearing long sleeves (with thumb holes) so can't wear it against skin and access the buttons.

That is the advantage of the Fenix, buttons, not touchscreen - I can work the buttons through a thin jumper - with the watch underneath, next to the skin.

Sea_Shell

Emmia said:

Sea_Shell said:

Emmia said:

Grumpy_chap said:

My Garmin Vivoactive 3 appears to have installed an update overnight and added tracking for the menstrual cycle.  

I have checked my user settings and it says " male"

Does anyone know how I can disable this functionality?

You can disable it in in the linked app, and you can remove it from the watch screens - I'm a woman, but I don't use/want any apps to monitor my cycle.

It doesn't cope well with menopausal women and those with irregular cycles!! 😉

15 weeks and counting 😲🤣


I've also disabled HR as it's getting to the weather when I'm wearing long sleeves (with thumb holes) so can't wear it against skin and access the buttons.

That is the advantage of the Fenix, buttons, not touchscreen - I can work the buttons through a thin jumper - with the watch underneath, next to the skin.

Mine doesn't have touch screen, so I could work the buttons, if I could remember the sequences.

I want to be able to see the face though.   See how slow I am 😉

Grumpy_chap

Thank you @Emmia and @Sea_Shell

We saw the MiL this afternoon and she doesn't really want a wearable device. 
She has been asked by the Dr to record her blood pressure at 9 am and 9 pm every day for a week so we have leant her the OMRON blood pressure monitor which will be perfect for what she has actually been asked to do.  
Not sure how useful it will be as she said if she doesn't get a good figure, she'll make something up that looks better.  She thinks it is appropriate to make an adjustment because doing the manual test would be a bit "white coat syndrome" anyway.
Please don't ask

I have tried to see how to disable the menstrual cycle and have not been able to do so.  I could not find this in the app on the phone, and nor could I when I looked again today.  With the certainty indicated that this can be disabled, I have looked at the online version of Connect and that also does not seem to have the ability to enable or disable the menstrual tracking.  I really am surprised this is not simply linked to the account setting for gender as an absolute minimum.  It should really have some links to age, but that is not so simple as appropriate age varies between individuals.

As for the desire to be more stylish, thank you for commenting.  The Lily is really not my style though there are stylish Garmin wearables that would be more my style.  In fact, I actually like the style of my Vivoactive 3.  My query was really whether there is any way to achieve all the benefits of the Garmin but without having to wear the Garmin on my wrist so that I am free to wear a proper jewellery watch.  I have a lovely gold watch from when I was 30, and it is now redundant but I'd like to be able to wear it.

Emmia

Grumpy_chap said:

Thank you @Emmia and @Sea_Shell

We saw the MiL this afternoon and she doesn't really want a wearable device. 
She has been asked by the Dr to record her blood pressure at 9 am and 9 pm every day for a week so we have leant her the OMRON blood pressure monitor which will be perfect for what she has actually been asked to do.  
Not sure how useful it will be as she said if she doesn't get a good figure, she'll make something up that looks better.  She thinks it is appropriate to make an adjustment because doing the manual test would be a bit "white coat syndrome" anyway.
Please don't ask

I have tried to see how to disable the menstrual cycle and have not been able to do so.  I could not find this in the app on the phone, and nor could I when I looked again today.  With the certainty indicated that this can be disabled, I have looked at the online version of Connect and that also does not seem to have the ability to enable or disable the menstrual tracking.  I really am surprised this is not simply linked to the account setting for gender as an absolute minimum.  It should really have some links to age, but that is not so simple as appropriate age varies between individuals.

As for the desire to be more stylish, thank you for commenting.  The Lily is really not my style though there are stylish Garmin wearables that would be more my style.  In fact, I actually like the style of my Vivoactive 3.  My query was really whether there is any way to achieve all the benefits of the Garmin but without having to wear the Garmin on my wrist so that I am free to wear a proper jewellery watch.  I have a lovely gold watch from when I was 30, and it is now redundant but I'd like to be able to wear it.

My Dr recommends 3 readings at a time, and the lowest one taken used (this is for HRT medication, due to early menopause)

If you dont want to wear a band / fitness watch then the oura ring might be an option for you, that would offer some health data. 

https://ouraring.com/product/horizon-black

Menstrual cycle disabling info may be found here:

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=UOm8GMk5RQ7aYNVxZ0V6C7

Grumpy_chap

Emmia said:

If you dont want to wear a band / fitness watch then the oura ring might be an option for you, that would offer some health data. 

https://ouraring.com/product/horizon-black

Menstrual cycle disabling info may be found here:

https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=UOm8GMk5RQ7aYNVxZ0V6C7

Thank you.
I managed to follow those instructions, combined with some I found on line, and seem to have disabled the menstrual cycle tracking - hope that it stays off.  It was not easy and not exactly as per either set of instructions.

I did mention the ring devices upthread - they are certainly something I will consider when I next change my tracker. 
If there was a Garmin version, that would be a clincher.
I wonder whether they can be worn as a thumb ring?  Assuming that wearing a thumb ring does not have any connotations.