Measurements…*

One thing Garmin users may notice is that the watch doesn’t always record the exact same distance every time you run. It’s not uncommon for me to be .01 or .02 miles off for a course that I run regularly. There are numerous explanations for this: running tangents slightly differently, having to run around more people than usual on a crowded day, etc. Even when running with friends, it’s common for us to be .01 to .02 miles different from each other at the end of a run. We shrug it off figuring that if one of us took more wide turns than the other, over time that would add up. When you select the workout type on the watch, you need to wait until the watch connects with the satellite before starting. If you don’t, the watch will estimate your distance. It’s not too far off, but it’s definitely less accurate.

I discovered another possible reason to add to the list. One day, right as my watch connected a neighbor walked by and we chatted for a couple of minutes. When we were done, I looked down at my watch and saw that it was not connected any longer. I waited until it reconnected and then went on my run. I have occasionally (though rarely) seen the watch lose connectivity and then regain it in the middle of a run. I had not noticed a situation where the watch loses connectivity while standing still before starting. It’s a good reminder to double check it before setting out.

The GPS measurement should be spot-on and yet I also know it may not give me the exact same measurement every time. So how do I work with that? Along my regular running routes, there are points that nearly always serve as exact mile markers. What I mean is that if the vast majority of the time my watch is clocking the first and subsequent miles at certain landmarks, I assume that that point is exactly a mile. If I’m going on a six-mile run on an out-and-back course, I run to the point I’m 99.9% sure is three miles based on my past workouts. If I’m at 3.0 or longer, I’ll turn around. If I’m short by point-oh-something, I’ll go until it’s 3.0 on my watch. This means I could be running a bit longer than my planned distance, but that’s my preference.

Another feature I’d like to research at some point is the elevation measurement and how they achieve that, whether it’s still satellite or if it’s based on maps programmed into the software. But, that’s for a future post…

*Edited from first post to clarify precision and the elevation observation.