The ability to sync your Garmin device to your Peloton is a vital way to monitor your training progress. It’s also one of the biggest benefits of owning a high-quality smartwatch.
Whether you’re interested in tracking distance on your Peloton rides, monitoring your heart rate on the treadmill, or keeping an eye on the number of calories you burn, having access to a detailed report of your fitness metrics is invaluable when it comes to keeping yourself in check.
Can a Garmin watch connect to Peloton?
While it is possible to sync your Garmin to Peloton, workout data from Peloton devices can’t easily be synced to the Garmin Connect app. While Peloton sends data directly to Apple Watch and Fitbit devices, Garmin users are not so lucky and must find other ways to track their workouts.
Without using third-party software or complex python scripts, Garmin users won’t be able to view distance, power output, or revolutions per minute within their Garmin Connect app.
There are ways to transfer important tread and ride data from your Peloton device to your Garmin watch. In this blog, we’ll look at two of the best methods to help you keep track of your latest workouts using your Garmin device.
Option 1) Using your Garmin watch to broadcast your heart rate via Bluetooth/ANT+
Under normal circumstances, Garmin watches and Peloton bikes don’t play nicely. This is because Peloton and Garmin devices don’t sync together in the same way that standard Bluetooth devices do.
Most Garmin watches sync to Peloton using ANT+, a simplistic Wireless Personal Network protocol designed to help collect and transfer basic sensor data.
ANT+ is extremely common in cycling equipment, heart rate monitors and smart trainers because it has a much lower power requirement than Bluetooth devices. This means that it reduces power usage and saves battery life.
While ANT+ has limited functionality, it can be used to let your Garmin watch translate your heart rate data directly onto your Peloton screen.
Monitoring your heart rate during your workout is incredibly useful. It encourages you to track progress, monitor your cardiovascular health, and push yourself to the limit.
Which Garmin watches can broadcast heart rate data to Peloton through ANT+?
While there are some Garmin watches that are perfectly suited to Peloton, don’t worry – you don’t need a fancy Garmin heart rate monitor to start tracking your heart rate. Nearly all Garmin watches are compatible with your Peloton bike or treadmill through ANT+.
Whether you’re sporting a Garmin Vivoactive, Forerunner, Vivosmart, or Instinct, the process for syncing your ANT+ device to your Peloton bike/treadmill is almost identical.
While setting up with ANT+ is often more temperamental than with a regular Bluetooth heart rate monitor, the process is still straightforward, and setup can usually be completed in minutes.
How to sync your Garmin watch with your Peloton
To sync your Garmin heart rate monitor to your Peloton bike or treadmill, follow these simple steps:
1) Give your Garmin watch permission to broadcast your activity
In order for your Garmin device to send out ANT+ signals, you need to enable your watch’s ‘broadcast in activity’ setting. To do this, follow these simple steps.
1) Head to your Garmin watches Settings.
2) Depending on your watch, follow one of the following two paths to find the correct setting:
- Wrist Heart Rate > Broadcast In Activity
- Settings > Sensors & Accessories > Heart Rate > Broadcast In Activity
Tap to turn on the Broadcast In Activity feature. Enabling this setting allows your Garmin watch to broadcast your heart rate to your Peloton devices.
2) Make sure your Garmin watch is properly positioned
To get the most out of your Peloton device, ensure you position your watch correctly on your wrist. For accurate results, most experts recommend that you:
- Position the watch two fingers above your wrist.
- Wear the watch tightly enough that it doesn’t move while running or cycling.
3) Sync your Garmin device with your Peloton bike/treadmill
Now that your Garmin device is accurately broadcasting your heart rate, it’s time to prompt your Peloton bike or treadmill to detect your Garmin watch.
There are two ways to display your heart rate on your Peloton screen.
Option 1)
One way to sync your Garmin watch with your Peloton is through your Peloton home screen. To do so:
- Click on the settings icon in the top right of your Peloton screen
- Navigate to the Heart Rate Monitors section.
- Locate your Garmin device in the list of available devices.
- Tap your heart rate monitor to pair.
Option 2)
Users can also establish a connection between their Peloton device and Garmin watch before starting a workout. To do this, follow these steps:
- Select the Peloton workout you’d like to do.
- Before you click the option to start your workout, look for the button that allows you to tap and pair your heart rate monitor.
- Find your Garmin device as normal, and link up your heart rate monitor.
Option 2) Using SyncMyWorkout to link Garmin and Peloton
One way to bypass the syncing limitations between Peloton and Garmin is by using SyncMyWorkout. This convenient, standalone subscription service manually links your Peloton app to your Garmin Connect account.
When you complete your Peloton workouts, the information from your Peloton bike or treadmill will automatically upload to your Garmin Connect app for you to view. This is the perfect option for users who want to keep track of all key metrics recorded by Peloton devices.
The software will report and display important data relating to your Peloton training, including your speed, distance, time spent exercising, and calories burned. SyncMyWorkout also works well with Strava.
Before you create your SyncMyWorkout account, ensure you’ve set up both a Garmin Connect and Peloton app account.
Without Garmin Connect, SyncMyWorkout will have nowhere to send all the power metrics about your workout!
To set up SyncMyWorkout, follow these steps:
1) Sign Up to SyncMyWorkout.com.
2) Link your Garmin and Peloton accounts to the website.
3) Choose one of SyncMyWorkout’s subscription packages. Typical prices are $25/year or $7/month
4) Let SyncMyWorkout do the rest. The app will automatically sync both of your accounts. Whenever you complete a workout, the details of your training session will be transferred from your Peloton app to your Garmin device.
FAQs
Can you manually add a completed workout to Garmin connect?
Yes. For users who don’t want to spend time or money using third-party software like SyncMyWorkout to transfer data from their Peloton bike or tread to their Garmin watch, manually adding workout data is a viable option.
To do so, complete these steps:
- Follow the route: Menu > Activities > Create Manual Activity.
- Fill in information about your completed workout.
- Select Save.
- Your manual workout is now completed.
Note that this function only allows you to enter basic information. It’s best to use software like SyncMyWorkout to gain access to complex metrics.
Why is my ‘Broadcast In Activity’ setting not working?
If you find that your ‘Broadcast In Activity’ setting isn’t working, try these steps to troubleshoot the problem:
- Turn the ‘Broadcast in Activity’ setting on and off.
- Restart your Garmin watch.
- Click refresh on your Peloton Heart Rate Monitor Available Devices list.
- Restart your Peloton device.
