Fitness trackers aren’t just for running and for counting steps. The good ones are waterproof which makes them suitable for swimming as well. That said, there are so many choices out there that finding the right one can be really hard. In this article, we will be reviewing 5 of the top fitness trackers that you can wear while swimming.
Table of Contents
Best Fitness Trackers for Swimming Reviews
Garmin Swim 2
- GPS swimming smartwatch for the pool and open water
- o Battery life: up to 7 days in smartwatch mode, 13 hours in GPS and optical heart rate (OHR) mode and 72 hours in pool and OHR mode
- Pool swim mode: records distance, pace, stroke count, stroke type and SWOLF (gauges swimming efficiency)
- Open-water swim mode: uses built-in GPS for swims in lakes, oceans or rivers; records distance, pace, stroke count, SWOLF, stroke rate and stroke distance
- Offers advanced features for staying on pace, logging drills and more
Here we have a fairly high-end smart watch and fitness tracker combination which comes loaded with features designed to improve your swimming experience.
Review
The Garmin Swim 2 features two modes, which are open water and pool mode. The pool mode is ideal for swimming laps, as it will keep track of pace, distance, stroke count, stroke type, and stroke efficiency. The open water mode allows you to access the GPS so you can swim in lakes, rivers, and more.
What’s pretty cool is that this fitness tracker offers advanced features which can help keep you on pace, provide you with logging drills, and a couple of other cool features.
The Garmin Swim 2 can then connect to the Garmin Fitness app, where you can access detailed reports of your swimming, and you can create custom workouts as well. This fitness tracker can even monitor your heart rate.
It is worth noting that this fitness tracker for swimming has a battery life of 7 days in smartwatch mode, 13 hours when using GPS, and up to 3 days in pool mode. As you can see, except when using the GPS, the battery life is quite good.
Pros
- Durable design
- Many advanced swimming related features
- Accurate data tracking and recording
- Advanced fitness app
- Open water and pool modes
- Integrated GPS
Cons
- Quite expensive
- Some stroke readings may be slightly inaccurate
Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness and Activity Tracker
- Use built-in GPS to see your pace and distance on screen during outdoor runs, rides, hikes and more and see a workout intensity map in the app that shows your heart rate changes along your route
- With Active Zone Minutes, feel a buzz when you reach your target heart rate zones during exercise, and celebrate when you earn extra minutes outside of exercise
- Get a 90-day free trial of the Fitbit Premium to help you stay active, sleep well and manage stress. Unlock it all in the Fitbit app. (Valid payment method required. Cancel before free trial ends to avoid subscription fees. Offer valid for new Premium users only).Operating temperature: -20° to 60° C
- Use 24/7 heart rate to track resting heart rate & better measure calorie burn. Syncing to mobile devices requires Bluetooth LE and internet connection. Syncs with Mac OS X 12.2 and up, iPhone 5S and later, iPad 5 gen. and later, Android 7.0 and later
- See your SpO2 nightly average and range on wrist, and view trends over the past week in the Fitbit app (SpO2 is not available in all markets. The SpO2 feature is not intended to diagnose or treat any medical condition or for any other medical purpose)
If you are looking for a more affordable fitness tracker for swimming, the Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness and Activity Tracker might be the right one for you.
Review
The Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness and Activity Tracker is totally waterproof, so it can easily be used for swimming. What’s nice is that this model comes with built-in GPS, so you can swim in open water and keep track of your distance, pace, and overall progress.
Here there are 20+ exercise modes, so this particular option can actually be used for more than just swimming.
This Fitbit model is actually very sleek and lightweight, something which makes it quite a joy to wear; you will barely notice having it on your wrist.
The Fitbit Charge 4 Fitness and Activity Tracker can also monitor your heart rate and keep track of other fitness factors, such as pace, speed, calories burned, distance, and all the other measurements you want.
Pros
- Ideal for many types of exercise
- Built-in GPS
- Included activity tracker
- Durable and lightweight
- HR monitor included
- Sleek design
- Decent price
Cons
- Battery life could be better
- Fitbit app is expensive
Samsung Galaxy Fit
- Automatic fitness tracking: Walk, run, cycle, even hop on the elliptical—the Galaxy Fit automatically detects and tracks what you’re doing.
- Full color amoled display: The always-on, full-color display gives you real-time info at a glance. Touch or swipe to scroll between workouts and notifications.
- Made with a swim-ready design and military-grade durability to protect it against bumps, dust, extreme heat and bitter cold. Case dimension (H x W)- 45.1 x 18.3 millimeter
- Wellness monitoring: Tracks daily steps, calories burned, water/caffeine intake and more. Monitors sleep patterns, and sends real-time alerts if detecting an irregularly high heart rate.
- Compatible devices - Samsung Smartphone, Non-Samsung Android Smartphone(Android OS 5.0 and above, RAM 1.5 GB and above), iOS 10.0 and above, iPhone 7 and above
This Galaxy Fit from Samsung is so far the most affordable option among our reviews. Just because it doesn’t cost much does not mean that it doesn’t come with all of the features you need to track your swimming.
Review
This is another fitness tracker that is designed for running, swimming, cycling, elliptical machines, and more. It’s a really versatile option.
It comes with all of the basic fitness tracking features such as daily steps taken, calories burned, caffeine intake, and more. It can even monitor your sleep patterns and the quality of your sleep.
The Samsung Galaxy Fit is designed with a really solid casing to ensure that it is dust and waterproof, as well as highly resistant to impact.
This fitness tracker should be compatible with all major smartphones and operating systems. When connected to your smartphone, you will be notified of incoming calls, texts, and more.
Pros
- Great durability
- Lightweight and comfortable
- Great price
- 100% waterproof
- Basic fitness tracking
- Smartphone notifications
- Great battery life
Cons
- No GPS – cannot track distance
- Not ideal for open water
Samsung Gear Fit2
- Water resistant up to fifty meters, now you can own the pool, run in the rain and recover in the shower
- Power through intervals to the beat of your favorite tracks with music storage on your Gear Fit2 Pro. Bullet Point : 802.11b/g/n 2.4 GHz
- Boost every session with fitness apps powered by Under Armour. Count every mile on Map MyRun, and stay on top of your nutrition with MyFitnessPal. Dust and Water resistant : MIL STD 810G and 5ATM
- Get a more accurate view of your performance and all day calorie burn with continuous heart rate monitoring. Battery - Battery Type and Size - 200mAh Li-ion. Typical Usage - Up to 3 days. Low Usage - Up to 5 days
Here is another affordable fitness tracker which comes loaded with features, yet somehow doesn’t cost a fortune.
Review
The Samsung Gear Fit2 is designed to be quite durable, and it is waterproof to 50 meters, so it can be used for swimming, but is also ideal for running, cycling, and more.
It comes with a built-in GPS, so you can monitor factors like speed, pace, distance, and more, and this applies to swimming, running, and cycling alike.
The Samsung Gear Fit2 continuously tracks heart rate, plus it can also track other things such as calories burned.
There are also some cool compatible apps which can be connected to in order to set goals, upload data, monitor progress, and more. When connected to your smartphone, this fitness tracker will also receive call, text, and other alerts.
Pros
- Affordable
- Fairly durable
- Continuous HR monitoring
- Can be used for many activities
- Smartphone notifications
- Built-in GPS
Cons
- Battery life is not good
- Interface is slightly difficult to navigate
Xiaomi Mi Band 4
- Languages Included English and Chinese. Wristband width 18mm, Adjustable wrist strap length 155-216mm
- Battery Life: 135mAh battery capacity built in the Mi Band 4, max working time up to 20 days after a full charging.
- Health Monitoring: Support heart rate monitoring, heart rate alerts, sleep monitoring, idle alerts; Monitoring your health data o matain your healthier body
- Activity Tracking: Comes with 6 workout modes: Treadmill, exercise, outdoor running, cycling, walking, swimming Counting step, distance, calories burned during sports
- 5ATM Water Resistant: Up to 50 meters water resistant rate, freely to wear Mi Band 4 when running and exercising
This model from Xiaomi is the simplest and most affordable option on the list, but it definitely gets the job done.
Review
Considering the low price, the Xiaomi Mi Band 4 is very versatile. It has 6 sport modes including swimming, cycling, running, and more. For each mode it can track heart rate, steps, distance, and calories burned. What’s nice is that the Xiaomi Mi Band 4 also doubles as a sleep monitor.
The Xiaomi Mi Band 4 has a great display that is easy to read, and it’s rated waterproof down to 50 meters. However, it’s not overly durable otherwise.
What is impressive is that this fitness tracker can last for up to 20 days on a full charge, which is nothing short of impressive.
Pros
- Awesome price
- Waterproof
- Great battery life
- 6 sport modes
- Very easy to use
Cons
- Limited durability
- Limited functionality
Conclusion
The bottom line is that you do need to think about quality and cost. Simply put, you get what you pay for, so if you want a durable, comfortable, and functional fitness tracker for swimming, we would recommend paying more for a model that has a proven track record.
TRAIN HARD AND SMART!
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