tracking swimming

[johnmh]

There is much to like about the Ionic -but as a regular swimmer - and unless there is something I am doing wrong - it is a great shame to find that the tracker cant give me an up to date summary in real time of the lengths I have swum

I set it going at the start of say a 1500 metre pool swim and it doesnt log the first length - after that the screen shows one length less than i have actually swum - i get to the end of the 60 lengths - press the pause button and then it shows accurately 1500 metres and 60 lengths -

What is that about - is there a way of sorting this out ?

And there is no GPS for open water swims - or do people use the running GPS for this function ?

Would it be too difficult to make the GPS function work for open water swimming ?

Thanks

[SantiR]

@johnmh Welcome to the Fitbit family! Thanks for reporting this strange situation with swim tracking.

This should be possible to sort!

So, at the end it shows accurately, right? It is only during the exercise recording that it doesn't show all the data? Interesting. Keen to hear if any other users have experienced the same? 

I believe at the time you were experiencing this you were using the previous version of the Ionic's firmware. Have you updated it to its latest version already? That could sort this out!

Also, you can try performing a restart on your watch. That has helped in the past.

Additionally, I did some research on the Feature Suggestions Board and was able to find this ideas which is asking for an option to track open water swimming on Ionic. I recommend voting for the idea and leaving a comment too. The more votes, the better.

Hope this helps. Keep me posted! 

[Arnoldjr04]

I too have experienced this phenomenon.   I have updated and restarted the watch.  I am swimming in an outdoor pool. I am no experienced swimmer like the OP, but it seems to track accurately at the end, but is lagging behind during swimming back an forth.   

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[SantiR]

@Arnoldjr04 Welcome to the Fitbit family! Thanks for your report regarding the swim tracking with Ionic.

I'd like to gather as many reports regarding this as I can. Keen to hear if there are any other users experiencing this?

Also, please try performing a restart on your watch to check if that will help sort this out.

Keep me posted! 

[johnmh]

Hi
Restarting does not make any difference to the problem of not accurately keeping a record of lengths as you swim them
Thanks for working on this - look forward to a good outcome
Johm

Sent from my iPhone

[kpschleich]

I am thinking of buying the Ionic. It seems to have a great display. Key question for me:

Does it display the most important Information: distance and laps continuously during swimming with display always on? Where could I see some screenshots.

Apple3 turns the Display off after max 70 sec. I just want to be able to check and see the distance any time during the swim, without having to fiddle around.

The Ionic seems the only one that really fulfills this requirement. But it is hard to get that really verified from the reviews.

[Arnoldjr04]

It is not on continuously. The display turns off under water. When exercising the live stats that are displayed are easily scrolled through the the push of the side button. Unfortunately the display does not stay on continuously. However, it does have a rise to check display function where if you raise your hand up to look at your watch the display automatically turns on shoeing whatever stats you have scrolled to. Also to note, the swim tracker seems to be a lap behind at times with live distances. Maybe the pool I swim at is not regulation and is affecting this, not sure. I love the watch but it is my first fitness tracker so I have nothing else to compare to really.

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[kpschleich]

Thank you very much for your quick reply. Does that mean I have to twist my arm or throw it in the air to turn the display on? Could I also use a button? Do I actually have to interrupt my swim?

An always on mode should be really something Fitbit should provide in an update.

I understand, that when turned on, the screen displays whatever was the last selection? Or do I have to scroll before seeing the screen with current laps and distance?

Being one lap behind in counting seems not so terrible, as long as its always the same.

Thanks again.

[Arnoldjr04]

The swim would have to be interrupted. It isn’t always one lap behind, sometimes it’s an accurate count, but sometimes when I interrupt my swim to check my time, it hasn’t counted my last lap so the time split time isn’t accurate. Yes, when display is turned on it is at last selected view.

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[kpschleich]

Thank you very much. That is a bit disappointing. I have done quite a bit of research now and I do not know, whether my requirements are so strange. I just want a bright and clear display and large numbers (because I am 63) and I want to read the lap count during swimming without having to stop. Does not seem much. But hard to find. What use is all the high tech, if the basics don't work. Thanks a lot for your help.  

[johnmh]

I didn’t reply to the post
BUT - I have learned to live with the fact that when you are swimming lengths what you see on the ionic is one length behind what you have actually swum - but when you finish - the missing length gets added to the total

And you can set it so that the face is nice and bright throughout your swim - uses up a bit more battery but for me this is a small price for continually showing where I up to

Regards

John

Sent from my iPhone

[Fertetkingdom]

I have the same issue.   I'm frequently losing a lap or two every time I swim,  so it's not tracking each lap correctly which skews my distance and pace times.   I wish there was a way to track open water swims and also HR while swimming.   I just got into swimming recently,  otherwise I probably would've gotten a different fitness tracker

[Fertetkingdom]

My missing laps aren't showing up for me at the end of my swim.   I swam 1000 yards today but only got credit for 975.  This is a regular thing for me to lose a lap or two and it drives me crazy.   My fitbit is up to date, and restarting it has not made a difference

[kpschleich]

Oh great! So there is an always on option after all. Thanks a lot!

[Jess_B]

I have this issue as well. I swim in a 25m pool and often my meters at the end of the workout do not match what I have actually swum. Additionally, if I do any kicking, the Ionic does not track anything for those meters. I swim with a masters team, so we are often doing kicking and drills, not just swimming laps, and I don't end up with an accurate count of my meters at the end of practice.

[Shabinslu]

I have a Charge 2 and I really want to upgrade to the Ionic. I swim on the weekends and I'm about to start training for a triathlon in a few months, which means also swimming during the week as well as weekends. I am an open water swimmer and really hate not having the ability to track my swims automatically. I have to guess my distances swam. We also do lots of drills and exercises while swimming so missing all of that data is really a bummer. 

Wondering how the Ionic tracks swimming and if it tracks open water swimming? Does the GPS work while swimming etc. 

[Jess_B]

GPS and HR monitoring both do not work if you choose the “swim” activity. You could try using “bike” as an activity to track distance for open water. That’s what I use as a workaround for tracking distance rowed on the water. 

[johnmh]

Ok thanks
I will try that
John

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[Dirk74]

Swimming is a key feature for me and I've had many sessions with my Ionic.

It's the most reliable feature so far. Even when I have to switch from crawl to breaststroke, the lanes are counted correctly.

Maybe the following might help to get better results:

- set the length correctly

- activate 'always on' (costs some battery charge)

- in the turning, push hard forward

Keep in mind, the Ionic needs either the signal from its acceleration sensor while doing the turning, or, at the end of the exercise, the stop button. That's why you are always one lap behind.

As the GPS depends on strong signals from several satellites, only chance for open water swimming is to place the watch under your bathing cap after you started an other exercise with GPS, like the suggested biking.

Greetings

Dirk

[kpschleich]

Thank you Dirk! However I got the information from customer support and also through some comments within this community that always on mode unfortunately does not work during swimming. Hopefully this will be fixed at a future software update.