Whoop Band vs Garmin Body Battery Real Life Comparison // Which one makes more sense?

[@ZachGrabill]

DUDE!! You read my freaking mind. This video comes at the perfect time.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Ha! Glad to hear it was helpful!

[@KParks]

Keep up the great content! 30$ a month is absolutely insane tho lol

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I think they could charge $30 a month if it included free upgrades to the latest hardware when it's available. That would be cool! But yeah, I'd rather buy a $200 watch and be done with it. Thanks for watching!

[@RoostersEagles]

@@ChaseTheSummit I could be wrong but I believe that is the case. When new tech comes out Whoop members do get a free upgrade. Or at least we did from 2.0 to 3.0

[@SaraphL]

@@ChaseTheSummit Well the band itself is free, you pay it back with subscription. Therefore it would make sense to get free upgrades, because you could simply unsubscribe and subscribe again and that wouldn't make any sense.

[@CraigRowand]

I love the Body Battery. I find the Stress Level fairly accurately reflects how knackered I feel after a workout, and when I'm injured or coming down with a bug.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

It's funny how it picks up things like having a couple of glasses of wine, or a bad day at work. Thanks for watching!

[@richignacio81]

Great side by side comparison! Thank you! I used the Whoop for a year, then bought a garmin instinct solar, used em both for a month, both similar data, I really liked the Whoop but had to part with the $30 month, with the whoop I have to charge the battery, then charge my strap once a week, or sooner. I love my garmin instinct solar, it will run forever. Never have to worry about a low battery will run for a month or longer just on sunlight.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing! The Instinct Solar is a great choice!

[@mlegrand]

The hard part about comparing these sleep metrics is that there's no good way to see which one is more accurate. (like you mentioned) There is that guy The Quantified Scientist who uses some research equipment to estimate sleep accuracy. Generally my feelings on Whoop aren't that great. I do think it's a great simple number for people to get a basic feel for recovery. I just don't think they're the only game in town anymore. (keep in mind, I've never tested Whoop so . . .) I also don't like adding more subscription services. Great video and great overview Dave!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Matt! I thought I blocked you 😂 . For sure it's basically impossible to test these in a scientific manner unless you're Rob the quantified scientist! I mainly came at this from a perceived effort standpoint from how I felt on that given day. I do think both platforms have their advantages and downfalls. For me though, body battery is enough and is essentially free if you buy the right watch. Thanks for watching Matt!

[@RestlessGambler14]

Ended my subscription but I still use my Whoop band as a HR monitor when I’m out riding my bike. $30 a month was outrageous.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

At least it still works as a sensor without the subscription!

[@Mikedenton541]

How do you do that? I have an extra I'd like to use for that purpose

[@RestlessGambler14]

@@Mikedenton541 In device setting you should see an option for HR broadcast. With this option on it shows my hr when I am using either my Garmin or TrainerRoad app. Just make sure to add it as a new hr sensor when using those apps.

[@TheImprobableIronman]

I've just bought a Garmin 745 and absolutely love the Body Battery feature. I'd also been having exactly the same thoughts about this being almost identical to Whoop - without the monthly cost.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad to hear you're enjoying it!

[@faisalakatsuki]

in all honesty, this kind of content is really informative and very useful for any smartwatch owners to learn the function of their device in their everyday life aside from the fitness functions. This also help potential buyer to identify whether their targeted device is a 'wacky kids toy' device, 'slight accurate' device or a 'professional athlete accuracy' device. thanks for the great and useful video!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I'm glad you found it helpful!

[@supotube]

I use very accurate tool for measuring about 20 parameters of Heart Rate. It is called MySASY. It uses HRM chest strap and accuracy is 1/1000 sec. I made some data exports yesterday and I have found that during last 30 days there were 14 peaks (best and worst results) in MySASY. And Garmin Body Battery has the same peaks in 12 of these 14 days. Amazingly accurate.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

[@bugboy152000]

Thank you for confirming my Garmin purchase for an overall wellness perspective. I don't train for anything specific but like to treat my body well between life and work. Garmin meets all my needs.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@72emiliana]

What Garmin are you using?

[@bugboy152000]

@@72emiliana Instinct Solar.

[@Anza_34832]

Garmin’s Body Battery seems the more intuitive concept to me = easier to understand. PS: I thought that Garmin is quite expensive, but Whoop is even more expensive!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

$30 bucks a month sounds better than $600... But after a year of paying for it adds up!

[@MateHegyhati]

@@ChaseTheSummit FR45 is around $200 I think. So it is just 6 months. And even the FR45 has "a few" other useful features. I think the realistic pricetag would be somewhere around $5./mo for the Whoop.

[@KParks]

@@ChaseTheSummit exactly why so many people are in debt lol

[@Anza_34832]

@@KParks: So Whoop is for the sporty type of people who don’t have a clue about their personal finances 😉

[@Anza_34832]

@@ChaseTheSummit: Whoop! There goes your money… 💸

[@joemoya9743]

The subscription model of the Whoop band is its biggest drawback when you compare it to Garmin or the Oura Ring.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Judging by the comments... yup! I think they could have charged a lot more for the band and had a free service.

[@knmwt15000]

I bought a 2nd hand fenix 6s, took me a week to stop checking my whoop. Have just stopped my subscription. Body battery is brilliant. The only thing i miss is the journal and the weekly and monthly reports.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Interesting! Thanks for sharing. I haven't heard from many Whoop converts. What didn't you like about the Whoop data? Just the pricing structure?

[@JW-th5hh]

@@ChaseTheSummit The journal and weekly and monthly insights are what I wish Garmin would add to Connect. The watch is perfect but what makes Whoop I believe special is the platform and the insights. Tieing alcohol to a poor night's sleep in the journal is such an easy way for Garmin to do the same. To be honest a small subscription would be worth it in Connect. Strava and other platforms have a premium subscription model and people pay it. So long as Garmin doesn't take away current features it would be well recieved.

[@fuzzykeuh]

@@JW-th5hh I don't think that would go down well with a lot of users. After all, we are allready paying hundreds of dollars for a tracker. Adding a monthly fee is just a slap in the face to the average user and would scare of a lot of potential buyers imho. I think how they do it now, locking new developments and features behind the firmware of newer models is a better solution then deliberatly excluding features behind a paywall.

[@danny121pt]

Snap, I picked up a fenix 6s in mint condition for £200 (couldn't resist) to run concurrent to my Apple Watch 6, I cross compare Body Battery / Stress and morning HRV stress with HRV training, Athlytic and couple HRV./ Sleep apps on iOS. Only issue is wearing 2 watches :)

[@ThatGeekCatty]

@@JW-th5hh you can get weekly insights via email from Garmin!

[@laydsimba]

I had this same question last year and ended up with the Garmin 945 :) Now that they’ve improved the sleep tracking, I’m happy with it. It seems that the Whoop is a bit inconsistent. Some users say it’s flawless, some say it isn’t accurate at all. 🤷🏾‍♀️ At $30/mo. it should be perfect 24/7!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing!

[@heatherm8261]

This was the first your videos that I’ve seen. It’s great! You do a great job explaining the differences. I have a Garmin Vivoactive 4 which replaced my Apple Watch, which was useless. I see ads for the Whoop and wasn’t sure if it would provide any better data than my Garmin. This video settled it for me. My Garmin has been very useful and has done a great job recognizing activities, stress and recovery. Thanks for making this video!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you found this useful!

[@northernwreck]

Garmin also has the load metrics (anaerobic and aerobic) for a given activity which I have found helpful to review after the fact. I have never used a whoop band and it seems like a great idea but many reviewers have said the HR data just isn't accurate which defeats any belief in a heart rate based metric. In a separate question, how did each device line up with how you are feeling?

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Totally, training load is a useful tool. In this video I kind of ignored all of that and just focused on the body battery aspect to keep it fair. I agree, if you watch my full review I didn't find the raw HR data to be terribly accurate but in this video I just ignored that (as most consumers would) and tried to understand what the app was telling me. In terms of how I felt? I guess that's a hard question to answer. I want to lean towards Garmin as it's easier to relate to a "battery" of sorts but I think the Whoop band did an OK job as well ignoring the HR issues I've had previously and just focusing on the user experience. I hope that helps.

[@brandonbrotzman3717]

@@ChaseTheSummit I have a bit of a different take on the garmin training load matter. Being it’s only shown after a workout I don’t find it to be all that useful when you’re trying to adjust your workouts based on your recovery or body battery levels for that day. Sure you’ve got training effect in real time but your training load short and long term aren’t measured using the training effect numbers. For me garmin spits out a lot of numbers but doesn’t combine them in any cohesive way.

[@guest00791]

@@brandonbrotzman3717 if you click into the training load, there are details on load and recovery. It does update dynamically. Really interesting during a race taper and post race recovery.

[@NA-hf4kv]

Interesting comparison and a fair review. For me, body battery is a comprehensive roll-up of multiple source metrics and just easier to conceptualize. I also value the integration with training load and recovery.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing.

[@johnathonborja]

I’ve had the whoop for awhile now and got over the 30 a month so I switched to the basic venu sq that cost 150 and it seems from your video I could get just about the same data. Thanks!!!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing!!

[@Solarsystem50]

Best review in youtube abot these two products. Highly recommended

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks!

[@jeffturner8927]

I got a Garmin Venu SQ a couple of weeks ago and wasn’t really aware of the body battery. I’m a 68 year old and do a bit of bike riding. A lot less than when I was racing competitively but I still like to keep a good pace. I’m finding the body battery quite good. At the moment it’s afternoon and it says 35, just up from 30 this morning. I had a ride yesterday of 40 kms and probably a bit harder than necessary. 😀 It’s good to know that there’s a reason for me wanting to just chill out today.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing!

[@rave2600rave]

Whoop vs Polar ? Polar seems to have readiness and recharge too

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I'll add it to the list!

[@juancaperez2000]

Just about to type the same lol

[@redos111]

@@ChaseTheSummit definitely! Big fan of Polar, even if they cheat on advertisements

[@TheLuisdpr2002]

Nice real review, I’m keeping my Garmin

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks!

[@edutoro11]

Just bought my Fenix 6X pro....man!!! it is AWESOME!!!!!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

It's a good one!

[@KenRick2010]

Me2🙋🏽‍♂️ epic!

[@melparsonsnz]

Super helpful. After watching this I know I should upgrade my Garmin watch to one with this body battery feature. Thanks!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!

[@njtvideo]

Great video, thanks. Have been wondering about this for a while. I have Garmin and will be sticking with that system. Plus if I have something on my wrist 24/7 would like it to at least be able to tell time. Above all, just some metrics to reinforce how you feel. Typically you know when you are too tired to do that really hard work out and when you are really fresh.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, it would be nice if Whoop updated their hardware to include at least a basic screen! Thanks for watching.

[@robertclarke6164]

I have had a Whoop 3 for a couple of years and it definitely helped me. I subscribed before HRV recovery was a thing with other makers. I will be migrating to Garmin as my sub with Whoop is coming to a close. I appreciated this comparison a lot and this gives me confidence and some direction on what to expect, Thanks!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you find value in the Whoop band. Hopefully Garmin can deliver results for you as well!

[@fitgearhunter]

Great video! Excellent concept and execution

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks Hunter!

[@UltraDad]

I thought this was a great idea for a vid the moment I saw the thumbnail. I’m definitely on the Garmin side here. $30 per month is crazy!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks Dan!

[@gofeinico]

Nice detailed comparison. Topic is very good. I like my Fenix 6. Of course you pay much for it but there are no more costs. Greetings from Germany

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for watching!

[@mrcstb7479]

After watching your video I think BB from Garmin makes much more sense.. I was considering getting Whoop but now Im sure its completly not worth 30$/month.. Its not really about throwing whatever data you can at your customers.. but giving them something intuitive, simple and useful..

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I tend to agree. I'm a simple man. Tell me what's going on and get out of my way! Thanks for watching!

[@Alessiodiani]

i'm both brand user, and i think whoop is more accurate if you are training for a specific event, and you have to train hard, whoop can help you to chose the right days to do the rignt workouts, while if you are in a fitness maintenance period body battery is more than enough. just my thought

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing! Do you think in your situation that the $30/month is worth it for the Whoop?

[@Alessiodiani]

@@ChaseTheSummit obviously is not cheap, maybe the price is a bit high, 20$ maybe will be a better price, but overall is a sort of personal coach which consider not only your feeling but consider how you recovery and how your body respond to various inputs during all the day. And most important whoop data continues to evolve based on your activitues, it learn from you, while body battery is measured and compared with garmin standards. I think whoop is making sense for an athlete who have no team or no coach to train and want to squeeze the maximum from every workout, and whoop datas comes better and more accurate if you use it for a long period of time, not only for a couple of months. I’m sorry if rhere are some errors but i’m italian and i’m not so good writing english.

[@Alessiodiani]

@@ChaseTheSummit i was following garmin coach for half marathon and to follow the workouts i finished to overtrain, if i had woop at that time maybe i will not go there, also because garmin coach doesen’t count your level of effort to create different workouts based on your feelengs, it modgy just the confidence bar. I think whoop helps you to understand what your body wants to tell you

[@ZachGrabill]

I know I'm spamming you at this point, but this was the next on my autoplay. Today, July 8, 2021, I've finally decided to ditch the Whoop once and for all. Cancelled my subscription, pulled the band off and put it in the watch box. I'm going all in on my Garmin Fenix 6 sapphire. Ultimately, for $30 a month, the value just isn't there. I appreciated seeing this video (again).

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Spam all you want! I appreciate the comment! How do you feel using Garmin 100% now? Do you miss Whoop? Thanks again for watching!

[@ZachGrabill]

@@ChaseTheSummit the data is interesting, but it can be obtained from other devices, like you noted with the Body Battery on the Garmin. But all the additional training plans and features just make the Garmin a better all around device. And for $30 a month, there's nothing justifying that cost -- no training plans, etc. And it can be obtained from other devices and apps. For example, AutoSleep, an app on my apple watch, does everything the whoop does (HRV, readiness score, resting HR) for a $2.99 one-time payment. I'd love to see Whoop acquired by another company and the functionality added into an established platform. As it is, I won't miss it, and that's really down to the fact you can get the info from other, more established players.

[@Nksmusings]

As always, fantastic content. Cheers !

[@scottswygert7165]

I think you nailed it in the last comment of the whole video...you can look at the Garmin and see the data. There's nothing to look at on the whoop strap itself.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Yep, it's both a pro and a con. If you want a device to sort of "disappear" the whoop is nice because it's not distracting. But it also doesn't offer any feedback at a glance.

[@senpai75014]

Good video. You missed quite a few points that make the Whoop special. 1. The battery life (5 days) which keeps you focused on your daily/weekly activity than the technology itself 2. The straps option: this is, for me, the most crucial component. You compare running activities where you should have also reached gym workouts or outdoor workouts and see the accuracy of both. I do boxing and grappling. My whoop has an armband made for this kind of activity 3. The tracking itself. You only compared the automatic monitoring, but how the manual tracking is performing? The rest is excellent, it’s your opinion, but I felt a little short, lol. Cheers

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for the feedback. In terms of battery life the whoop actually falls short compared to most recent Garmin’s. For instance the Forerunner 945 LTE used in this video lasts for about 2 weeks before needing to be charged if you’re not recording GPS activities. Garmin’s also have interchangeable bands and there are tons of options and they also have manual tracking capabilities. But yeah, I just covered my use case. There are a lot more folks out there that use these devices in different ways. In this video I only share my experience. Thanks for watching!

[@girisandesh123]

Thanks Dave. It is a Great video. Your user perspective videos really do help.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for watching!

[@Rtanner11]

You need to note that in your comparison, you don’t even mention all the extra features a Garmin watch has over the Whoop band. Garmin has GPS, activity tracking, smart notifications, etc. I’ve been using a Garmin Forerunner 955 since it was released 10 months ago, and love it. It’s extremely insightful in my triathlon training, and really impressive in it’s predictive evaluations of my body condition. On more than one occasion has the body battery or training readiness been lower than expected, and then to have illness symptoms manifest the next day. It’s by far my most valuable training tool.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

In this video I focused on one feature in particular I have other videos that go more in depth on the features of the 955. Thanks for watching.

[@chriscowan8749]

Thanks for the video. I really enjoyed it. I think I'll pay a bit more attention to what my body battery says and not work out too hard on days when it's low. I usually think I sleep OK but very interesting to see your sleep pattern vs my 70 something YO one! Often not a lot of deep sleep. Overall I got a bit more trust in the device as a result of seeing this.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MFQuinnCyclist]

With Garmin you can dive into your sleep or stress readings or just look at the body battery number. It also has the HRV Stress reading you can take

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, in this video I just wanted to compare body battery and Whoop side by side to see if they were similar ignoring all other features. Thanks for watching.

[@jakejohnson6662]

This video helped me make one of the biggest decisions of my life thank you man this was very helpfull

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!

[@Rutger5498]

I love the body battery function, and have used Garmin watches for over 10 years. Thing is: I just don't want to wear the same watch all the time (i.e. my Fenix in the office), but you kind of have to if you want consistent results on the body battery measurements, bc these also don't carry over well between say a Vivomove you were during the day, and the Fenix you were whioe working out. I also want to be able to mix it up between my nicer Withings watch and my more casual looking Garmin Vivomove watches. And all my nice other watches (dress, diver etc.) also have been in the drawer for too long. Therefore, for me the Whoop band is a very attractive alternative. And if I look at what I spent on Garmin, Polar and Withings gear over the years, a Whoop subscription does really not look that expensive at all to me. Just my two cents. Thanks for the great video.

[@nimagholipour]

It was good idea to compare those together.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks! I thought it would have been kind of boring but apparently a lot of people like this sort of thing! 😂

[@nimagholipour]

@@ChaseTheSummit no it wasn't. Because Whoop isn't available in my area so I always have been curious about it. Thanks for comparing.

[@martingk2523]

Thank you, i like hoy you do this kind of Versus 👍🏻

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@pierrex3226]

I'm very wary of subscription models and i love my Garmin Fenix, so I'm biased for sure, but your video was super helpful, thank you. I don't think people realize that subscription models are modern day slavery, whereby you never own things. I have a Fenix 3, it's arguably old AF, but it still functions perfectly well. Stop paying for whoop, and you have nothing left.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@dennisstepanek2567]

I went from WHOOP to Garmin Fenix 6. And I can see that I get lot more from Fenix 6. But most of all I can connect HR strap to Fenix 6. That is impossible in WHOOP. I just love my new fitness and recovery trucker that is really accurate.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Nice! Sounds like a good upgrade!

[@kdevine321]

I'm currently conducting an experiment with my Garmin Body Battery metrics. I've been using Garmin Body Battery for a couple of years now and I think it really give a good indication of my stress and recovery levels. If I have a few alcoholic drinks the night before, the body battery will definitively pick that up and I'll have very poor sleep and recovery. But here is the experiment I'm conducting. I am tracking whether being in a social environment is more stressful to me than doing an fairly arduous workout. The test is whether my recovery is better and stress levels are lower when going to the gym a full to do a 60 minute workout and then a 6 mile run vs if I just go out and socialize with people. So far, just socializing with people is more stressful on my body and negatively impacts my recovery significantly. I am also tracking if I have alcohol or not during the social interactions. As this amplifies the lack of recovery. But I don't drink every time I socialize. And I'm even combining the workout/socialization into a single category to test that...e.g. going to the gym then a run club meetup w/ and w/out alcohol. I think using this type of data could lead to better myers briggs type personality tests. haha. I'm totally an introvert but I do like going out and being social, it just takes a huge toll on me. Especially if I'm stressing over introducing myself to a pretty girl. My real goal is to see if I can set a baseline stress level for social interactions and then over time reduce my social anxiety and see if this is also reflected in my heart rate/body battery metrics. Lol. jeez.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

That sounds intense! Hope you share your findings!

[@ryan_sankar]

10:08 --> literally this. I can do the same activities to the tee between multiple days. Garmin's battery would more or less be the same (+/-5) but Whoop's strain would best reflect the stress experienced over those days. Seeing details on that second detected activity you described would make more sense then versus not really being able to pin point something specifically using Garmin's battery

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, I guess it comes down to whether or not you find that level of detail valuable or if the battery is enough. Thanks for watching!

[@eriktred]

I believe I bought my Garmin 945 for $550 with coupon in June 2019. It's still working today with all the new Garmin software updates. If I had bought Whoop at the same time/duration I've had my Garmin 945, that's $30*24months=$720 TCO on Whoop today. Also, I can't use it for running as there is no watch face to provide feedback on heartrate/pace/etc real-time, right? Correct me if I'm wrong here. As a runner it's a no-brainer which I would buy again. The Whoop looks like "fun" as far as stats go, but I couldn't justify both when Garmin provides similar stats plus does more.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For running the Whoop band is really only an option as an additional sensor alongside a full running watch. It's more geared towards activities like crossfit. But yeah, the price adds up quick!

[@eriktred]

@@ChaseTheSummit right I get it. I have a running buddy who wears both. At some point I have to draw the line on how many trackers I want running up my arms 😂.

[@kama121000]

Thanks for your Video! It was really helpful! I love my garmin fenix 😁

[@afomin03]

Dude, you really help me to choose!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!

[@afomin03]

@@ChaseTheSummit y, I immediately went and bought the Fenix 6X Sapphire.😅

[@simonfrank4753]

Good video. I'm a swimmer and I have noticed the data differences between apple watch and garmin swim are huge, particularly on open water swims

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing!

[@Chris-dw3xl]

Great timing I was looking a whoop think I might pass seems expensive for what it is garmin is just as good 👍

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For me it's "just as good" but I am a sample of one and someone who doesn't take this sort of data too seriously. I do think the Whoop band has some advantages but the price and subscription is hard to get by. Thanks for watching!

[@Rachaelshaw7]

I don't have either - I like the garmen shows body recharge in realtime. It also helps you figure out things like playing with your kids is actually stressful for example. I don't own either of these devices - are my conclusions accurate?

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I like the context that Garmin gives with its body battery graph but I also find the Whoop platform useful as well.

[@silviugheorghe7118]

Sir pls, pls leave the music in the beginning of the video with your voice. Cool video and full of information. Thank you

[@Madsnifas]

To get more accurate HR data you need to use the Whoop higher on your arm (close to the elbow). I've been wearing mine that way and went on a couple of runs, comparing the HR on my Fenix 6X pro and the Whoop, and both were giving me exactly the same HR values. Weirdly, I can't seem to find the Garmin's sleep score anywhere, I only have info on sleep stages, pulse OX and respiration. Maybe something to look up tomorrow. Just a final note to say that, for me, nothing beats Garmin's Body Battery. It predicted that I was becoming sick even before I knew it. On a specific day a while ago, my body battery just got depleted a lot "faster" than usual, and later that night I started to get feverish. The next 2 days the body battery did not go above 15% and, on the third day, it got a little above 40%. Again, later that day, I started feeling a lot better. Sorry for the (very) long comment. Cheers from Portugal!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure. Location is everything with optical sensors. My issue is that I don't want to wear my Whoop band there 24/7 due to comfort. Garmins Sleep score only works with enabled devices which are the Venu 2, Forerunner 245, 745, 945, 945 LTE, and Fenix 6. This might be why you don't see it.

[@Madsnifas]

Thank you for the clarification. I do have a Fenix 6X, and I can see the sleep score on the watch, but not on the Garmin app or in the web browser. It's googling time for me. :)

[@midsfella]

I have both and like you get similar data.... I do really like the whoop app and the fact it's far easier to read, recovery % and strain required based on the above.... Cheers for your insight. 👍

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, it's a really interesting app. I'm looking forward to trying out the new Whoop 4.0 band.

[@midsfella]

@@ChaseTheSummit I am too.. 👍

[@ZacharyTech7]

@ChaseTheSummit im fd on all these devices that track HRV I was born with a heart defect repaired called TOF for short and have a permanent heart murmur all my devices Garmin Tactix delta solar ( fenix 6x that looks better ) and my Oura never say I recover my HRV is always 10 or under and I always feel refreshed. Just from the heart murmur I was basically born with. I was told on Garmin connect you can change baseline HRV Vo2 max rest level but didn't see where on Android. Another great video I am a long-time subscriber on multiple of my channels.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Oh interesting. I suppose in your case you could probably just make note of where 100% would be on the spectrum? Thanks for sharing.

[@ZacharyTech7]

@Chase the Summit Yea, sense my average hrv is 10 to 17 I just assume that's me at 100 or optimal hrv for me. I just wished there was a baseline setting for rest value. So my Garmin body battery would charge my body battery always in the 20s my oura ring readiness always around 50 sense my average hrv is lower and that's my normal. Also do you know what the setting in Garmin Connect does under User then Vo2 max I thought that was a baseline that would cause my body battery to charge if I can set it to 17 or something that didn't work sure what that setting does?

[@DB-me3jt]

I have had the whoop 3.0 for a year and stopped using it because of the subscription, the fact that the data was kind off overkill for me and that I did not use all the data to plan my workouts. I did use the data to understand why my workout went as it did and I found it an eye opener to see what effect certain behavior had on sleep, recovery and workout and that Whoop connected the dots for me in notifications like: “The last 2 weeks you used magnesium it had a 10% better recovery” Or The last 5 times you had alcohol your sleep was 10% worse” But after all too expensive for the way I used it, but for those working out at the top level and searching for that last bit to squeeze out and optimize the ratio between working out, nutrition and rest it’s a great piece of gear.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing!

[@ChadMcDole]

Thank you Chase, this was helpful. I have been doing research on purchasing a watch. I am leaning towards a Garmin

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!

[@toobsguy]

Completely different comparison but I’ve had my Garmin Fenix 6X Pro for about a month now and my sleep number bed for over a year. The body battery metric is way off on nights that I wake up numerous times because of my 2 year old. I usually get about 5-6hrs of sleep a night. When I get a solid, uninterrupted night of sleep they seem to be comparable. However, on nights when I’m up multiple times, the Garmin doesn’t budge and says I’m “fully charged” even though I am EXHAUSTED. The metrics from my sleep number much more accurately capture these nights.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Garmin has an improved algorithm that's rolling out via firmware. Hopefully that helps your Fenix become more accurate!

[@lh3540]

lol, I was looking at the Whoop site for like 10 min and couldn't even figure out what it WAS. I thought they were just swappable bands for some bigger tracker.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

The website is a little ambiguous. They're a big sponsor for Crossfit which is where they get the majority of their popularity.

[@highlanderes]

Thanks! Garmins body battery works without the phone and subscription? Huge advantage for me.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Correct, you don't need a subscription and you won't need a phone unless you want to look back at historical data. The watch will collect and display body battery info from the past 24 hours.

[@alanshrimpton6787]

The Quantified Scientist channel compares these things scientifically. Worth checking out. Looks like the body battery works entirely on stress. Low stress it goes up and higher stress down. I use both a garmin and polar watch and both give different sleep data from when i go to bed and get up and the break down. Wrong data is a waste of time so I don't worry about either unless they agree in duration at the same time which is once in 2 or 3 weeks.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Rob does a great job on his channel!

[@wleng]

This is a great video! I am helping to assess whether to continue a whoop subscription after 18 months or go with Garmin. After seeing how body battery work in action i now have to help assess which Garmin is best!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you found it helpful!

[@machinized]

Hey man, the vid was very helpful - thanks!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it helped!

[@damiendavid2709]

Great comparison man...think that it's all about personal views. But hmm 30$ / month is a bit expensive. Cheers

[@kgal1298]

Unless you're using a chest strap the HRM data is going to be variable on most of these tools this can be seen other studies, so as far as HRM goes it depends what you're training for. I think most of us are fine with getting a relatively close metric for day to day athletes will most likely be using chest monitors and other various training metrics during their day since they basically work out 8+ hours per day as that's their job.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks for sharing.

[@bb5op585]

Garmin fenix 6 has body battery and also sleep rating widgets, which are very useful combined together.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

yep! Lots of the Garmins do these days.

[@joshthielbar1]

Love the video. Side-by-side is awesome

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you like it!

[@ian-mucarruthers441]

They performed in a very similar way, but that's all whoop has. The Garmin does so much more 'live' via the watch.. Oh and you can tell the time with it! Whoop has a huge marketing department and lots of pros who they pay to wear it. 5 years from now there will be lots of unused whoop bands in kitchen draws as folks wake up.. But just my thoughts..

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, the Garmin has loads of other features that make it an excellent tool. I think the Whoop band is really just another sensor for those interested in this data. Hopefully Whoop continues to innovate in this space and maybe release something with a watch face an integrated GPS chip in the future. Thanks for watching!

[@orlix666]

Great vid. Tipped the scale to Garmin Fenix 6x pro for me. Thanks!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Hope you like it!

[@uras1]

It's about $40 for an Australian monthly access. That kinda money i would rather put towards a good watch and a pair of shoes

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure!

[@tomylee]

Interesting to see that the result of the two are heavily different. The main question is, are both bogus or just one... Whoop I think is not really telling much. A battery score and graph from 0-100 is much more intuitive. Why 0-21? What are these numbers?

[@mrcstb7479]

Whoop is playing Black Jack with its customers... rotfl

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I think they're somewhat in line with eachother but the tricky part is testing "accuracy" here as there's not really a means of doing this unless you took blood samples and other tests throughout the day. I'm not at that level yet haha.

[@tomylee]

@@ChaseTheSummit I am shocked, I thought you are way more Pro 😝🤣

[@zfjames]

Really useful thoughts and a good assessment! Recovery time and training load play a role on the Garmin/Whoop comparison for me.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, I kind of ignored recovery and training load for this one and focused on Body Battery but those added features are certainly useful.

[@zfjames]

@@ChaseTheSummit And I think your comparison is more interesting for that decision because it includes cheaper Garmin wearables as well. Good video!

[@joc8700]

Very helpful. Hopefully Garmin will get wrist HRV one day.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad you found it helpful! Garmin actually does use a form of wrist based HRV for Body Battery and things like the VO2 Max estimate but they don't share the raw HRV data with the user for some reason. You can read more about it here. support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=04pnPSBTYSAYL9FylZoUl5

[@nathancouse3596]

Long time whoop user for around 2 years... just bought a garmin 245 a week ago and my calories are drastically different between the 2 devices..... not sure why. If have to think either the whoop strap tracked my heart rate a lot faster = more total calories burned in a day vs the garmin. Either way one of the watches is pretty off.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Interesting. How far off? I wonder if Whoop considers basil metabolic rate like Garmin does?

[@nathancouse3596]

@@ChaseTheSummit basically on any given day its off by at least 1,000 calories. Especially on my rest days where all I do is work and after work no gyn or high intensity cardio is done. (Primarily cycling & running) on days that i do high intensity the calorie exhersion is closer but still off. Whoop has me burning far more calories. Still doing data on both and wearing both devices. I'll give it another week, and after that I'll be wearing both watches at the same time for a week.

[@SaulGarcia-pz6ej]

Hi great video and analysis. I used Whoop for a year but didn't keep the subscription as I also have a Gamin Fenix 5X and found the information pretty similar. As a Crossfiter I find the Whoop strap more comfortable to work out with, but it's too way expensive to pay 30USD monthly. I tried to use the strap with my Garmin during the work outs, I can pair boths but wasn't able it seems you need to keep the subscrition in order to do it.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Yeah I don't think any features work without the subscription unfortunately.

[@rubegoldberg6476]

The subscription is just a killer man… and with such awful “lock in time” like 6 months or 1 YEAR and not able to get out of it…. Just bought the Fénix 6 from Garmin’s sale…. Hopefully it lasts a while and stands up to working in the wilderness for weeks. I think it’s worth it… so far

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Nice! Hope you enjoy it!

[@Snappingttturtlle]

Ill simplify your decision. In 3 years of whoop membership youll be able to get probably the best garmin watch out there 1k+ also you don't only get a heart rate reader but way more many functions out of a watch. Unless you poop money is a no brainer. For me.

[@330_Crew]

I can’t figure out on my Garmin Venu Sq why I’m getting no sleep score. Doesn’t show up in the app or webpage Garmin Connect. The most surprising observation of body battery is how alcohol negatively impacts HRV. You literally can see the impact in real time from one drink.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Unfortunately Venu SQ doesn't support sleep score yet. Yes! Alcohol has an effect on body battery and also an effect on the Whoop system. Very interesting!

[@330_Crew]

@@ChaseTheSummit Thank you. I wonder if sleep score will ever make it to Venu SQ or if Garmin is keeping that as a feature of higher end devices?

[@AmzMusic11]

Great review thank you

[@JohnHumbert]

$30 a month? Nope, not me. Garmin is giving me loads of information for free... and that's why I have a Garmin on my wrist. Love my Garmin Venu 2 and the Garmin ecosystem.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Venu 2 is sweet! Enjoy!

[@cbenson513]

I'll stick with Garmin. I think their Body Battery + sleep metrics + workout load metrics paint a pretty complete picture and no monthly recurring cost. Add to that, I am skeptical of the Woot band. Nearly every good reviewer notes its heart rate data is off. Makes me wonder how good their SW is if the data feeding it isn't reliable.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Yep, if you watch my initial review of the Whoop band I too had bad HR data. I guess in this video I wanted to just use it as if I were a consumer and not analyzing the data under a microscope. I think it does have some merit but I do wish it was cheaper, more accurate, and offered some smartwatch features like even being able to tell the time of day. Thanks for watching!

[@qwer55555555]

ha you saved me couple of bucks. I was about to try whoop, but having a garmin it makes no sense to me :D Thanks!!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

They're both good options for this kind of thing. I guess my perspective is how seriously do you want to take this metric? For me? It's not that serious. If I feel good I'm going for a run with or without my watches permission. Thanks for watching!

[@qwer55555555]

@@ChaseTheSummit Thank You

[@BGRecon]

The problem is the whoop in the end doesn't also have the other functions even the vivoactive 3 does. Yes it's not as accurate as the newest Garmin tech but it's still a watch. I can get more apps to track different data fields or get a better idea and that's usually free after I bought the watch. If Woop had a one time purchase that gave me the service for life I would be more inclined to get it.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure. I like that they tried to be the master of strain/recovery metrics but it would be nice if the band at least could tell the time of day.

[@BGRecon]

@@ChaseTheSummit back in the day did they ever do it without a monthly fee? Or has it always had it. I only ask because I used to use the atlas wearable 2 and when I found that on eBay I saw a lot of old whoop bands. That atlas wearable was such a cool watch that had a bad app.

[@transformrollout6292]

This was great thank you. What Garmin would you recommend for me as I mainly lift weights and walk and with a bit of running once a week? Thanks tony

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Check out the Garmin Venu 2, Forerunner 55, or Forerunner 245 👍

[@JW-th5hh]

Thanks Dave for this review. I have been on the fence for Whoop as I no longer want to wear my F6 all day as I have a good ol' fashion analog watch i wear during the day. I wear my F6 pretty much from 9pm -> 9am and do my run first thing in the morning so it is captured. I was thinking the Whoop would be easy to wear 24/7 and more comfortable during sleep. Like you Dave, how much data do us dad's who like to run and exercise need!!! Question for you, are you wearing the F6s or the 945LTE these days? I am thinking of going back to the FR series as I only run, do peloton rides and strength train so the TRI features and adventure features on the Fenix are not of benefit and the watch I find is too big. Would you say wait it out till the rest of the 55's series is released or go with a current 245 or 745?

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I've been wearing the 945 LTE since it was released but it's not because it's better or superior to the Fenix. I swap through watches so often now that I don't really have a "go to" but the 945 LTE is really good!

[@JadenFeddock]

Great video Dave! I like some of the features of that Garmin… haven’t seen many reviews on it but I may have to check it out!

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks Jaden!

[@hehehe5635]

What firmware version is your 945 on? The new update introduces a new algorithm 🤔

[@ChaseTheSummit]

This is the 945 LTE so it already has the new algorithm!

[@hehehe5635]

@@ChaseTheSummit Awesome! Thank you for the comprehensive review :)

[@H.Richard]

i loved the whoop but i started getting contact dermatitis and didnt want to keep playing monthly.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Oof! That's no good!

[@baldheadedfreak]

Is whoop really worth paying 30 bucks a month for though? Given the amount of data already available in Garmin (currently using a fenix 6 Pro solar).

[@ChaseTheSummit]

It really depends. I find Body Battery to be enough information. But I'm sure others like the granular information coming from the Whoop app.

[@alexcrow1856]

There is no comparison if one of the devices has “inaccurate hr data”

[@nooraalsuwaidi979]

which one says that?

[@rave2600rave]

@@nooraalsuwaidi979 whoop hr sensor

[@SuperAloeFresh]

Whoop is quite accurate for me. Love it

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Fair enough. I guess I wanted to look at it from face value just like any consumer would. Buy the thing, put it on your wrist, look at the data. Is it useful or not? Sure, the raw data isn't perfect but I think the platform does work to some degree. Thanks for watching!

[@taufikmorhaiji3313]

May i know what type of garmin watch you wear in this video? Thanks in advance !

[@katieweiher]

This was super interesting. I’ve been trying out Garmin’s Body Battery after deciding against Whoop based on questionable data and the monthly fee. I was already in Garmin’s ecosystem w an older FR35 that doesn’t have activity tracking features and found a cheap, used Vivosmart4. I like it and it’s given me some good insights (eg how hard travel is on my body, how little I recover overnight when I’ve had alcohol). Ultimately though, I decided to switch to an Apple Watch rather than a nicer Garmin w body battery. I’m looking for apps that will give me the same kind of readiness score. If you know of any and have tested them, another video on that would be great.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Thanks! I think the only app I've heard that does a similar thing on Apple Watch is the "EliteHRV" app but it's not quite on the same level.

[@chrismcdaniel1851]

@@ChaseTheSummit Try Training Today for the iWatch. I've been on Whoop since September 2019 and while the data it providers can be extremely useful, unless your daily habits or training changes, the data becomes somewhat stale. After you learn how things like alcohol, food, your training, your personal recovery protocols (besides sleep - so massage, breathwork, icing, etc.), the monthly fee to get the Whoop data becomes hard to swallow. In preparing for my subscription to Whoop to expire, I started trying to find iWatch apps that may potentially give me something similar to the Whoop data. I used AutoSleep for sleep tracking, Heart Analyzer for daily heart rate metrics, HRV Tracker for tracking changes to my HRV, and finally Training Today for something similar to the Whoop Recovery Score. After using all of the iWatch apps for quite a few months, I ultimately decided to go back to the Garmin ecosystem with a Fenix 6 Pro. The simplicity of having all of those data metrics listed above in a single app & ecosystem makes it so much more streamlined. Good luck to you with the iWatch!!

[@katieweiher]

@@chrismcdaniel1851 thanks! I’m trying the HRV4Training app right now. Unfortunately (or fortunately?) the Apple Watch is so hugely helpful to me in other ways that there’s no way I could go back to a Garmin unless I needed it for some serious training (unlikely). I’ve also found the HealthView app really helpful in pulling all my data from any wearables into one app. It’s almost like Garmin Connect.

[@katieweiher]

@@ChaseTheSummit your videos on Apple Watches were so very helpful for my decision too. I think I watched them all multiple times. Thank you for those!

[@highlanderes]

Athlytic, for anyone looking.

[@NathKenneth]

Great video, I just bought a new garmin watch earlier this month. But why the garmin watch can't read nap time, that's a little bit down side of the garmin watches.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Common complaint. Actually not many watches on the market can pick up Naps oddly. But Body Battery will reflect naps as recharge time.

[@allabouttri]

Not used Whoop but Garmin body battery good enough. Another main aspect to club with Body battery is the Resting HR which tells me how the activities is going to be.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, thanks for sharing. RHR is super important!

[@armandolopez4621]

Garmin all day for me. Couldn’t live without seeing my metrics (HR, pace, distance, etc.) real time while I do an activity. With whoop you will still need to wear a stop watch to time your run or look at your phone to navigate the trails. So in essence, it’s not just $30 per month. You need to consider the cost of a watch to time your activity or even a phone to help you navigate.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

For sure, to be fair you can start an "activity" within the app to guage your time/distance. but you'll need to look at the app to stay up to date on it.

[@armandolopez4621]

@@ChaseTheSummit Fair point. But I just can’t imagine how inconvenient it is to whip out your phone each and every time you want check if your HR or speed is on pace. I think it’s better if they just make a fitness watch to compete with Garmin, Polar and the rest of the gang. It’s just like bringing a knife, screwdriver, scissors, etc when you go camping instead of just grabbing a Swiss knife.

[@mohamadjamil3164]

I prefer the one time payment and the general yet targeted info provided by Garmin. You get much more info and features from that as well. I also think that whoop over analyze things for me and binds me to a subscription and does not even offer a screen. That is, I have to refer to another devise to monitor or check the status. The subscription model is not good especially that whoop is benefiting also from selling data to a third party. If this is the case the. There services should be for free. Garmin or sunto is a more suitable and feasible option for me. The watch prices should be less as well

[@ChaseTheSummit]

I tend to agree. Thanks for sharing.

[@EditioCastigata]

Fenix 6S Pro owner here. Neither does my device pick up any activities on its own, nor do I see any sleep assessment or verdict on their website. The tab just is not there.

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Hmm... You might need a firmware update!

[@EditioCastigata]

@@ChaseTheSummit Activity detection is “MoveIQ”, it needed to be activated on v16.60. Being on latest (v16.70) is the issue. (Sleep assessment is missing, support is on it.) Just wanted to make viewers aware of differences.

[@hardmtnbiker]

How does the Whoop band compare to the Polar Vantage V2 with H10 strap recovery test?

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Sounds like an entirely separate video!

[@tulijunior]

Very honest and helpful video, thanks a lot! :)

[@ChaseTheSummit]

Glad it was helpful!