Garmin Physio TrueUp: Everything You need to know

Garmin first toyed with the idea of data synchronization across multiple devices back in 2016. it released the TrueUp feature that covered only select activities like calories, floors, intensity minutes, steps,  and distance traveled.

2 years later, an extension of this feature was released in the Phsio TrueUp which covers ‘Physiological metrics’ like VO2 max, Power zones, and more. 

Let’s delve deeper to learn how to properly set up Garmin Physio TrueUp, its limitations, and more.

Why does Garmin Physio TrueUp matter?

People tend to use more than one Garmin device for different activities. Some for the sake of convenience; some for the accuracy of data.

Without the Physio TrueUp feature, the advanced metrics like ‘Training Load’, and ‘Recovery time’ were at risk of being inaccurate or incomplete when switching between Garmins. 

This could cause frustration and confusion for users who rely on these metrics to track their fitness progress.

With the introduction of Physio TrueUp, Garmin addressed this issue by enabling users to synchronize their physiological metrics across multiple devices. 

This means that when you switch between devices, the physiological data related to your activity will be seamlessly transferred and analyzed to give you a more accurate picture of your performance.

For example, if you use a Garmin watch to track your running workouts and a Garmin bike computer to track your cycling workouts, Physio TrueUp will sync the data from both devices to give you a more comprehensive view of your physical activity.

The activity from a compatible cycling computer will also log into your watch even if you leave it at home.

This can help you to better understand your fitness progress over time and make more informed decisions about your training.

How to use Garmin Physio TrueUp?

We will illustrate this with the help of an example.

Let’s say you train with your Garmin Fenix 7X and use Garmin Venu 2 Plus to track everyday health metrics.

• Make sure that both of your Garmin devices are paired with the same Garmin Connect account.
• Open the Garmin Connect app and tap on the menu icon. It is usually located in the top-left corner of the screen(Android) and in the bottom-right corner of the screen (iOS).
• Select “Garmin Devices” from the menu.
• Choose your Garmin Fenix 7X.
• Navigate to “Device Settings” and then “My Stats”.
• Look for the “System” section, and then toggle “Physio TrueUp” on.
• Now repeat the same steps on your other device (in this case, your Garmin Venu 2 Plus).

We need to make a few things clear at this point; there are a few steps more to the process.

You have to categorize one device as a ‘Primary Training Device'(PTD), in our case Fenix 7X. And the other as ‘Primary Wearable’ (PW). Why?

This way you inform the Physio TrueUp knows which device to prefer for training and performance metrics and which one for everyday health data like HRV Status, Sleep, Stress.

If a single device is connected to the Garmin connect app, by default, it is both the PW and PTD.

How to set up Primary Wearable & Primary Training Devices:

In the case of more than one device, here is how to categorize them properly.

In our case:

• Primary Wearable Device: Venu 2 Plus
• Primary Training Device (PTD): Garmin Fenix 7X

1. Open the Garmin Connect app.
2. Access the menu. On Android devices, tap on the menu icon in the top-left corner of the screen (it looks like three horizontal lines stacked on top of each other). On iOS devices, tap on the “More” option in the bottom-right corner of the screen.
3. From the menu, select “Settings”.
4. Under the “Settings” menu, look for the option labeled “Device Settings” and select it.
5. Next, select “Primary Training Device” or “Primary Wearable” depending on the device type you want to prioritize. You will then see a list of Garmin devices that you have connected to your Garmin Connect account.
   • Select Fenix 7X as your primary training device.
   • Select Venu 2 Plus as your Primary Wearable.

Things you must know about Physio TrueUp:

1. To sync data like training readiness, HRV Status, and Training status, both Garmin devices should have a Unified Training Status (UTS).
2. Physio TrueUp will update metrics like training load, Training readiness based on the data from the primary training device.
3. Health data from the primary wearable device will decide your HRV status, Sleep, and Stress.
4. Once you are finished training with the PTD, You can access all the activity data on the Primary Wearable as soon as you sync it to the Garmin Connect app.
5. With Physio TrueUp, you can synchronize up to 75 days of activity data between your Garmin devices, using Garmin Connect as a bridge.
6. Not all physiological metrics can be synced through this tool. For instance, you cannot sync ‘Body Battery’ via Physio TrueUp.
7. Non-UTS devices won’t have the option to pick PTD and PW devices. Rather, they would have to pick one Preferred device to handle the training data.

Garmin Physio TrueUp Compatible Devices:

If you own any watch, bike computer, or other devices by Garmin released in and after 2016, there is a high chance it supports Physio TrueUp.

Anyways we have compiled a list that covers almost all of them.

What Metrics can be synced via Garmin Physio TrueUp?

• VO2 Max
• FTP and Power Zone.
• Training Load Focus
• Heat & Altitude Acclimation
• Race Predictor
• Last Activity/Sport Widget
• Last Run/Ride/Swim Widgets
• Weekly and Monthly Totals
• Training Load
• Recovery Time
• Sleep (Both devices must support ‘Sleep Score’ and ‘Insights’ OR compatible with Sleep True Up)

However, this list has recently been updated with three new metrics. However, there is one limitation we already shared with you.

• HRV Status
• Training Readiness
• Training Status

Limitation: To sync these metrics your Garmin device should have Unified Training Status (Physio 2.0).

Wrapping Up:

TrueUp is the bridge that allows Garmin to have uniform data across its different devices. Physio TrueUp is the next generation. It is built to allow users the flexibility to use more than one Garmin device at a time without having the fear of losing any critical physiological data. The tool is still far from perfect, but Garmin is taking a step in the right direction.