Garmin unveiled its latest fitness watch today called the Forerunner 745, aimed at athletes looking for detailed training data, on-device workouts, smartwatch features and more.
“Whether heading out for a run, ride or swim, the Forerunner 745 will monitor stats and analyze data to help athletes reach their goals. Featuring dozens of built-in activity profiles, including triathlon, pool swimming, track running and more, athletes can round out their training routine and can seamlessly switch between activities with the press of a button during a race or brick workout,” says Garmin.
“For years, athletes have relied on the Forerunner 735XT as they toe the line and we’re excited to bring new features and updates to the Forerunner 745,” adds Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of worldwide sales. “Tracking every sweaty run, bumpy bike ride and long swim, the Forerunner 745 combines the performance monitoring tools our athletes have come to depend on with new daily suggested workouts, as well as an improved recovery time advisor and wellness tracking features, to help runners and triathletes beat their personal best.”
To help athletes better prepare for a race or training cycle, the Forerunner 745 includes key performance monitoring tools from Firstbeat Analytics like VO2 max, training load, training status and aerobic and anaerobic training effects. Athletes will even receive on-device running and cycling daily workout suggestions based on their current training load and VO2 max. With the addition of a Running Dynamics Pod or compatible heart rate strap like the new HRM-Pro, runners can go even further with their data, seeing all six running metrics – including cadence, stride length and more – right on the watch.
The Forerunner 745 also features advanced dynamics to help with cycling and swim training. While on a bike, it will track data such as left/right balance, time seated and standing, platform center offset and power phase. In the water, the Forerunner 745 will track distance, stroke, pace, personal records and more. Based on the difficulty of a workout, the improved recovery time feature will let athletes know how long to rest before a hard training session. It also accounts for other factors that impact recovery including all-day stress, sleep and daily activities, and will adjust the recovery time on the watch, making it easier than ever for athletes to get the most out of their workouts.
Additionally, the Forerunner 745 allows users to sync indoor and outdoor workouts automatically via Garmin Connect and other training apps like TrainingPeaks and TrainerRoad, right to the watch. Moreover, the Forerunner 745 is compatible with Garmin Coach, free training plans that adapt based on a runner’s goals and performance, allowing users can train for a 5K, 10K or half-marathon with the help of three running coaches – Jeff Galloway, Greg McMillan and Amy Parkerson-Mitchell – to guide and motivate them.
Before heading out for a run or ride, athletes can plan and download routes using the course creator in Garmin Connect, which uses Trendline popularity routing to provide the best road, trail or mountain routes that are aggregated from those most traveled by fellow runners and cyclists. For athletes using platforms like Strava and Komoot, they can create courses that will seamlessly sync to the Forerunner 745 as well.
The Forerunner 745 also gives athletes the freedom to enjoy their favorite music without having to take a phone along, wherein the can store up to 500 songs that allows users to sync playlists from select preloaded music streaming services such as Spotify, Amazon Music and Deezer, or transfer music from a computer. What’s more, athletes can stop for purchases and quickly pay right from their wrist thanks to Garmin Pay contactless payment option.
Designed to be worn all day, the Forerunner 745 features tools to track an athlete’s well-being. For instance, a wrist-based Pulse Ox sensor will help provide a clearer picture of how athletes are sleeping and adjusting to altitude acclimation while the Body Battery energy monitor lets them track their energy levels to find the best times for activity and rest. In addition, the menstrual cycle tracking feature helps women adjust their training to maximize improvement potential and plan for upcoming races based on where they are in their cycle.
The Forerunner 745 also lets athletes stay in touch, delivering text messages and allowing them to view social media updates, emails and more. There are also built-in safety and tracking features that include incident detection, assistance and LiveTrack to let loved ones follow along on a run or ride.
Lastly, after a workout, the Forerunner 745 will automatically upload activities to Garmin Connect.
The Forerunner 745 features up to 1 week of battery life in smartwatch mode, up to 16 hours in GPS mode and up to 6 hours in GPS mode with music. It is available in black, neo tropic, magma red or whitestone for $499.99.
Garmin has also introduced the HRM Pro heart rate monitor, which features ANT+ connectivity and Bluetooth to transmit accurate heart rate data to your Garmin device. The strap also captures running dynamics – including ground contact time, cadence, stride length and more – as well as steps, calories and intensity minutes and transmits that data to your smartwatch via Garmin Connect.
The HRM Pro is priced at $129.99.
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