Garmin Connect users logged more activities than ever in 2021
Garmin has released today their Year in Review for 2021. This shows that Garmin Connect users logged more activities than ever across all categories.
Just a few days ago we wrote about Fitbit’s Year in Review report. The document highlights countries which managed to take it up a notch in 2021 – despite all the challenges to do with the pandemic. It certainly has not been a typical year. For that matter, neither was 2020.
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Now Garmin has released their own report. A Year in Review: 2021 Garmin Health and Fitness Data Insights does not focus on individual country totals. Instead it looks at overall reported activity amongst Garmin Connect users.
So what do the stats show?
According to the 2021 report, the number of recorded activities through the platform was the biggest on record. Now this might seem a bit counter intuitive considering the lockdowns in many countries. But remember, the stats are not for the individual person average. Rather, they show the aggregated activity of all users.
When you take into consideration that the number of Garmin Connect users is growing each year, the stats seem a bit less impressive. The other thing to keep in mind is that the charts below show some very large year-on-year increases. But 2021 is being compared to 2020, which was the first year of the pandemic. This is when even more stricter lockdowns and mask mandates were in place.
Regardless, the stats are a testament to the success of Garmin. We should also give ourselves a pat on the back for managing to stay active in the circumstances.
As mentioned, 2021 was a record-breaking year and this was reflected pretty much across the board. For starters, users reported 37% more walks than in the previous year. Walking is good for you and it allows you to bump up that all-important step count.
It is not entirely clearcut how many steps you should aim for but a figure above 8,000 steps per day sounds reasonable. This is for the average, healthy person and it also depends on age. But most government guidelines are in this ballpark. If you are nowhere close to this figure, it is good to exercise some caution. Bump up your step-count gradually.
Slightly less impressive were the running stats. Users managed to clock in only slightly more runs than in 2020. Trail-running was the star performer in this category with some 11.6% more activities logged during the year.
The other stats were also on the up. Hiking and swimming went up by 20% and 22% respectively. Golf was particularly popular with some 28% more rounds played in 2021. But Winter Sports showed the biggest year-on-year per cent gain with a massive 39% uptick in activities. This includes activities such as skiing, snowboarding, cross-country skiing and backcountry skiing.
Similar to running, cycling also showed only a slight increase. The big winner here was something called gravel cycling. This could be anything from peddling on-road in more remote parts or going for off-road for adventures.
Those that preferred to exercise indoors favoured yoga, with global activity showing a 45% increase. The bulk of this growth was in Europe. Western European countries logged two thirds more yoga activities, with American lagging behind with a 34% increase. Pilates were also a huge hit showing a 108% increase in 2021.
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