Having a beautiful Garmin watch on your wrist and all the metrics it shows you is amazing – if you’re into that kind of thing of course. But not being able to wear it because your wrist is being irritated? There’s nothing worse.
I’ve had a Garmin for years – currently the Fenix – and had issues with my watch, which made my wrist sore. This has meant I’ve had to stop wearing it or wear it on the other wrist – it feels so wrong!
It’s annoying how I managed to stop this from happening because it’s pretty simple and obvious – but really easy not to do.
Tips on how to ensure your watch stops making your wrist sore:
Stop wearing it so tight.
If you’re wearing it for a workout and want the watch on tight so you get accurate metrics, ok, I get it, but make sure afterwards you loosen it.
Clean the watch.
If you work out but don’t shower for hours, you’ll have sweat lingering under the watch, potentially causing irritation. Make it a habit to clean your watch after working out.
Maybe when you go and get a drink, find time to clean your watch at the same time at the sink (but make sure you properly dry it – see the next tip).
I shower after a workout and keep the watch on, as it’s waterproof. I loosen it so I’m able to get soap underneath so I can clean my wrist and watch at the same time.
Dry the watch and your wrist.
Make sure to thoroughly dry your watch and wrist after getting either wet. This is probably the biggest thing that stopped my irritation. After showering, I wasn’t drying either. This was allowing the water to just… sit.
Now I take off my watch and dry both thoroughly with a towel.
I always put the watch on loosely after a shower just to give it some breathing room for an hour or two.
Simple things, right?
If the problems continue, then you might be allergic to your current watch strap material and you should invest in another. There are millions of replacement straps on Amazon, and if you read the reviews, you will find they’re from people who have suffered with irritation with the strap the watch originally came with.
