The Garmin Forerunner 45S is a GPS running watch that offers a range of features to help you achieve your fitness goals. Its sleek and lightweight design makes it the perfect tool for runners who demand both style and performance. This watch is equipped with multiple features such as GPS, fitness and sleep trackers, a heart rate monitor, and a music player, making it the ultimate companion for your daily runs.
One of the standout features of the Forerunner 45S is its support for the Garmin Coach training plan. This watch comes with free Garmin Coach Adaptive training plans that provide expert, personalized coaching right to your wrist. The easy-to-use interface can estimate heart rate at the wrist, making it even more convenient for runners to track their progress.
The Garmin Forerunner 45S also has a range of connected features including smart notifications for incoming texts and calls, automatic uploads to the Garmin Connect online community, live tracking, and music controls. Safety and tracking features like incident detection (during select activities) send your real-time location to emergency contacts through your paired compatible smartphone. The watch also has various sports apps like running, cycling, indoor track, treadmill, elliptical, cardio, yoga, and more.
eBay
Amazon.com
Kevin –
I purchased the Forerunner 45s, and I found that it was a perfect size for my wrist!You are able to customize the watch faces by using the Connect IQ app, which enables you to make this watch truly yours.I haven’t had any issues when using the GPS for activities, and the notifications were very useful to see on my watch.The colour is nice to have, and depending on the watch face, you are able to customize the colours to give it more personality! The display is amazing in the sunlight, but can be difficult to see indoors if it is dark without the backlight.The watch is very intuitive to use, and I have no complaints on any of the functions. I would highly recommend this watch to anyone who is looking for an entry-level activity tracker!
Madelynn M. –
Worth the money. Works foe what its intended to do. No jazzy stuff.
R.K. –
Given the proliferation of fitness trackers these days, it was difficult deciding which one to get. My primary requirements :1. accurate heart rate monitor (walking, running biking. Not planning to wear it while swimming). Accuracy is important to ensure maintaining correct heart rate depending on the goal eg fat burn vs cardio.2. accurate standalone GPS to measure distances3. decent step counter4. buttons, not touchscreen (to be able to operate by touch eg while biking). Buttons feel solid.5. able to provide almost all functionality without requiring a smartphone or app ( privacy)this is the review after wearing the FR45 almost continuously for 4 weeks, only taking it off while showering or charging. the FR45 meets all these requirements. the Garmin Connect has a windows application, which can sync directly with the watch over USB. it does require setting up an account with an email address, but no other information is gathered. I am able to use this app to view historical data, trends etc without having to use the smartphone app.Additional benefits:1. the sleep monitor is surprisingly accurate, and somewhat eye-opening in terms of understanding the sleep cycle every night. I think it can drive better sleeping habits2. stated battery life is 7 days without using GPS. I’m able to get about 6 days, using GPS for about 2-3 hours during that period3. If one is so inclined, your profile can be connected to apps like MyFitnessPal to track your calorie intake and get a view of overall calorie input and output. I don’t use it4. the Stress and ‘Body battery’ indicators are fun to see (not sure how accurate/useful)5. you can participate in group activities, challenges etc6. you can track all useful information (distance, HR, stress level, calories, steps etc) easily on the watch itself, though it might be somewhat small to look at7. display works well in most situations, even direct sunlight. there is a backlight button, for very lowlight situations8. Garmin Connect windows app provides a very nice clean interface, and a helpful dashboard to be able to see daily and historical info and trends. there is a lot more in there that I’m not using at this time.9. looks nice.Others have reporting issues with the wristband, i did feel a bit of itching and irritation in the beginning, probably because i wore to too tight, but am able to adjust to it by switching wrists daily and not wearing it too tightly.Some things that could be better:1. the heart rate counter has trouble keeping up with rapid changes. for eg, if I go from walking to running on the treadmill, the watch takes anywhere from 30s to 2 mins to catch up with the new HR. Same with slowing down. This is probably the biggest issue I’ve faced, but can get used to it. when it does catch up though, its accurate to within 1-2 heartbeats (compared with finger oximeter, treadmill monitor)2. GPS can sometimes take frustratingly long to get active. Syncing frequently seems to solve this issue (i only sync with the laptop once every 5-6 days, so maybe this might be just a problem for me3. step tracker is a bit iffy, I’ll usually wake up on the morning with about 100-200 steps in the counter (basically arm movements seem to trigger it). brushing teeth can also give you some steps 🙂 not a big issue, just discount about 400-500 steps from your daily count to account for these conditions.Overall, I’m very satisfied with this purchase, and feels like this would be solid performer for years to come, or at least until the battery gives out.
Hungry-4-the-Word –
How do we know how much we love someone or something? By how much/how little we rejoice when being reunited. Back in August 21′, my Garmin Forerunner 230–my second watch of that model–broke when I slipped on a pothole during a long distance run in Jerusalem. Because I wear the face of the watch on the under wrist, it broke while I was breaking my fall. I loved this watch, even though it was an older model that had been phased out of production, and I purchased both it and the previous unit as “refurbished” watches on Amazon. I wore this watch in tandem with a Garmin chest strap to get the most accurate heart rate reading I could during these long runs. When the watch broke, I didn’t bother ordering a new one, as I was overseas and preferred to wait until I would be back home in the USA in couple of months. While I missed not having a watch to measure the distances and paces of my runs, I felt a certain “release” and freedom to run without the compulsion to always look down at my watch to see how many miles were behind me, or what my running pace was. I felt free to simply “be in the moment” and enjoy the scenery without defining the moment by my live stats……Until four months later, when I started to miss my Garmin. I was going to look for another outdated, refurbished Forerunner 230, but when I looked for it on the Amazon site, I kept being directed to a new Forerunner 45 instead. The display was very different from the 230, and as I read about its features, I thought it has too many “bells and whistles” that I don’t need….like the “body battery” feature, concerning which I was quite cynical as to how accurate such a feature could really be (similar to my cynicism about my previous watch’s claim to be able to measure my VO2 max). Notwithstanding, at only $139, I considered the watch a great value and purchased it.Just one week into wearing it, I can’t take it off…I’m addicted to it! The most pleasant surprise has been the accuracy and convenience of the built in heart rate monitor, which over the past three long distance runs has proven itself to be every bit as good and accurate as the Garmin chest strap I formally wore with the 230. Now I have around-the-clock, 24 hour heart readings, including my resting heart beat, which again is very accurate (mind you, I wear the watch with the face on the under wrist, which probably provides for a more accurate pulse reading). And the feature I was most cynical about, the “body battery,” has also proven itself a delightful and accurate edition to the repertoire of my watch’s features. How do I know it is accurate? Simply because it accurately expresses exactly how I feel! It is really amazing. Even the clock display, which I thought I would never grow to like–it displays the minutes beneath the hours–has grown on me in just a week, and no longer bothers me. Whereas I used to take off my other Garmins when I went to bed, as they didn’t have any features I felt I need during the night, the 45 model begs to be worn around-the-clock, as it provides vital information–heart rate, sleep, and body clock summaries–the next morning. With these features, especially the “body battery,” the watch is tutoring me as to what my realistic fitness aims should be, on a particular day. If the body battery displays a 25/100 charge, I probably shouldn’t attempt a 12 mile run, like I did nonetheless yesterday, I failed to complete it before hitting “the wall.” I highly recommend this watch an model, which is becoming a dear, dear friend.
Kathy Taylor –
This is his second runners watch but he likes this Garmin better than the apple
Jonathan –
My elite runner son uses this to track his new training regimen. He runs 6 days a week and loves this new Garmin. Although it doesn’t connect music, it has been perfect to manage his runs and workouts. He also appreciates the heart rate monitor which lets him know the intensity of specific parts of the run. Great purchase! Love Garmin!
Rahul Bhatt –
Great watch , helps me in running.
Matt Hodges –
I bought this watch for my daughter to be able to monitor her heart rate and stress level since recently being diagnosed with POTS. The battery life is also fantastic.
willie55 –
Have had this watch over a year and love it. The GPS works great. The step tracker is very accurate, does not give into phantom steps where you are just moving your arms slightly. With many stepper watches, the LCD is too dim to see the face in even slightly lit days. This watch is the opposite. It loves the sun and you can even see the face better in bright sun. In dark the LCD light works great. I can set the watch for runs, bike rides and it lets me know my time and distance. I shut off the heart tracker to save the battery. It went from about a day to 4=5 days between charges now. So glad I bought this watch.
Bren M –
My husband transitioned from a Garmin 110 to this current watch and he is happy with the new garmin model. This new watch is user-friendly and tracks pulse rate, running times, and calories. This is a recommended purchase.
Lia –
I recently purchased the Garmin Forerunner 45 and I’m so impressed with it! It’s super easy to connect with your phone, and it’s incredibly sensitive when it comes to tracking your activities and monitoring your heart rate and sleep patterns. I use it for everything, from running and working out to walking the dog, taking out the trash, shoveling snow, and even checking the mail. I love how it keeps track of my heart rate and stress levels, which is surprisingly fun and interesting to see. Overall, if you’re looking for a reliable and versatile fitness tracker that’s easy to use and packed with features, the Garmin Forerunner 45 is definitely worth considering.
Kunal –
I’ve waited for five months before writing a review on the Garmin Forerunner 45. I wanted to be sure of my views and that confidence could only emerge with repeated usage over time. Hence, after about more or less 500kms of running in the past five months, I am confident of my review accuracy.So I wanted a fitness watch, solely to monitor my runs, walks and physical activity. It took me some time but I homed on to the Forerunner 45 considering both my budget and specific purpose.The Forerunner 45 is not a smart watch with versatility and functions of the Apple Watch but it performs some useful smart functions of alerting you once a call or message is received. Leave that aside as my purpose was not a full-scale smart watch but a physical fitness smart watch.And I could not have been happier. The Forerunner 45 is beautifully crafted and ergonomically designed. I have a thin wrist and the watch size was perfect for me. I find it fits snugly and the watch band has excellent grip and sturdy latching mechanism.It is very accurate. I matched the iPhone measurements and based on my previous measured runs I found the watch to be consistent and correct in measurements. Plus, it’s a Garmin product, they produce GPS receivers that are fitted on aircraft and ships the world over. So accuracy is assured.Battery life is very good, I need to charge it every third day or preferably the second day, and the charging takes little time. I think about 30 minutes or so to full charge from half charge status. In all probability, if you don’t use the GPS, the battery life will be a week. The point is battery life is very good and charges fast.The push buttons for accessing the menu are intuitive and I never felt the need for a touch screen functionality. When your fingers are sweaty and you are doused in sweat, you need hard interfaces and the push buttons are ideal. At least I feel so. The menu navigation takes a little time to get used to but it’s not a worry at all. Be a little patient in the initial stages to learn the settings. There is some complexity in settings such as alerts every km or units or targets etc. I wonder how much of these can one gainfully use, but there are a number of user settings that can be done. I like the feature that when it’s dark and you are exercising, the dial lights up when the wrist is turned to your face for you to see the exercise status, and then switches off on its own. That saves battery too. Good engineering.Yes, you may have read that the GPS lock on takes some time and I too have noted that occasionally. But off late, after upgrading the software, I have not noticed any delay in locking on to the GPS. It takes less than a minute but I have had occasions that the lock on has taken up to 15 minutes. In a way, a few minutes to achieve lock on is good as I warm up and stretch during that time. So if it takes a little while, I am fine with it. But please ensure that you upgrade the software upon release of a new version. This should happen automatically on syncing the watch with the Garmin App on the phone.The mobile app is well designed and syncs well with the watch. The details of your walk, run, duration of exercises, VO2, calories, sleep activity are all updated and aggregated. For instance, it’s a good feeling to see the amount you’ve walked or run in a week or a month or a full year. And you do get motivated to exercise more if the data shows a declining trend. Your best effort is also highlighted from time to time. In all, the Garmin app is neat, well designed and presents the data in great detail. For example, you can access additional details of your run, your heart rate, body battery and also stress level. You can compare yourself with the rest of the population that is using Garmin app. Frankly, I have not accessed in great detail the data measured by the Watch, its quite a lot. But the watch is very sensitive. I was once running and a wire from a tree was hanging loose, I ran into it unknowingly and it stabbed me on my cheek bone…I stopped dead on my track and the watch started to vibrate wildly exclaiming a sudden stop and then went on to dial the emergency number. I was amazed. This could have actually been an emergency if the wire has impacted my eye. Hence, the watch is very sensitive to alert any fall or sudden stop. I can vouch for that.So for QUALITY, BUILD, ACCURACY, APP SUPPORT and BATTERY…the Forerunner 45 is a great fitness watch.
Hungry-4-the-Word –
How do we know how much we love someone or something? By how much/how little we rejoice when being reunited. Back in August 21′, my Garmin Forerunner 230–my second watch of that model–broke when I slipped on a pothole during a long distance run in Jerusalem. Because I wear the face of the watch on the under wrist, it broke while I was breaking my fall. I loved this watch, even though it was an older model that had been phased out of production, and I purchased both it and the previous unit as “refurbished” watches on Amazon. I wore this watch in tandem with a Garmin chest strap to get the most accurate heart rate reading I could during these long runs. When the watch broke, I didn’t bother ordering a new one, as I was overseas and preferred to wait until I would be back home in the USA in couple of months. While I missed not having a watch to measure the distances and paces of my runs, I felt a certain “release” and freedom to run without the compulsion to always look down at my watch to see how many miles were behind me, or what my running pace was. I felt free to simply “be in the moment” and enjoy the scenery without defining the moment by my live stats……Until four months later, when I started to miss my Garmin. I was going to look for another outdated, refurbished Forerunner 230, but when I looked for it on the Amazon site, I kept being directed to a new Forerunner 45 instead. The display was very different from the 230, and as I read about its features, I thought it has too many “bells and whistles” that I don’t need….like the “body battery” feature, concerning which I was quite cynical as to how accurate such a feature could really be (similar to my cynicism about my previous watch’s claim to be able to measure my VO2 max). Notwithstanding, at only $139, I considered the watch a great value and purchased it.Just one week into wearing it, I can’t take it off…I’m addicted to it! The most pleasant surprise has been the accuracy and convenience of the built in heart rate monitor, which over the past three long distance runs has proven itself to be every bit as good and accurate as the Garmin chest strap I formally wore with the 230. Now I have around-the-clock, 24 hour heart readings, including my resting heart beat, which again is very accurate (mind you, I wear the watch with the face on the under wrist, which probably provides for a more accurate pulse reading). And the feature I was most cynical about, the “body battery,” has also proven itself a delightful and accurate edition to the repertoire of my watch’s features. How do I know it is accurate? Simply because it accurately expresses exactly how I feel! It is really amazing. Even the clock display, which I thought I would never grow to like–it displays the minutes beneath the hours–has grown on me in just a week, and no longer bothers me. Whereas I used to take off my other Garmins when I went to bed, as they didn’t have any features I felt I need during the night, the 45 model begs to be worn around-the-clock, as it provides vital information–heart rate, sleep, and body clock summaries–the next morning. With these features, especially the “body battery,” the watch is tutoring me as to what my realistic fitness aims should be, on a particular day. If the body battery displays a 25/100 charge, I probably shouldn’t attempt a 12 mile run, like I did nonetheless yesterday, I failed to complete it before hitting “the wall.” I highly recommend this watch an model, which is becoming a dear, dear friend.
Jazlynn H. –
Great watch to track your runs/walks with reliable GPS and heartrate tracker. The mobile app lets you analyze your pace, cadence, heartrate through interactive charts.The battery lasts for 3-4 days when using GPS for around 1 hour per day.A good solid product overall with sturdy build quality. Recommended for people who prefer quality over useless gimmicks that are there in other watches.