Why I Chose a Garmin Watch for My Mom

My mom had been using her Fitbit on and off for about two and a half years. And lately... it just wasn't working well. Connectivity issues, syncing problems, the usual wear-and-tear stuff that happens when you actually use something every day.

Plus, there was the whole Google-acquired-Fitbit situation. The writing was on the wall—Fitbit was being phased out, future upgrades weren't coming, and it felt like the right time to find her something better.

But here's the thing: I couldn't just pick what I would want. My mom's not me. She's not trying to optimize her recovery metrics or track her sleep stages or monitor her HRV. She just wants a watch that works, tracks her rides, and doesn't overwhelm her with features she'll never use.

So I started looking.

What She Actually Needed

My mom's been cycling since her late twenties, early thirties. She was a national champion, and even now in her early sixties, she's out on the bike regularly. Cycling is her main thing—though she also does Pilates and some weightlifting—so whatever I picked needed to handle outdoor rides really well.

Why Not the Obvious Options?

Apple Watch: Too Much Watch

The Apple Watch is great... if you want a computer on your wrist. But my mom doesn't need notifications, apps, or the ability to respond to texts from her watch face. She wanted a fitness tracker, not a smartphone replacement.

Also, the battery life on an Apple Watch? Daily charging. That was a non-starter.

Whoop: Too Elite

I personally love Whoop—I wear it every day for jiu-jitsu and tracking recovery. But Whoop is built for people who are deep in the metrics, trying to optimize performance at a pretty intense level. The learning curve, the subscription model, the way you have to interpret the data... that's just not what my mom needs or wants.

She's an experienced athlete, sure, but she's not trying to analyze her strain scores or dial in her recovery windows. She just wants to track her rides and know she got her steps in.

Sticking with Fitbit: Not an Option

If her current Fitbit had been working well, maybe we would've just stuck with it. But between the hardware issues and the reality that Google was clearly moving away from the Fitbit brand, it didn't make sense to invest in another one.

Why Garmin Made Sense

Garmin watches have a reputation for being serious fitness trackers—great battery life, built for endurance athletes, reliable GPS. But they're also known for being... well, a little utilitarian. Not flashy. Not trying to be a smartwatch. Just solid, dependable fitness tracking.

That felt like the sweet spot for my mom.

The Specific Choice: Garmin Vívoactive

Within the Garmin lineup, I went with the Vívoactive. Here's why:

Size. A lot of Garmin watches are pretty chunky—they're built for ultra-runners, triathletes, people doing serious endurance stuff. The Vívoactive is more streamlined, lower profile. But it's still big enough that my mom can easily see the watch face and navigate without squinting or struggling with tiny buttons.

Feature set. It has everything she needs (GPS for cycling, multiple activity modes, heart rate tracking) without all the stuff she doesn't (advanced training metrics, dive modes, golf course maps).

Price point. It's mid-range for Garmin, which felt right. Not the cheapest option, but not the premium ultra-athlete models either.

How It's Actually Working

So far, she's really liking it.

One feature she particularly likes: quick shortcuts. Garmin lets you customize which activities show up front and center, so she has cycling, Pilates, and weightlifting ready to go. No scrolling through a giant list of activities she'll never use (looking at you, stand-up paddleboarding and rock climbing modes).

She's also been playing around with the watch face customization. You can set it up to show the metrics that matter most to you right on the home screen—steps, average heart rate, whatever. For someone who doesn't want to navigate through menus, having everything visible at a glance makes a huge difference.

What I Learned From This Process

Picking a fitness tracker for someone else is actually harder than picking one for yourself. When it's for you, you know exactly what you care about, what annoys you, what features you'll actually use.

But when you're choosing for someone else—especially someone from a different generation with different priorities—you have to really think about their use case, not yours.

My mom doesn't need what I need. She's not trying to optimize recovery or track sleep architecture or monitor training load. She wants a watch that:

• Tracks her cycling rides accurately
• Shows her basic health metrics without overcomplicating things
• Doesn't require a PhD to operate
• Actually stays charged for more than a day

The Garmin Vívoactive checks all those boxes. It's not the fanciest option. It's not the most feature-rich. But it's the right fit for her, and that's what actually matters.

Final Thoughts

If you're trying to help a parent, partner, or friend pick a fitness tracker, here's my advice: really think about how they'll use it. Not how you would use it. Not what the tech reviewers say is "best." How will they actually interact with this thing every day?

For my mom, that meant:

• Simplicity over advanced features
• Reliability over innovation
• Practical design over sleek aesthetics
• Long battery life over all-day connectivity

The Garmin Vívoactive nailed that balance. And watching her use it without frustration, seeing her actually enjoy tracking her rides again... that's the real win.

Sometimes the best tech isn't the most advanced. It's the one that fits how someone actually lives.

I'll be updating this post with more of my mom's feedback as she continues using the watch. If you've got questions about the Vívoactive or choosing a Garmin for someone similar, feel free to reach out.