Garmin Forerunner 230 and Forerunner 235 How To Tutorials

Garmin Forerunner 230 or Forerunner 235 Review

the Garmin Forerunner 230 or Forerunner 235 very similar to a Vivoactive but more focused on the runner instead of the general activity type. If you already have a Vivoactive, you probably won’t find the Forerunner 230 an upgrade. The display in sunlight while running is very visible and the five to seven days in between charges is what we’ve come to expect with a Forerunner.

I’m not covering the wrist heart rate monitor found only on the forerunner 235. I’ve focused on common features found on both models.

 

Garmin Forerunner 230 or Forerunner 235 Manual

Grab the manual in PDF format from Garmin.

Contents

You’ll find on this page a collection of short video tutorials on how to use your Garmin Forerunner 230/235 (minus wrist HR functions).

  • How to Restart or Reset
  • How to Pair with Smartphone (iPhone)
  • How to Start a Run
  • How To Turn on/off Activity Tracking or Move Alert
  • How to Turn GPS Off (Treadmill Run)
  • How to Setup 10 and 1 Interval Workouts
  • How To Setup Custom Workouts
  • How To Setup Heart Rate Strap
  • How To Use Music Controls
  • How To Change User Profile and Heart Rate Zones
  • How To Change Activity Profiles
  • How To Delete Activity History
  • How To Customize Data Screen
  • How To Setup Pace or Heart Rate Alerts
  • How To Update Software
  • How To Change System Settings Like Miles to Kilometers
  • Weather Forecast When Paired to Smartphone
  • How to Install a Watch Face
  • How to Install a Connect IQ app
  • How to setup a HIIT or Crossfit Custom Workout
  • How to lock the buttons


How To Pair With A Smartphone

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The easier way to manage the Garmin forerunner 230 is by pairing it via bluetooth with your smartphone. This will allow you to transfer activities to garmin connect, download watch faces and other apps from the connect IQ store.

First we need to have bluetooth on your smartphone and have the Garmin Connect Mobile app installed.

1. Put your device in Pairing mode by pressing on DOWN arrow | SETTINGS | BLUETOOTH.

2. Now flip over to Garmin Connect Mobile; MORE | DEVICES | ADD Forerunner 230.

3. Tap START button to start pairing, once found enter the bluetooth pairing code that is displayed on your device.

At this point, it might take a bit to finish the setup and it might download an update.

Once done, you can now use your forerunner 230.

 

Going On Your First Run

Once you’ve charged your garmin forerunner 230 or 235 fully, you can put it on your arm and go out on your first run.

It’s pretty easy, just go outside and press on the RUN button and wait for the GPS signal. This might take a few minutes.

Once you see GPS SIGNAL READY inidicator on the screen, you can now start your running activity.

Press the RUN button to START your run. To pause the activity, PRESS the RUN button again.

You can scroll through the data screens by pressing the UP / DOWN buttons.

Once you pause the activity, you can press the BACK / LAP button to either SAVE, DISCARD, RESUME the run. You also have access to the run settings from this menu page.

Once you save an activity, you can view the ACTIVITY SUMMARY, providing you with a high level view of your run activity.

Press the BACK / LAP button to return to the CLOCK page.

 

How To Reset


There are three ways you can attempt to restart or reset your Garmin forerunner 230 or 235. Bare in mind that these operations may or may not delete your activity history. That’s why it’s a good idea to sync after each activity.

If your forerunner is frozen, do the following:

1. Press and hold the power button for at least 15 seconds or until the unit restarts

If you want to reset the user settings, do the following:
1. With the device off, turn it on by pressing BOTH POWER/BACKLIGHT and LAPS/BACK Button.
2. Hold buttons until you see the CLEAR USER DATA screen.

If you want to wipe the forerunner clean, do the following:
1. With the device turned on, navigate to your MENU | SETTINGS | SYSTEM | RESTORE DEFAULTS

 

How To Turn On/Off Activity Tracking

In this video we will go over how to turn on or off the activity tracking feature and the auto move alert on your Garmin forerunner 230 or 235.

Activity tracking allows you to track your steps, calorie count and distance similar to the vivofit, vivosmart and vivoactive.

By default, after initial set up these features should be already turned on if not this is how you quickly turn on & off these features.

  1. First press of the RUN button and select the MENU from UP/DOWN button.
  2. Select SETTINGS | ACTIVITy TRACKING. From there, you have the option to turn on and off activity tracking and turn on Auto Move Alert.

To view your activity, from the main display, use the UP/DOWN button to view the Activity tracker screen.

 

How to Turn GPS Off (Treadmill Run)


In this video, we’ll go over the steps for us to turn off the GPS for indoor workouts on the garmin forerunner 230 or 235.

1. Press the RUN button and DOWN to get to the MENU
2. Select ACTIVITY SETTINGS, select GPS
3. Select OFF.

Now you need to have a few outdoors runs completed prior, so that the sensors are calibrated. Otherwise now you can do a treadmill run with accurate sensor information.

 

How to Setup 10 and 1 Interval Workouts


In this video, I’ll show you how to setup an interval workout with your Forerunner 230 or 235 such as a 10 & 1 running workout.

1. press on the RUN button, then DOWN to access the menu.
2. scroll the TRAINING, then INTERVALS
3. Now edit the workout so that we have a DURATION step of 10 minutes and a REST step for 1 minute. The number of reps is up to you.

The WARM UP and COOL DOWN steps can be turned on. When in a workout, use the LAP button to get to the next step of the workout.
Once you have the interval workout created, you are ready to use it on your next run.

1. Press the RUN button
2. MENU | TRAINING | INTERVALS
3. now DO WORKOUT. Press the RUN button again to start the workout.

 

How To Setup Custom Workouts

In this video I’ll show you how to create a custom workout in Garmin Connect and transfer it to your device using Garmin Express or Garmin Connect mobile from your smartphone.

These types of workouts are generally more complex than the simple interval workout, where you have multuiple steps, repeats and a warm up & cool down option.

1. Sign into Garmin Connect. From the menu, select WORKOUT and create a new Running workout.

2. You’ll have a few steps already created: warm up, step, cool down. You can add steps or a repeat block if your workout is more complex.

3. You can add a target to your step. Say you are doing heart rate training or want to maintain a certain pace during your run like a 5k. You can edit the step to be 5k in DURATION and add a TARGET where you can further set the limits of the step.

4. Finally you can give this workout a name.

Once done, you can SEND TO DEVICE either via your USB cable. This will require Garmin Express. Or if you have your smartphone already paired with your forerunner then you can simply use the Garmin Connect Mobile app to transfer the workout that way.

How To Setup Heart Rate Strap

The big difference between the forerunner 230 and forerunner 235 is that the forerunner 235 included a wrist heart rate monitor. This allows you to record heart rate data during your run without a strap.

However, the 230 requires an ANT+ compatible heart rate strap to record HR data during your runs. Basically any Garmin branded HR strap will work.

This works best while at home as comapred to run club where several HR straps may create complications. What we want to do is pair our heart rate strap to our device so that we can record HR data during our runs. You may still see random HR sensors if you happen to not wear a strap.

1. At home, put on your heart rate strap.
2. Press RUN and the DOWN button to get to the MENU
3. Scroll to SETTINGS | SENSORS AND ACCESSORIES

You may see the notification that the HR strap is connected during this step.

4. You should see your HR strap listed. Press RUN to get into the options.

Essentially your HR strap has been paired. You can remove the strap for the list, you can turn searching on/off for this strap and view the serial number.

How To Use Music Controls

While paired with a smartphone, your garmin forerunner 230 or 235 can control your music player with the basic controls.

While paired with a smartphone, PRESS and HOLD the UP button and from the list of options, you should see MUSIC CONTROLS.

Press RUN and you should be able to access PLAY/PAUSE, PREVIOUS and NEXT track.

How To Change User Profile and Heart Rate Zones

If you don’t sync with a smartphone, you may want to setup your user profile. This will also setup your heart rate zones.

1. go to your MENU | MY STATS

You can see the race predictor, but you need to run 10 min with your HR to get this data.

You can view your records such as fastest mile, 5k, 10k etc..

2. Under USER PROFILE you can change your gender, weight and heart rate zones such as max hr, resting hr and ability to edit each zone. You can reset he zones.

How To Change Activity Profiles

Activity Profiles on your Garmin Forerunner 230 or forerunner 235 are optimized settings and popular data fields for the selected activity like running outdoors or biking indoors. You can further customize the profile to your liking without affecting the others.

In other words, you can customize your data screens and other options just for running outdoors.

First we need to specify which activities we want to display when selecting.

1. get to our MENU | SETTINGS | ACTIVITY PROFILES
2. Select the profiles you want to use like Run outdoors and bike indoors.

Now to switch from RUN to BIKE, simply press the RUN BUTTON and use the UP BUTTON to scroll the enabled profiles. Press RUN to select a profile.

You will continue to use the selected profile until you select a different one.

How to Delete Activity History

I’ll show you how you can manage your activity history on your Garmin forerunner 230 or 235. If you don’t sync your forerunner, you may end up at race day with a full forerunner and getting that error message is always off putting.

1. Go to MENU | HISTORY
2. You can select an activity and DELETE it
3. or you are able to DELETE ALL ACTIVITIES
4. You can also RESET your TOTALS.

How To Customize Data Screens

I’ll show you in this video how to customize the data screen on your garmin forerunner 230 or 235.

First we need to get to the MENU | ACTIVITY SETTINGS | DATA SCREENS

From here you will see two screen, Heart Rate and Clock screen. You can customize screen 1 & 2 easily enough. the HR screen will display when a hearth rate strap is connected. So if you are doing heart rate training, you may want to just have one screen with lap data and let this HR screen do the rest.

Do edit a screen, just select a screen and hit RUN to go in and from here you can do the following:

1. Change the field layout from 1 to 4 fields
2. Specify each field field by editing it.

How To Setup Pace or HR Alerts


In this video, I’ll show you how to setup either a pace, heart rate or distance alert using the garmin forerunner 230 or 235. This is a bit different than custom workouts where you don’t have many steps, but you want a simple alert to help you stay within pace, heart rate or remind you when you hit a certain distance.

In other words, alerts are great for long run where you don’t have 10 & 1’s or other walk/run program.

1. Get to the MENU | ACTIVITY SETTINGS | ALERT
2. ADD NEW
3. Choose the type: Distance, heart rate, pace, etc..
4. Edit the Alert by specifying the upper & lower range (pace & heart rate.)

If you have your profile already synced, you can simply choose your heart rate zone. For example, Sunday long run zone 2.

Once you are done, the alerts are enabled until you disable them or DELETE the ones you don’t want. Some Alert types allow you to enable/disable.

 

 

How To Update The Software

Updating the device software, or software update on your Garmin Forerunner 230 or forerunner 235. There are a couple of ways.

1. Using the USB cable and using Garmin Express, after you sync to your computer, Garmin Express will alert you if there is an update. Where you can click through and let it do it’s thing.

2. The other method (which we cover) is when you sync using the smartphone. Everytime you sync using Garmin Connect mobile, it will send to your device any updates. The next time you turn on your forerunner you will get a message to update it.

To find out if you have an update to be installed on your forerunner 230 or 235 ready, do the following:

1. Go to the MENU | SETTINGS | SYSTEM | SOFTWARE UPDATE
2. Press RUN to start when you see “Install Now”

Let the device reboot, this may take up to 10 minutes. If everything has gone normally you should be back to your clock face.

How To Change System Settings

How to change the clock from 12 to 24 hours?
How to change language?
How to change miles to kilometers?

Well this video is where to find these and other system settings on your Garmin Forerunner 230 or 235.

1. Go to Your MENU | SETTINGS | SYSTEM

From here you can change the settings for the following:
language
clock
watch face
color
background
time format
backlight timeout
sounds and vibrations
units
data recording
restore defaults
software update
about

 

Weather App


To view weather information sync from your paired smartphone, you will need to sync your garming forerunner 230 or 235 using Garmin connect.

By pressing on the UP or DOWN button, on your forerunner 230 ro 235, you will see the weather app page. If you see the double lines, then it is a sign that you need to sync or at least force the default weather app on your smartphone to select a location and download some information to sync.

By force syncing via garmin connect, you will get your information on your device. To change to fahrenheit to celsius, just go to your MAIN MENU and tap…

SETTINGS | SYSTEM | UNITS

From there you can change temperature units.

How To Install a Watch Face


We will show you how to use the Garmin Connect app or garmin express to install clock face theme on your garmin forerunner 230 or forerunner 235. We will show you how in this video using the garmin connect smartphone app.

Have your forerunner 230 or forerunner 235 within bluetooth range and paired to your smartphone and open the garmin connect app.

1. TAP on MORE icon at the bottom menu bar.
2. TAP on the forerunner icon at the top right if connected.
3. TAP on CONNECT IQ APPS
4. TAP on WATCH FACES

Now you may need to enter your Garmin Connect login credentials to get to the Connect IQ app store.

Once in the store, scroll down the list and tap on the COMPATIBLE DEVICES to make sure that the watch face will work properly with your forerunner.

5. TAP on the DOWNLOAD button to download the watch face. This will then start a SYNC to install the watch face to your forerunner. This may take a few minutes.

Once done, you should see the new watch face displayed on your device.

How do you change the watch face back to the default?

1. PRESS RUN on your Foreruner
2. PRESS DOWN to access the MENU
3. SELECT SETTINGS
4. SELECT SYSTEM
5. SELECT CLOCK. From here you can switch watch faces.

How do you uninstall the watch face? You can do this from the Garmin connect smartphone app, by selecting the watch face from the INSTALLED list and tap the three dots at the top right of the screen. Then select UNINSTALL. At the next sync, it will remove the watch face from the forerunner device.

 

How To Install Connect IQ Widgets or Apps


You can install apps on your Garmin forerunner 230 or forerunner 235. In this video we will show you how to install apps using the garmin connect app on your smartphone.

An app can be a widget, data field, clock face and apps. Here we will show you how to install a widget. That’s one of the screens you can view when you press the UP or DOWN button on your Garmin forerunner 230 or forerunner 235.

For this, we will use the Garmin connect app on your smartphone, you can do the same via garmin express on your desktop.

1. TAP on MORE icon at the bottom menu bar.
2. TAP on the forerunner icon at the top right if connected.
3. TAP on CONNECT IQ APPS
4. TAP on WIDGETS

Now you may need to enter your Garmin Connect login credentials to get to the Connect IQ app store.

Once in the store, scroll down the list and tap on the COMPATIBLE DEVICES to make sure that the widget will work properly with your forerunner.

5. TAP on the DOWNLOAD button to download the widget. This will then start a SYNC to install the watch face to your forerunner. This may take a few minutes.

Once done, you should see the new widget displayed on your device by pressing on the UP / DOWN button after PRESSING the RUN button on your forerunner.

 

How To Setup a HIIT or Crossfit Custom Workout


I’ll show you how to setup a custom workout so that you can do a HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) or Crossfit workout using your Garmin forerunner 230 or forerunner 235.

You will need to have your Forerunner 230 or forerunner 235 plugged in via the USB cable, Garmin express installed & logged in to your Garmin Connect account on your computer or laptop.

We will need to create a custom workout and then SEND TO DEVICE once done.

1. From the Garmin Connect home page, SELECT WORKOUTS from the left main menu.
2. CLICK the CREATE A WORKOUT BUTTON to start a new custom workout.

We will remove the default workout steps, but note that you can add a WARM UP, RUN, COOL DOWN, RECOVER or OTHER Step.

So this this example, we will do a very simple interval workout. which we will repeat 10 times. This will give us a 40 min workout including recovery time. Optional we can add a

ADD A REPEAT BLOCK, Add these steps in the repeat block.
STEP 1 – OTHER for 1 min with HR zone 4 target intensity
STEP 2 – RECOVERY for 1 min
STEP 3 – OTHER for 30 seconds with HR zone 4
STEP 4 – RECOVERY for 90 seconds

3. SAVE AND GIVE the workout a name.
4. CLICK REVIEW AND ADD NOTES. You can add notes to the workout or to each step if you want. This is optional.
5. CLICK SEND TO DEVICE. This will open Garmin Express.

Once the transfer is complete, you can lookup the workout on your device via RUN | MENU } TRAINING | MY WORKOUTS | OTHER

PRESS RUN to get into the options for the workout such as delete or start. At this point you can start & pause just like any other running workout activity.

 

How to Lock the Buttons


This short tutorial will show you how to lock the buttons on your garmin forerunner 230 or forerunner 235. This will prevent you from getting that power save alert when you accidentally press one of the button unintentionally.

To lock the button, just PRESS the UP button and HOLD.

You should see options; PRESS UP or DOWN button and SELECT LOCK DEVICE.

Finally PRESS RUN button to lock the buttons, you should see a lock icon on the screen.

To unlock PRESS and HOLD the UP button and HOLD until you see the unlock icon on the screen.


 

 




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