Full Body
The complete progressive muscle relaxation routine, working through 12 muscle groups from the lower body upwards.
Garmin Watch Activity · Version 1.2.10
ARTILLIS
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
A guided progressive muscle relaxation app for Garmin watches with timed phases, distinct vibration cues and Eyes-Closed Mode for following a familiar routine without constantly checking the screen.
View on Garmin Connect IQ
Overview
Progressive Muscle Relaxation is designed to help you unwind directly from your Garmin watch. Choose the routine that suits the time you have and the area you want to focus on, then let the watch guide you through timed tense and relax phases with on-screen prompts and optional vibration and sound cues. Once the app is installed, the routine can be completed without needing your phone.
Where to find PMR on your watch
PMR records and saves a Garmin FIT activity. Because of this, it appears in your watch’s Activities list rather than the Apps list. Open Activities, scroll to the 4-dot / More section if needed, then select Progressive Muscle Relaxation. You can add it to your favourites from there.
RELAX WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED
Eyes-Closed Mode
Settle into a familiar routine and let the watch guide your tense and relax phases through distinct vibration patterns. Once you know the muscle-group sequence, you can close your eyes and focus on the session instead of checking the countdown.
Turn Eyes Closed on in PMR Settings before starting. Vibration stays enabled while this mode is active, and sound starts off for a quieter session. You can enable sound if you prefer. Turning Eyes Closed off restores your normal cue preferences. The display shows the current muscle and previews the next muscle halfway through Relax.
- Tense: one firm vibration.
- Relax: two short vibrations.
- Between muscle groups: a longer, gentle vibration when a pause is included.
- Session complete: a three-part vibration pattern.
Try the routine with the screen visible first so you recognise the cues and know which muscle group comes next. The app does not speak muscle names.
New in v1.2.10
Celebrate a regular relaxation habit with encouraging milestones and earned accent colours. Each achievement unlocks one additional colour, while Blue is available from the start.
Achievement tracking begins fresh when you first install v1.2.9 or later. Earlier routines do not count; progress earned since that upgrade continues across later updates. Existing saved FIT activities are preserved.
| Achievement | What to do | Colour unlocked |
|---|---|---|
| First Session | Complete one routine | Teal |
| Finding Your Rhythm | Complete five sessions | Lavender |
| 10 Sessions | Complete ten routines | Mint |
| An Hour for You | Reach 60 completed minutes | Amber |
| Routine Explorer | Try three different routines | Coral |
| Custom Routine Complete | Finish a custom routine | Plum |
Choose an earned colour under Settings → Accent Colour on the watch or through Connect IQ settings. Edit Custom Routine now appears above Accent Colour in the watch menu. The completion screen displays milestone messages; use Up or swipe up to read additional messages when several are earned together.
The recent stress-history reading fix is also included. Heart-rate and stress availability still depends on the watch and available readings.
Choose your routine
Quick Relax
A shorter routine for times when you want a quicker guided relaxation session.
Upper Body
Focuses the session on the upper-body muscle groups.
Lower Body
Focuses the session on the lower-body muscle groups.
Bedtime
A routine option designed for winding down as part of your evening or bedtime routine.
Key features
Eyes-Closed Mode
Follow a familiar routine with distinct tense, relax and completion vibrations, helping you focus on relaxation with your eyes closed.
Your own muscle sequence
Add, remove and reorder muscle groups in your custom routine. Use Edit Custom Routine on the watch, with Move Up and Move Down controls, or configure the available custom-routine options through Connect IQ settings.
Custom session timings
Adjust the tense, relax and pause timings so the routine runs at a pace that suits you.
Vibration & sound cues
Optional cues tell you when phases change, helping you follow the routine without constantly watching the screen.
Muscle artwork & next-muscle preview
Muscle illustrations, phase prompts and countdowns guide each stage. Halfway through the relax phase, the artwork previews the next muscle group so you can prepare for what comes next.
Touchscreen controls
On supported touchscreen watches, including Venu-style devices, tap to select and use swipes to navigate. Hold the screen before starting a session to open Settings.
Session controls
Pause, resume, skip or exit the routine when you need to stay in control of the session.
Heart rate & stress
Where supported by the watch, PMR can display heart-rate and stress readings before and after the routine.
Save your session
On supported devices, completed sessions can be saved as a FIT activity so you can keep a record of your relaxation sessions.
Phone-free once started
Run the relaxation routine directly from your watch without needing to play an audio track or keep your phone beside you.
Best for
- Unwinding after a busy or stressful day
- Short or full-body guided relaxation sessions
- Focusing on just the upper or lower body
- Adding a guided relaxation routine before bed
- Garmin users who want simple, phone-free guidance from the wrist
Garmin compatibility
← Back to all appsCheck the Garmin Connect IQ Store listing for the current compatible-device list and any device-specific details.
Need help? Email artillis@artillis.com.
SETUP & INSTRUCTIONS
Getting started
Install and configure
- Install Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR) from the Garmin Connect IQ Store.
- After installation, allow the watch a moment to refresh its Activities list.
- Open PMR once so the app can initialise normally.
- Choose from Full Body, Quick Relax, Upper Body, Lower Body, Bedtime or your Custom routine.
- Adjust the available session settings to suit you, including tense, relax and pause timings and optional vibration / sound cues where supported.
Find it under Activities
- Open your Garmin watch’s Activities list — do not look in Apps.
- PMR is listed as an activity because it records and saves the relaxation session as a FIT file.
- If it is not among your favourite activities, scroll to the 4-dot / More section and select Progressive Muscle Relaxation there.
- Use the watch’s activity-management options if you want to add PMR to favourites or move it higher in the list.
How to use it
- Open PMR and select the routine you want to use.
- Start the session and follow the on-screen Tense and Relax prompts and countdowns. The Full Body routine works progressively through 12 muscle groups.
- For Eyes-Closed Mode, turn Eyes Closed on in Settings and learn the muscle-group order and cue patterns with the screen visible first. Then follow a familiar session with your eyes closed; one firm vibration means Tense and two short vibrations mean Relax.
- During a session you can use the available controls to pause, resume, skip or exit when needed.
- Where supported, the app can show heart-rate and stress readings before and after the routine.
- At the end of the session, review the completion/results information and, on supported devices, save the session as a FIT activity if you want to keep a record.
Venu-style touch controls
- Before starting: hold the screen or swipe down to open Settings; tap to start the session.
- In Settings: tap to move to the next setting, swipe up or down to adjust it, and swipe right to return.
- During a session: tap to open the session menu, swipe up to skip ahead, or swipe right to open the stop menu when a recording is active.
- At completion: tap to bring up Save / Discard when a recording is waiting to be saved.
Troubleshooting
- PMR is installed but missing: look in Activities, not Apps. Check the 4-dot / More section first.
- It appears after reinstalling, then later seems to move: check both the favourite Activities list and the full 4-dot / More Activities section.
- Glance not available: Store-installed and sideloaded builds can behave differently. A sideloaded app may not appear in the Glances “Add” list even when the activity itself runs correctly.
- UP button opens watch settings instead of the PMR menu: make sure you are inside PMR and using the current store build; button behaviour can differ by model and by older test builds.
- No heart-rate or stress value: the app may show “--” when the watch cannot provide a reading. That is expected rather than an app failure.
- No vibration: check both the PMR vibration option and the watch-level vibration / alert settings.