Android: how to measure your pulse and breathing rate with Google Fit?

It’s now official. Your Pixel smartphone can measure your heart rate and your breathing rate. Google is rolling out the update to its Google Fit health app, which includes two new functions to measure your pulse and monitor your breathing.

To carry out these measurements, these two new functions do not need a dedicated sensor. They rely directly on the smartphone camera. To measure the pulse, the user only has to place his body on the camera, without moving, in a well-lit place. The application is thus able to recognize the change in skin color to determine the user’s heart rate. As for the measurement of the respiratory rate, it simply requires the user to place the torso visible in front of the camera of his smartphone to detect the movements of the chest and thus calculate the respiratory rate.

Available initially only for Pixel smartphones, Google plans to extend the availability of this function to all Android devices in the coming months.

1. Update Google Fit

Start by checking if your Google Fit app is up to date. To do this, tap and hold the app icon and press the i button to open App Info. To obtain these two new features, the application must be in version 2.51.19-130.

If not, start the update from the Play Store. If, however, the update is not yet available for your Pixel, you can force it by directly installing the APK file of Google Fit in its latest version. You will then have to restart your phone to obtain the new functions.

Download Google Fit for Android (apk) (Free)


2. Measure your heart rate

Open Google Fit on your smartphone and scroll through the displayed options until you find Check your heart rate. Tap Start. When using the function for the first time, an assistant should accompany you to carry out the measurement. Go through the various explanatory screens, place your finger on the rear camera lens and make sure you are in a well-lit room.

Stabilize your hand and remain as calm as possible before Starting the measurement and keep light pressure of your finger on the camera lens.

For a few seconds, your smartphone will analyze the changes in the color of the skin of your finger, which will allow it to determine your pulse, in other words, to capture your heartbeat.

When the measurement is complete, Google Fit should immediately display your Heart Rate, in beats per minute. You can, if you wish, Save the measurement to log it in the application so that it can then display a graph and provide statistics on the evolution of your heart rate according to the measurements you take.

3. Measure your breathing

The other big novelty inaugurated in this update of Google Fit is the measurement of breathing. Still from the home screen of the application, scroll through the options until you find the one to Track your respiratory rate. Press the Start button.

As with the pulse measurement, the first time you try to measure your breathing, Google Fit displays an assistant to guide you through the operation. Press the Next buttons to skip the explanations, and start the measurement by pressing Start measurement.

Sit comfortably and remove any items that may interfere with your breathing (mask, for example). The application advises to wait a few minutes before starting the measurement if you have just made an effort. Position your smartphone upright on a stable surface and make sure your head and bust are correctly detected on the screen. Two dotted frames should automatically appear to indicate that the application is ready.

When the measurement is complete, Google Fit immediately displays your Respiration Rate as the number of breaths per minute. Finally, press Save measurement to keep it in the application.

If these measurements, carried out several times a day, do not replace medical monitoring by a health professional, they will still allow you to keep a daily eye on your state of health. In case of doubt or problem, consult your usual doctor.