How to disable Step Counting on a Garmin Watch

Why disable step counting?

First things first. Why one would need to disable step counting on a Garmin watch? Usually one does not need to do this. Every step counts, whether taken in the gym during strength exercises, moving between machines, or even while walking around a swimming pool. After all, steps are steps.
This is likely why most smartwatches, including Garmin devices, do not provide an option to disable step counting (at least, none that I’m aware of).
However, there are situations where a watch might count steps that aren’t real. One relatively common scenario is driving on a rough road. In such cases, the vibrations and movement of the car can trick the watch into detecting steps that you didn’t actually take. If you’re aware in advance that all steps recorded during a drive will be “fakes,” it’s natural to want a way to prevent this from happening.

How to disable step counting on a Garmin Watch

As mentioned earlier, Garmin watches do not have a dedicated “pause step counting” feature. However, there is a workaround.
The watch doesn’t count steps during certain types of activities. For example, it does not count steps during an “Indoor Row” workout. To disable step counting, you can start an “Indoor Row” exercise and then delete the activity at the end. That’s it.

I’ve tested this workaround with my Venu 3 several times during short walks. In each case, the watch only recorded 4–5 steps instead of the several hundred steps I had actually taken.
I considered a longer test to see how well the “Indoor Row” activity would block step counting during an hour-long walk. However, as I mentioned earlier, every real step matters.
I’m currently participating in a virtual “Appalachian Trail” challenge (I’ve completed only 35% so far) and in the middle of my “Walk with Frodo” trip to Mordor to destroy the Ring (see “The Garmin Apps and Watchfaces I Actually Use”). Therefore, I need every step I took.