I love my Apple Watch Ultra and have been using the tech giant’s smartwatches since they launched in 2015.
Over that time, they’ve helped me reach new fitness goals each year, whether it’s running farther or lifting heavier weights. The Apple Watch even helped me get medical help for an underlying heart problem that would have gone undiagnosed without it.
The Apple Watch played a big role in my life during this time, but it always had one big flaw: it didn’t know when to stop…
The Apple Watch’s biggest problem
Imagine the situation: you broke your personal best by running 10 km. Your muscles hurt like hell and you know you’ll have to take a recovery day the next day. But, like clockwork (pun intended), your Apple Watch will nudge you and try to get you moving again.
It’s not just about long sessions. Sometimes it’s nice to take a day off and play video games (yes, I can have non-fitness hobbies too, like the Apple Watch) or to have a minor injury and have to step away from the gym or your favorite running route.
Simply put, the Apple Watch couldn’t compete with Fitbit trackers that count sleep, workouts, muscle fatigue and more to compile a nifty daily readiness score. The higher the score, the safer it is to push yourself and minimize the risk of injury. A lower score? It might be a good idea to take things easier.
The idea is simple, but the execution is much smarter than me
Why watchOS 11 will fix this problem
This time, this (quite irritating) flaw is corrected by two new features of watchOS 11. The first, customizable activity rings, is simple and pleasant.
You can now personalize your daily activity goals, so shift workers no longer have to panic about getting their steps in, and those taking long-haul flights no longer need to walk from one end of the plane to the other multiple times.
It’s also great in everyday life, especially for anyone, like me, with kids and the ever-changing schedule that comes with them, when you don’t know when your next workout day will be at any given time .
So now you can pause your Apple Watch “Streak” activity if you suffer an injury, sure, but the other new feature can also help you avoid them. You can pause it for a day, a week, a month, or longer.
Also presentation of the training load.
“Training Load helps users understand the strain put on their body by workouts over the past seven days compared to the past 28 days,” Apple explains.
The idea is simple, but the execution is way smarter than I am. Your cardio workouts will now generate data that Apple’s new algorithm can parse into an effort rating on a scale of 1 to 10 between easy and intense. It works with data from the Health app, like your height, weight, age, and GPS data for outdoor activities.
You can also add effort ratings to non-cardio workouts, and the result is that you’ll be able to chart the next 28 days of your training intensity level, indicating how hard you should push in a training given.
In theory, if you go too slowly, your Apple Watch can give you a little nudge in the butt. If you push it too hard, it will suggest you go a little slower, which will give you a more balanced experience.
Between these two new features, I’m excited to be able to give my best in training knowing that I’m no longer doomed to receiving those “you didn’t close your activity rings today” messages. at 10 p.m. while I’m trying to relax.
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