Part of the many announcements made related to watchOS 6 at this year’s WWDC, Apple also talked about fitness and how the company is making changes to help Apple Watch users keep better tabs on their health and fitness.
Apple is introducing what it calls Activity Trends with watchOS 6. Up to this point, Apple has relied on a daily snapshots, and the Activity Rings, to give people a glimpse of how their activity levels are holding up on a daily basis. However, a longer look at how someone is doing over time was not available until now in the stock Activity app.
Here’s a quick overview of what to expect to see out of Activity Trends in watchOS 6 when it launches later this year.
Trends To Stay Motivated
Apple has ways to help Apple Watch owners stay motivated, including awards for reaching certain milestones. However, some users might want a longer-lasting approach, a way to look at their trends over a set period of time rather than a brief daily snapshot of the same information.
Activity Trends, Apple aims to provide that information. This new feature builds upon the metrics the Apple Watch already collects and showcases: Exercise, Move, and Stand. These are already represented by the Activity rings, which each user can close in an effort to win those aforementioned awards. But with Activity Trends, Apple is broadening what is actually showcased in the Activity app, which now includes Stand Minutes, Distance, and Cardio Levels.
With the new feature, users will be able to see VO2 max, their walking pace, and the number of flights climbed. With that information, Activity Trends will show the individual if they are heading up or down over a period of time. This information will make it possible for the user to either turn things around or stay on track, helping them keep tabs on their health and fitness with much more detailed information.
Activity App
All of this information is available in the Activity app, with the data tracked from the Apple Watch on a daily basis. Trends will be compared over a 90-day period, but also over the last 365 days. Apple says that if you start losing ground in a certain area, personalized “coaching suggestions” will be sent your way to help you turn things around.
More Information, Better Habits
For those who use the Apple Watch (along with the Activity and Health apps) to keep track of their health and fitness, this new Activity Trends feature will be a welcomed one. Being able to look beyond just a single day, or see a simple graph over the last week or so, will provide more information in an actual useable way. Moreover, the coaching tips look like they’ll actually be helpful, offering up simple ways to turn things around.
What do you think of the Activity Trends feature? Is this something you’re looking forward to in watchOS 6?