8 ideas on how to use Apple Watch to achieve your fitness goals in 2024
Achieving new fitness goals can be a challenge especially if you are unsure where to start however Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 are great companions to help you get started and stay committed no matter how big or small your goals are for 2024.
Start with Close Your Rings
If you are just beginning your fitness journey, it can be daunting to know where to start and how to stay motivated but Apple Watch is here to help. Closing your rings (Move, Exercise and Stand) every day is a simple and fun way to live a healthier day.
Close your Move ring by hitting your personal goal of active calories burnt. Active calories are the ones you burn through all kinds of movement, from taking the stairs at work to playing with the kids to cleaning out the garage. Being active throughout the day is an important part of living a healthy life.
Close your Exercise ring by completing at least 30 minutes of activity at or above a brisk pace. The Exercise ring shows how many minutes of brisk activity you’ve completed, whether you’re just moving at a fast pace or doing a specific workout in the Workout app.
Close your Stand ring by getting up and moving around for at least one minute during 12 different hours in the day. Sitting too much can contribute to health problems. That’s why Apple Watch tracks your progress towards your Stand goal and motivates you to get up throughout the day. Close all three rings to know you are making a a simple but meaningful difference to your health and fitness. Find out more here.
Try Something New
Sometimes simply trying a new sport can help get your fitness motivation and journey back on track. Apple Watch can help you track a variety of workouts to make sure you always capture your activity and metrics accurately.
Pickleball is one of the fastest-growing sports around the world and last year, researchers from the Apple Heart and Movement Study compared the emerging sport against the long-standing game of tennis, and how it impacts overall health. They found participants often played pickleball for long periods of time, averaging a peak heart rate within 70 percent of their estimated max heart rate during recorded workouts.
This is beneficial as regular physical activity is associated with improved quality of life and healthy aging. Whether you want to try out pickleball or any other sport, Apple Watch offers users a number of ways to stay connected, active, healthy, and safe. Read the full findings from the Apple Heat and Movement Study here.
Complete Your First Race
A popular goal when starting a new year is to be able to complete your first running race and whether it’s your first 5km or marathon race, Apple Watch can help make your training journey towards your goal a little easier.
Easily start your Outdoor or Indoor Run workout on your Apple Watch or use the Action Button on your Apple Watch Ultra. You can also turn on Precision Start on Apple Watch Ultra in workout settings, which will show when you have a GPS signal and will skip the countdown automatically, perfect for race day.
Tap the More button to create a goal for your workout, or to complete a Pacer or Custom workout. You can tap the Edit icon to modify workouts, or scroll down and tap Create Workout to make a new one. You can also customise the metrics you'll see when you work out, and see your past workouts on the Workout app to ensure you are getting the information you need for your training. Find out more about running with Apple Watch here.
Get More From Your Workout
With Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 and watchOS 10, you can get more metrics and stats from your workout than ever before. For cycling enthusiasts in particular, you can now get new metrics with compatible Bluetooth accessories. Automatically connect to Bluetooth-enabled accessories to add cadence, speed and power to your Workout View.
There is also a new Power Zones Workout View so that when a power meter is detected, Apple Watch will automatically estimate your Functional Threshold Power — the highest level of intensity you can maintain for an hour. Furthermore, when you start a a cycling workout from your watch and it will automatically show up as a Live Activity on your iPhone.
Tap it, and it will take over the entire display, making it easier to see your metrics while on a ride. Find out more about the latest cycling updates here.
Make it Social
Keep your fitness routine on track by sharing your activity with your family and friends—you can even share with a trainer or coach. You can get notifications when your friends meet their goals, finish workouts, and earn achievements.
You can also stay motivated with a little healthy competition. Challenge a friend to a competition in which you earn points based on the percentage of your Activity Rings that you close. You get a point for every percent you add to your rings each day. The competition lasts 7 days and you can earn up to 600 points a day for a maximum of 4,200 points for the week.
The person with the most points at the end of the competition wins. During a competition, alerts tell you if you’re ahead of or falling behind your competitor—along with the score. Find out more about Activity Sharing here.
Push Yourself to the Extreme
If you are looking to push your fitness journey to the extreme, Apple Watch Ultra 2 is here for you. Apple Watch Ultra 2 is crafted for unparalleled performance. The lightweight titanium case is rugged and corrosion resistant, and it’s raised to protect the sapphire crystal from edge impacts while the display is the highest and brightest ever on an Apple Watch.
Use it for ultra-marathons, multi-day hikes, triathlons and scuba diving/free diving and see the difference. Plus the customisable Action Button gives you quick, physical control over a variety of functions. It can do things like start a workout, mark a Compass Waypoint or begin a dive.
Of course battery life is key when doing endurance sports and Apple Watch Ultra 2 comes with up to 36 hours battery life with normal use and up to 72 hours with low power settings enabled. Perfect for any terrain and scenario. Find out more about Apple Watch Ultra 2 here.
Stay Motivated and Mindful
Fitness and mindfulness go hand in hand so to ensure your fitness journey in 2024 is a success, why not try out some of the many mindfulness features on Apple Watch and iPhone.
The Mindfulness app makes it easy to get started and encourages you to set aside a few minutes a day to focus, centre, and connect as you breathe. You can also use State of Mind to reflect on how you’re feeling or add the Breathe watch face to get quick access to mindfulness sessions.
Journal is a new app that you see on your iPhone after you update to iOS 17.2. Journal makes it easy to get into the habit of journaling. Journaling suggestions intelligently group outings, photos, workouts, and more to help you remember and reflect on your experiences. Perfect for keeping track of your fitness progress for 2024. Find out more on practicing Mindfulness with Apple Watch here and using the new Journal app here.