- As part of WatchOS 11, the Apple Watch will now be able to pause activity rings
- This will allow users to rest as long as they need without breaking their streak
Apple has finally updated the Apple Watch with a feature that health-conscious users have been begging for.
As part of the WatchOS 11 update announced at WWDC, Apple Watch users will finally be able to schedule holidays.
This feature will allow users to pause their activity ringing for a day, week, month or longer without losing their hard-earned streak.
Apple fans praised the change, saying it would give them more flexibility to take time off without feeling guilty about not closing their activity rings.
On X, formerly Twitter, fans called the feature their favorite WWDC update, with one saying the change was “a small thing, but for us geeks, really really nice.”
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Apple Watch’s Activity rings aim to motivate people to move and exercise more by providing a game-like challenge.
Users set goals for how many calories they want to burn, how much exercise they want to do, and how long they want to stand each day.
By achieving all your goals, you can “close” your circles and add to a series of successful days.
Studies show that this kind of “gamification” can help promote healthy exercise, improve mental health and combat sedentary lifestyles.
But the same game-like features that keep people moving can also create unhealthy pressure to keep the streak going.
Because even missing an afternoon walk due to illness, travel, or exhaustion can break a months-long streak, some users report feeling guilty or frustrated when they have to rest.
But with the upcoming WatchOS 11 update, users will finally be able to schedule days off when they need them without losing their streaks.
In a statement, Apple said: “Whether users are planning a day off during their workout, have an injury or just need a day off, they now have the ability to pause their rings for a day, week, month or longer. ‘
While consistent training is important for losing weight or building strength, rest days are just as vital to your long-term health.
Rest days not only help you avoid overtraining injuries, but they can also give your muscles time to recover and get stronger.
Constantly overtraining when your body needs rest can lead to fatigue and stress, which will make your workouts less effective overall.
This means that allowing people to plan breaks as part of their training can be a big help for those who want to stay healthy for longer.
And on social media, Apple fans are excitedly welcoming the long-awaited change.
One commenter wrote on X, ex-Twitter: “The best thing about WWDC is *finally* letting you pause your activity ringer if you need to take a break for whatever reason.”
The user added that “having to reset a long streak when I had COVID was the most frustrating thing.”
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Another user added: “I think my favorite Apple update is the ability to pause Apple Watch ringing.”
They add that as someone who struggles with an eating disorder, “I feel like sometimes my clock can go a little high and make me feel guilty about taking a break.”
While another commenter wrote: “Finally you can pause your Apple Watch rings – like if you take a day off or are sick or something.”
To make things more flexible, users will also be able to customize their call targets for each day.
This means that if you tend to work hard during the week but take Sundays easy, you can now change your movement and exercise goals to fit your schedule.
According to Apple, this is because the rings “provide just the right amount of motivation at the right times.”
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This change comes along with a number of other new features that will be released as part of WatchOS 11.
While Apple Watch already tracks a whole host of metrics while you exercise, Training Load takes that to the next level by interpreting that data to gauge your level of effort and strain.
The popular cardio workouts will use a new algorithm to automatically generate an estimated effort based on data such as the user’s height and weight, as well as GPS and heart rate.
By creating an average training load for the last 28 days, users should be able to see if they are increasing or slowing down their training and help avoid overtraining.
The update also includes a new Vitals app that can give you a quick overview of all the data collected by your watch.
Users will be able to check their metrics such as heart rate, respiratory rate, wrist temperature and sleep duration at a glance.
The beta version of WatchOS 11 should be released in July before the full release this fall.
