Apple Watch Exercise Ring - At my wit's end!

Hey everyone! I am so fed up and I am hoping y'all have a solution. I am working out and I cannot get my exercise ring to close. I am tracking my workouts with the app on my watch and nothing counts. However, I will occasionally get a random minute or two just walking around school or the house. It makes 0 sense.

What apps do yall use that count towards your exercise minutes? How do you track your workouts? It might sound trivial but closing rings is motivating to me and it is so frustrating when I go to the gym and do 30+ minutes on the treadmill and I don't get any minutes towards my exercise ring.

Replies

  • collectingblues
    collectingblues Posts: 2,541 Member
    When you are doing those treadmill workouts, are you starting the workout from your Watch?

    When you do your other workouts, how are you starting them on the Watch?

    The reason I ask is because the Watch only automatically recognizes certain workouts -- usually walking about 3 MPH, and running, and sometimes elliptical. So if you aren't walking at that pace, or if you don't tell it that you're working out, it won't know that you're working out.
  • ltfitz89
    ltfitz89 Posts: 295 Member
    I always start from the watch app. I've never had it auto recognize any walk or exercise I do.
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    Are you at least walking “briskly” and is your heart rate reading as elevated? That’s how the watch decides if your time counts as exercise. I’ve attempted to squeak in a few minutes on the treadmill to close my ring and evidently, I don’t walk “briskly” enough nor does my heart rate her high enough for it to count.

    Also my watch doesn’t always read my heart rate correctly - particularly early in a run. Is yours showing an elevated heart rate on the watch when you workout (not dulled out light grey)?
  • frksfrau
    frksfrau Posts: 108 Member
    I usually ‘start’ the activity on the watch. Sometimes I do some warm ups on a rowing machine before my spin class. So I first start the rowing activity on the watch. When I move to spinning I’ll either end the rowing and or just add in spinning. Either works well.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
    From what I understand your heart rate has to rise a certain amount or AW does not count it. It is hard to do on a treadmill or at least hard for me to do. I have learned how to pace myself outside (very brisk) and swing my arm or arms if the dog is not with me much more. You absolutely must swing your watch arm.

    Also make sure the AW is making snug contact with your skin and that the settings are accurate.

    You can get it done. I went from struggling to get 10 minutes a day to routinely closing my exercise ring just with walking. Now that I am medically cleared to do more exercise I close it before the sun comes up most days.
  • panda4153
    panda4153 Posts: 418 Member
    As a few others have said if you are selecting walk or run on the watch you have to be at a certain pace for it to count. All the other workouts available I have had count the minutes without issue. I sometimes take an active rest day I wich I just got for a long walk at a more leisurely pace. That is the only time I don’t get full credits for the minutes. If you are doing other workouts and it’s still not counting you might want to contact Apple support in that case there may be a problem with your watch.
  • amy19355
    amy19355 Posts: 805 Member
    ltfitz89 wrote: »
    I always start from the watch app. I've never had it auto recognize any walk or exercise I do.

    there is a setting that turns 'auto-detect workouts' on and off - did you double check that?