If you (like many of us) got an Apple Watch for Christmas and duly hit the fitness hard all January, chances are that you (like many of us) find your healthy zeal suddenly started to ebb away somewhat. As February rolls around, workouts tend to find themselves being skipped for lunchtime pints; runs home from work increasingly replaced with the lazy comfort of public transport. It's always raining, after all.
But by getting to grips with the oft-overlooked functions of your shiny training tech and getting back on the fast-track towards your physical goals can become much less of a struggle. You just need the inside line.
So, MH went straight to the top and asked Jay Blahnik, the Senior Director of Fitness at Apple, for his tips on using his tech to turn up your motivation at every step.
ACTIVATE YOURSELF
For many people who set themselves fitness goals, it’s about the most they can do on a given day. The activity rings are the opposite of that – they're about what is the least you should do every day. "People always go gangbusters at the beginning of the year! Then they get too tired; too sore," says Blahnik. "When you realise there are other ways to close your rings, you tend to stay active on the days you cant make the gym." Those add up fast.
AWARD CEREMONY
Go ahead an open up the activity app on your iPhone and click on 'Awards'. "There are a whole bunch of badges that you probably didn’t know were there," says Blahnik. "Pick one, any one you feel like, and try and earn that one." Get a perfect week of the activity rings, say. Or beat your longest run. "Some people are really motivated by gaining achievements. We find people who say they aren’t motivated by them really like getting them when then come along. Either way you win."
SHARING IS CARING
At the bottom right of the iPhone activity app, you'l find the sharing button. Then click on the plus sign, top right, to 'add' friends who you know also have Apple Watch. "If you’ve never shared your activity, it can can seem a bit weird," says Blahnik. "But trust me: find one friend to do it with because it changes everything. Because they can see your rings, you're suddenly accountable." Countless studies have shown that publicising your health and fitness goals increases your chance of success. So share and share alike.
COMPETITIVE MUCH?
Right, now you're sharing activity with someone, click on their name and you'll see an option to 'compete'. This starts a 7-day competition, in which you go head-to-head and try to beat each other in meeting and exceeding our own individual rings. "For each person you compete with, you and they get a totally unique badge, and that badge changes hands according to who won last, just like the Ashes," says Blahnik. "Seven days is not so long that you can’t commit." Push the button. And make sure you win.
FINISH STRONG
Before you hit 'start' on training in the Apple Watch workout app, hit the ellipses top right and you can set a specific goal for that session. Choose from time, calories and distance. "Let's be honest, it’s really easy to go on a run and towards the end just cut it a bit short," Blahnik says. Setting your goal at the beginning is a simple way to hack your own temptation to quit early because you want to complete the ring, after all. "If you picked a goal last time, it will automatically be there next time, too," says Blahnik. "So you have something to beat if you want to." There is nothing like competing against yourself, after all.
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