Apple tech currently lets you track heart rate and steps, as well as how hard you exercise. Now, it wants to make sure that you don’t skip your daily protein shake and meds.
New fitness features will roll out next month, in the form of iOS16 for iPhones and Apple Watch OS9. The update brings with it new ways to manage medication, track health and sleep, as well as giving you a load of new workouts.
Here’s what’s new:
A reminder a day keeps the doctor away
Medications is a new function that lets users track all daily vitamins, supplements and medications they have taken or need to take.
The iPhone camera allows you to snap photos of their medication bottle or packet. Then, it automatically captures its name, strength, and formula, automatically adding it to the app. Users can then add details like dosage, timing, and pill shape.
Medications will be part of Apple Health, so expect daily reminders.
I heart health
Your watch will now be able to monitor your heartbeat for atrial fibrillation (aka an irregular heartbeat). That’s useful for a number of reasons, not least the fact that an out-of-beat heart could lead to a load of health implications down the line.
Counting sheep (precisely)
While the Sleep app currently tracks your sleep hours, it will soon give you more information about the time spent at different stages of sleep. You can track your time in REM, Core, and deep sleep on both the iPhone and Apple Watch. You can also track your sleep patterns using the iPhone app.
Working out hard (or hardly working)?
Runners will soon be able to access more detailed workout summaries and can also discover new ways of measuring how fast they run. To quickly see how hard they are working out, users can review their heart rate zones.
Multisport workouts are also available for triathletes.
These new fitness features will roll out towards the end of September.