Kyle Seth Gray

The Apple Watch's main flaw when it comes to workouts is that most third party apps suck. The built in workout app is the only app I've used that's rock solid, and gets you all the awards within Activity.app. It's where I track every run, ride, swim, walk, and hike.

But I still enjoy being social with my data, despite it being super personal and "private". I use Strava to track things like segments, improvements, and training for cycling and running, and enjoy having all my stats in one online place.

That's where HealthFit comes in. HealthFit is simply the best app for getting your workouts and health data out of the Health app, and into apps that are great for social features, but have terrible HealthKit implementations. [This thread has been going on for four years. I still get notifications about it.]

HealthFit is simply the best solution that I wish Apple would build into its app. It takes any workout, and [now even automatically], lets you sync it to third party service.¹ HealthKit as an API is great to have, but when even the biggest players like Strava won't integrate with it correctly, or even allow you to import data from it, then you should write the feature yourself.

I also just came across Tempo which, in a similar vein to HealthFit, focuses exclusively on runs done with Workout.app, and allows a bunch of data points to be viewed from it. In my 5 minutes of using it, I've really enjoyed its visualizations so far.

730 days.

365 days seemed like a lot way back when I got my Apple Watch. I remember seeing the original 365 badge and thinking it was crazy, and now I’ve technically earned it 3 times.

I’m forever grateful for technology like this that helps motivate me to do more. It’s motivated me to try different workouts, where now I'm swimming, strength training, and attempting a triathlon very soon.

I know there's things I can say here that sound similar to what I've written before, talking about my past with exercising, how I got where I am now, and how I've worked to recovery from an injury I had a while ago and learned about my passion for other workouts because of that. But I feel like a lot of that has already been said, and I don't want to be too repetitive.

All I know is that I've found what clicks in my head. I've found and done more working out than I feel I could have ever done. I'm running faster thanks to strength training, doing way way more outside and enjoying it because of cycling, swimming, and hiking. I'm continually moving and getting stronger. And in part, I do owe a lot of that to the Apple Watch in how it motivated me. But obviously the other part is my own stubbornness, but it's nice to have a little push.

It's also cool to see fitness-focused events, at the same event that inspired me to start finding ways to close my rings all the time, without any excuse.

I just want to say thank you to everyone that has, in any way, made the Activity and Workout apps. They truly are amazing, and I still, and will continue, to use them more than any other technology in my life. Thank you.

WWDC time! Time for great coffee, fun parties, and a whole lotta nerdiness in San Jose.

I'm super excited to go, and here's a few things I'm hoping will happen.

Wishes/predictions

• Health updates - speedier, more information, more data types, and expansion upon the Health Records integrations.
• Activity updates - I have a small feeling about a new ring, but a bigger feeling about more workout types such as strength training, or whichever is the most popular based on Apple's anonymized data.
• Breathe updates
• MacBook Pro, Mac Pro, iMac Pro, Pro Pros. And a new Muse Single
• New Apple Watch faces, and possibly announcements of an SDK of sorts for for faces. If not, at least different options for complications
• New watchOS 5 APIs to help spur development of new, and better, Apple Watch apps.
• I'm hoping for a lot and a lot of bug fixes and improvements, and possibly a related announcement about update times/software versions. Especially since it feels like absolutely no one has heard anything about 12.

It'll be interesting if any of the previous Marzipan rumors come true. But I'm not holding out hope for anything related to that.

watchOS

The Watch is turning 3 this year, and I think it'll be due for some interesting new features, as well as improvements to existing apps. Breathe and Activity are two I could see getting majors boosts, as well as the possibility of either enabling more health tracking features, or giving us a new ring to close. I'm pretty sure we'll also see new workouts as I said above.

The watch faces themselves I think will be getting more and more features. Since it was scrapped at the last minute last year, I could see a Connectivity complication coming back, therefore allowing you to see what status you have connection wise on any watch face. I would also like to see new things that make having the cellular watch more beneficial, although I can't name a ton off of my head.

I'm hoping that Apple also rekindles developer excitement for third party apps on the Watch. There are a few apps, like CARROT, workout apps, Starbucks, and more that are really great on the Watch, but you still hear a lot about companies like Lyft and Transit removing their apps. And while some may be coming back with a rewrite based on new SDKs, I'm just hoping that more developers are encouraged to actually bring their apps up to speed, in a beneficial way. Especially with the Series 3 expanded capabilities.

UpNext API

Speaking of this, I expect the Siri face to get some integrations so third party apps can show their info as needed on the Siri watch face, and maybe alongside others.

Homepod

It feels like the HomePod is where the Apple Watch was right after the initial release - it's gained its initial users, the early adopters, and is just waiting for the big thing that'll push it to more homes. That may be more size options, a better Siri SDK for apps to use, and independent/skills type integrations that you can install.

Apple Music

Apple Music is turning 3 this year, and the latest redesign/huge addition of features [besides a focus on music videos] was 2 years ago. I'm hoping it'll get smarter, as it has with the Siri capabilities, and possibly gain more features to intrigue new subscribers

Apple TV

Recently, Apple has been expanding its marketing efforts for more and more TV content. And Apple TV as a "brand" a la Prime video and Netflix, where you can go to watch content. While this may be more suited for a September event, I could see Apple, in iOS 12, expanding and having more focus on the app, its capabilities, and possibly give us hints [either on purpose or in code] about its subscription service coming up. Who knows, maybe we'll have Cue dancing to a bunch of TV shows on stage.

Homekit

Homekit, like Siri, has gotten more capable and prominent with the release of the HomePod. While Apple probably won't be making a bunch of home specific hardware itself, it could be expanding on the types of hardware it could use, while also bringing refinements to the Home app.

macOS

I'm not sure if we'll see any kind of future indication of the platform as a whole this year, but we certainly are slowly building up to it with things like APFS, High Sierra and the subsystem rewrites, and the continued morphing of macOS into a more iOS type system. Who knows, maybe we'll get Fusion Drive APFS support, some new apps, and possibly some interesting hardware tweaks.

iOS

I doubt we'll see as drastic of a change as we did with iOS 11, I'm going the iPad continues to get improvements, alongside the new hardware. As for the OS itself, I can see refinements on things like battery, CPU usage, and more smart features that benefit the end user, and the addition of "personal health" features in relation to device usage. Bedtime is one feature like this, but additional usage time metrics/specific app controls could also assist in helping people use their devices less.

As I write this, I'm definitely not having as many initiations or thoughts as to what may be announced, which gives me a little bit more excitement because there's all kinds of things Apple could surprise us with. I'm looking forward to sitting in a room full of nerds and watching the keynote. See you all next week.

It's no secret to anyone that reads anything I write how much the Apple Watch has motivated me.

What's even more inspiring is seeing how my actions are able to inspire others, as well as watching them continue a great fitness journey.

Federico Viticci just posted an amazing story about his commitment to a healthy lifestyle:

The Apple Watch has played a fundamental role in helping me get back in shape and commit to a daily exercise routine. I am not exaggerating when I say that the Apple Watch has become as important as my iPad in my daily life. Like other features of the Watch, there isn't a single, all-encompassing aspect that defines the experience; rather, it's a collection of small but meaningful options that have turned the Apple Watch into a must-have fitness companion for me. Closing the rings and sharing my Activity with friends (hi, Kyle) keep me motivated and publicly accountable. Standard and special event badges are fun to unlock and have the practical consequence of requiring me to train harder for certain achievements.6 Working out with a Polar H10 strap and AirPods connected to my Watch without having to use an iPhone makes me feel free and is delightfully futuristic.

Go give his story a read - it's super inspiring, and is among the many things that keeps me going. It's been awesome seeing Viticci's workouts every day - consistent, improving, and besting mine.

Be sure to also listen to the episode of Connected on Viticci's Second Life.

I’ve loved doing these summary posts every year with my Apple Watch. Even though this is only the 3rd one, I feel like I’ve improved a ton, and figuring out what I’ve focused on over the last year helps me gauge what I’m doing well at and what I may need to improve.

Let’s start with the repeats:

• Since I got my Apple Watch, I've walked 15,000,000 steps.
• I've walked/ran a distance of 7017 Miles.
• I cycled 5000 miles
• I burned a total of 800,000 Active Calories. In the past year, I’ve burned as many active calories as I had burned in the first two YEARS of owning my Apple Watch (Also, that’s 3077 glazed Dunkin Donuts)
• Ruined 10 pairs of headphones, including three EarPods and 5 pairs of Jaybirds. Just trashed another pair last week just in time. Hilariously.
• Took out 2 iPhone 6's, lasted the rest of the time with my third. Rocking my iPhone 8 now.
• Upgraded to the Apple Watch Series 3, which I love. [I may have also just worn it out... the oleophobic coating seems a bit off, but I'm getting that checked next week]
• GOT INTO AN APPLE AD.

This last year, more than others, I’ve been more interested and intrigued into doing various workouts. I’ve still kept my move streak, and all 3 ring streak, going since I wrote my post last year.

Nearly at the end of summer, I got my first real road bike, and got better at going faster and longer distances. I got to a point where, at the highest, I was cycling about 120 miles+ a week. I was able to, when the weather was right, cycle 15 to 25 miles every day before even getting into work. That led to easily closing my move goal, and having the Apple Watch bump it up to 1110 calories. A day. Which was awesome.
I kept that calorie goal up through December, even into some freezing temperatures, and, when it got too cold to bike outdoors before work and easily smash it, I went to the gym at work twice a day - once in the morning, and a second time at lunch. Usually switching back and forth between the cycling machine and elliptical.

Midway through December though, there wasn’t any feasible way [especially with a foot of snow on the ground] to keep that goal up, so I switched to a 700 calorie goal. It was what my goal had been about a year ago at that time, and since it takes me ~ cycling 16 miles, or running 9 miles, to hit, I still felt like it was a reasonable goal to maintain. All throughout this, I also kept my stand and exercise goals closed.

Starting this year, I was lucky enough to have a co worker who is really really into strength training. And while the Apple Watch doesn’t really have a comprehensive way to track that, it still has an option to. So I switched to doing cardio in the mornings, and weight training at lunch.

Another thing I started to do is swim - I felt like, after learning more and more about the swimming capabilities of the watch, it was a waste to have access to a pool [not Olympic by any means, but like 50 yards away from my office] and not use the swimming workout. So I started doing that.
As I come to the end of year 3 with my watch, I can’t help but feel even better, and even more motivated, to continue working into a healthy lifestyle, complimented by pursuing new fitness hobbies, and continuing my goal of exercising no matter when and where I am. Whether it is that pushups at midnight, running around the house and making my parents think I’m crazy, or working out at 4 am because I’m about to get on a 9 hour flight and I want my stand goal closed before than and want to not have to baby my rings throughout a long transpacific flight, I’m doing it. I’m still finding more and more ways to keep my 600+ 3 ring, and 700+ move ring, streak going. And I have the Apple Watch to thank for that.

And today, I've officially hit my 1000th move goal

In truly momentous news, I hit my daily Move goal for the 1,000th time on my #AppleWatch. pic.twitter.com/zEZYTYHE1l

— Kyle Seth Gray (@kylesethgray) May 4, 2018