Improving your health on your list for 2024? Here are 9 great Apple Watch health features to check out or revisit on Apple Watch. We’ll cover native features, third-party options, Apple Health-supported accessories, and how to view all your data on iPhone, and more. The features and metrics below can have a positive impact on your overall health when you become aware of and improve them. And some of them – so don’t hesitate to turn them on even if you don’t think you need them. Let’s dig in… Table of contents 9 Apple Watch health features you should try Here’s what this feature does: “If you receive a notification, the irregular rhythm notification feature on your Apple Watch identified an irregular rhythm suggestive of AFib and confirmed it with multiple readings. If you have not been diagnosed with AFib by a physician, you should talk to your doctor. To make sure this feature is set up: Apple highlights that after an ECG “Regardless of the result, if you aren’t feeling well or are experiencing any symptoms, you should talk to your doctor.” Here’s how Apple describes Cardio Fitness (VO2 max): “Cardio fitness is a measurement of your VO max, which is the maximum amount of oxygen your body can consume during exercise. Your cardio fitness level is a strong indicator of your overall physical health and a predictor of your long-term health.” Check out how to get going with this or view your data in our full guide: Like and , Cardio Recovery or heart rate recovery is a lesser-known health metric that’s measured by Apple Watch every time you track a workout. Cardio Recovery measures how much your heart rate decreases immediately after exercise. As with heart rate variability, heart rate recovery (HRR) offers a look at your heart health by how fast it responds to the autonomic nervous system. Learn how to set it up and more in our full guide: Heart rate variability (HRV) is automatically captured by Apple Watch but it’s not viewable in the wearable’s native Heart Rate app. You’ll need to head to the iPhone’s Health app > Browse > Heart. It’s the measurement of how the interval of time between heartbeats changes, measured in milliseconds – notably this is a metric that changes a lot, so looking at broad trends, not daily numbers is most helpful. HRV is considered by many in the medical field as a powerful indicator of not only current overall health and resilience of the heart and body but also a strong predictor of future mortality. HRV is also often used as a signal to understand when the body is ready for exercise or rest. All of this is thanks to HRV showing how responsive the heart is to our autonomic nervous system. Checking your heart rate history captured by Apple Watch on iPhone gives you the most data, here’s where to find it: Further down in the main Heart section, you’ll see more data like Cardio Fitness, ECG results, blood pressure readings, and low/high/irregular heart rate notifications. watchOS 10 and iOS 17 brings the ability to log your mood daily and over time to help support mental health. Check out our full guide here: Apple Watch includes native sleep tracking but if you want to get richer data, there are a number of great third-party apps you can use. Check out all the details in our full guide: Apple Health-supported accessories and apps Compatible with Apple Health, the smart scale is one of my favorite accessories. It even offers a Vascular Age feature that measures the “speed at which the blood pressure pulse propagates through the circulatory system.” With those measurements, the smart scale can determine your arterial stiffness and health with a comparison to the average of people in your age group. also tracks weight, BMI, body composition (water, fat, bone, and muscle), heart rate tracking, and more. And if you want a seamless way to measure and track your blood pressure with Apple Health, the is a great option. There are of course many more accessories that record health data with iPhone, just look for the “works with Apple Health” when you’re looking around. Some of my favorite apps that work with Apple Health include: Viewing Apple Health data on iPhone As a refresher, the two main native places to see your Apple Health data on iPhone are: With the Fitness app, you’ve got a hub for all your fitness and movement data. Swipe down when looking at the main Summary tab to see your various Trends over time. The Fitness app, naturally, includes Apple Fitness+ if you want to try out the service for the first time or give it another shot if it’s been a while. Meanwhile, Apple’s Health app stores a broader range of data with categories including activity, body measurements, cycle tracking, hearing, heart, medications, mindfulness, mobility, nutrition, respiratory, sleep, symptoms, vitals, and other data. All this health data can be manually or automatically saved when using iPhone, Apple Watch, and other Apple Health-supported accessories and apps. Posture, computer height, more For tips and tricks on how to sit properly at your desk, do’s and don’ts for cleaning your iPhone, and more, check out these guides:
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