5 Apple Watch Features Runners Will Use Every Day

The Apple Watch Ultra 2 is my favorite companion for strength training, but also, above all, for outdoor running workouts. I’ve worn an Apple Watch for years now and have become very fond of the many features Apple offers runners to get the most out of their exercise. On top of that, the AI ​​models also give me additional information about my training by asking them to analyze my run, in addition to the very useful information I get from apps like Gentler Streak and The Outsiders. That said, if you own an Apple Watch, you probably use or could use several features on a daily basis, like Pacer view, Race Route, and Heart Rate Zones view.

These features are important if you’re training for a big race, like a marathon, or if you’re just trying to go faster or improve your overall fitness by running more efficiently instead of running faster. The Apple Watch and other smartwatches can track so much information about our workouts that over time they can reveal relevant information about our endurance, our usual pace or how our body reacts during and after a workout, etc.

Especially now, with additional tools, like smart rings or wearables like the Powerbeats Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3 that can measure our heart rate, it has become much easier to get a comprehensive assessment of our body while running. Here are some of the best Apple Watch features for runners.

Many of the best features you could need to improve your running skills are already available in the Workout app on Apple Watch. Although more features could soon be coming with watchOS 27, which is expected to be released later this year, you can already get a good start. By creating a Pacer workout, you can tell the watch how fast you want to do this run and maintain a set pace.

To do this, you need to open the Workout app on the Apple Watch, choose the outdoor or indoor running workout, tap the timer icon in the upper right corner and add or change the distance you want to run and the speed you want to run it. Then Apple Watch calculates for you the exact pace per mile required to get there. For example, you could challenge yourself to run 5 km in 30 minutes, which means a pace of 6 minutes per kilometer.

Once you’ve set your Pacer workout, you’ll see your average pace and current pace as you run. A graph will intelligently show whether you’re ahead, behind or exactly where you need to be, so you can complete your workout the way you planned. You can also create multiple Pacer workouts, based on your weekly schedule.

Race Route is one of my favorite Apple Watch features – it’s great if you do the same route very often. Remember that feature from “Mario Kart,” a race against time? There, you must beat a best time set by Nintendo, or challenge your own ghost to see how to master a song.

With the Apple Watch it’s no different and the route is automatically generated after you repeat the same route without deviation at least twice. Tap the Workout app, tap the timer icon in the upper right corner of the Outdoor Run workout, then tap Running Course.

You can select Latest or Personal Best and challenge yourself to beat that time on the course. The Apple Watch will also show you all the running routes you have, and they can help you train to improve, keep the same pace on a tougher day, or just stay interested. The important thing is that you don’t have to do anything other than show up for at least two races on a specific route, and then you can start to challenge yourself.

Another favorite feature among Apple Watch fans, but also smartwatch users in general, is Run on Track mode. Basically, if you’re running on a track, you can forget about the traffic, the elevation and just focus on consistency to improve your overall cadence and technique. However, how can you ensure that your Apple Watch GPS understands where you are? Well, if you’re running on a track in a supported region, like the US, Canada, UK, France and Spain, your Apple Watch automatically identifies where you are and you can select the lane you’ve chosen to run in and get perfect data on your activity.

While functionality may vary between smartwatches, for Apple Watch, whenever you’re on a trail and your wearable detects it, you’ll automatically be prompted to choose a lane before you begin your outdoor running workout. If this is your first track workout, your Apple Watch will ask you if you want to measure this run in miles or meters. You can also swipe right on the watch face, tap Lane, and select a new lane if you decide to change lanes halfway through your workout.

If you are a runner, you can run based on your heart rate zones. If not, don’t worry, you’re not alone. I’ve been running for six years, and most of the time I neglected my heart rate zones, simply because I didn’t know that running in zone 2 was the best way to improve my endurance and it’s the zone that most professional athletes run in and avoid overextending themselves and getting injured. Now that you know, the next time you go for a run with your Apple Watch, make sure to focus on your heart rate zones.

When you’re on the main workout information, turn the digital crown and you’ll see exactly what heart rate zone you’re running in. If you can maintain consistency in zone 2, you are doing a wonderful job. With proper coaching, you should also combine more demanding runs with sprints, as well as an easy run or walk.

If you don’t like the interface of Apple’s Workout app, you can choose something like Gentler Streak. This award-winning Apple Watch app has a different interface with an activity track while you run. This can help you understand the impact you are having on your fitness and how close you are to overtraining. When I first started, it was my best indicator of how hard I should push, and I highly recommend it.

After four major running-focused features, the final smartwatch feature that runners can use daily is sleep metrics. With watchOS 26, Apple revamped the Apple Watch sleep tracking experience by offering a Sleep Score, which takes into account what time you usually go to bed, how long you slept, and how many times you woke up during the night. With this data you can get an idea of ​​your training readiness.

If an “86” score doesn’t mean much to you, you can use an app like Gentler Streak or The Outsiders that offers a more accurate explanation of how your previous sleep and training impact your next one. Both of these apps get information about your sleeping heart rate, wrist temperature, heart rate variability, respiratory rate, and oxygen saturation based on the last 14 days of your sleep tracking, to tell you how ready you are to workout.