I just stopped using my Apple Watch altogether. It's just annoying to use now - Workouts is simply the most egregious examples of the UX regressions in WatchOS.
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Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way
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I just stopped using my Apple Watch altogether. It's just annoying to use now - Workouts is simply the most egregious examples of the UX regressions in WatchOS.
Indeed. Unfortunately it’s a lower level.
I’m glad it’s not just me, I actually thought I was doing something wrong as I poked at that ‘play’ button repeatedly. That’s one change that makes me wish I haven’t updated – I expected problems with the liquid ass, unreadable text, whatever. All that is fine. The Workout app is not.
Interesting. I never even considered that. I dont really use my watch for much so I am not sure what background apps are running but I will definitely look into it. Thanks!
The entire app absolutely blows. It needs a complete redesign from the ground up. And test the damn UI before releasing this garbage.
It for whatever reason need a connection now för splits when it earlier didn’t. It is related to the workout buddy feature.
Apple sports app and in general health app is rubbish. Absolutely infuriating and afterwards excersice there are useful or easy to get reports. Apple should copy Garmin or Polar.
A watch for sports needs real buttons.
I had to purchase the app Zones because Apple UI is plain horrible. The worst UI for exercise in the planet.
I even use my super old polar for spooning sessions because my AW is just too cumbersome. Shaaaaaaaame.
A watch for sports needs real buttons.
I had to purchase the app Zones because Apple UI is plain horrible. The worst UI for exercise in the planet.
I even use my super old polar for spooning sessions because my AW is just too cumbersome. Shaaaaaaaame.
I spent over an hour on the phone after upgrading to iOS26.1 (I tend to skip the .0 so bugs can be worked out). The database behind the Notes app had been corrupted and it was constantly filling all available space on my phone (beyond what I had in actual files even). End result: delete the notes app and re-download (losing the last 9 notes in the process). After the support conversation, I also discovered it had broken my watch's connection to my phone (first symptom was the alarm going off on both), even though the phone thought they were still connected. The watch issue doesn't seem to be impacting me as much (though maybe having to erase my watch and re-pair has minimized the touch problems everyone else is noting).
Workout honestly doesn't seem that much different (moving between types of workout is smoother and the "extra step" is only there if I need to switch type.
The sick focus of “no buttons” is detrimental to many use cases.
Apple needs sports UI experts. Not experts in “pretty minimal UI nice for keynotes”
Apple needs sports UI experts. Not experts in “pretty minimal UI nice for keynotes”
my biggest peeve is that it thinks I'm biking when I'm actually just riding my electrical scooter.
But otherwise: I always do my sports in certain places, and it NEVER puts up the proper sport there.
Example> I'm at the fitness club, starting with mixed cardio(that's almost always there, but it should always be there), once finished I continue with weights training(never shown when pressing plus from the pause menu).
I'm at the swimming pool. Why is not the first option swimming there?
But otherwise: I always do my sports in certain places, and it NEVER puts up the proper sport there.
Example> I'm at the fitness club, starting with mixed cardio(that's almost always there, but it should always be there), once finished I continue with weights training(never shown when pressing plus from the pause menu).
I'm at the swimming pool. Why is not the first option swimming there?
100%! Timmy didn’t spent a dime for UX and leave to marketing who knows nothing but “Apple Watch save lives” drama. I can hit my target but not the stupid start workout button… if i click it, always end up the wrong one
So it's not just me... we went from usable to clunky so quickly.
Apple Watch owners have been voicing their frustration online over changes to the Workout app that Apple introduced in watchOS 26, with many finding the redesigned interface makes starting exercises difficult and exasperating.
When Apple launched watchOS 26 in September, the Workout app went from large, easily tapped workout tiles to a scrolling, corner-button interface. Instead of tapping a workout once to begin, users now select the workout type, and then tap a smaller play button that appears after a brief animation. Apple has also integrated music and podcast setup directly into the Workout app itself, so users can configure audio to automatically begin playing when they start exercising.
However, many of the changes appear to have become a major source of frustration over the last couple of months, based on a Reddit thread on r/AppleWatch that's full of complaints. "Touch targets are way too small," one user wrote. "Often times I have to tap the play button several times to get the workout to start."
Another user said the update has been "absolutely horrible," adding that "activating a swimming workout has become impossible once in the pool." Several swimmers echoed this view. One notes that the latest design makes it "impossible to reliably start or switch workouts once you're wet or mid-lap."
The redesigned layout also moves common controls like goal settings, quick-start options, and frequently used workouts into different positions. Long-time users say this breaks years of muscle memory. "What I used to be able to do in my sleep without thinking now takes my full brain capacity and always annoys me just before my workout," one user noted.
Some users also report reliability issues, like tapping the start button and seeing the press animation without the workout actually starting, or walking workouts failing to register completely. Mis-starts are another recurring issue. "I've accidentally started the wrong workout so many times," one user wrote. "The play button loads late, so I think I'm scrolling, but I actually tap it the moment it appears." Another said they've watched the button animate when tapped, "and then found out later that it didn't actually register."
The old Workout interface in watchOS 11
"The scrolling is so bad now," wrote another user, while others said the interface simply feels laggy. One explained that "the delay between selecting and starting is so long that I constantly overshoot or open the wrong thing."
Some users have turned to Siri voice commands to bypass the new interface altogether, while others rely on the Action button on Apple Watch Ultra models to start workouts directly. A few say they've been letting auto-detection handle walking and cycling sessions simply because it's less tedious than navigating the UI.
What have your experiences been with the Workout app on Apple Watch since the watchOS 26 update? Do you get on with the redesigned interface, or is it a step backwards from watchOS 11? Let us know in the comments.
Article Link: Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way
As I usually ask this rhetorical question.... does Apple even test their stuff? Maybe also run these redesigns by real users and not just staff looking to redesign something that for the most part works fine just because they have an urge to reinvent the wheel? Great opportunity to introduce bugs.... but I won't rant now on the seemingly decreasing thoroughness of their testing.
It's nice they've added more activities like pickleball & what not, but there's also a growing number of people who ruck for exercise and I've sent feedback multiple times asking to add it and it's still absent. In rucking you need to add the weight you're carrying so that your VO2 max doesn't tank. If you don't figure in that extra weight it thinks you're working so hard to carry your own body weight and your VO2 max drops.
Sigh
Same! I just left some feedback, rather brutal but polite. HATE the changes they made, much less usable. I've missed several workouts because I didn't tap on the teeny, tiny area to start it. Worked fine before, no complaints.
I dont have any problem starting a workout but I dont change the type very often. One button to run, one to bike, one to do weights. Its doesnt give me any trouble. I have noticed it no longer tells me my split pace and doesnt tell me when I am slower than I should be except once.
My biggest gripe continues to be how they absolutely ruined the Music app by having it assume I have a connection and showing me all my playlists when I only downloaded one for running. Just one playlist that should be downloaded and its showing my everything that can't even be played because my phone is a mile away at home and I dont have cellular on my watch. How bad it has gotten from being a perfect running watch/music player to a frustrating experience where your music that you downloaded is hidden with a bunch of stuff from other playlists. I was running yesterday and messing with this thinking...how did the watch go from my favorite apple device to this frustration over such a dumb thing.
My biggest gripe continues to be how they absolutely ruined the Music app by having it assume I have a connection and showing me all my playlists when I only downloaded one for running. Just one playlist that should be downloaded and its showing my everything that can't even be played because my phone is a mile away at home and I dont have cellular on my watch. How bad it has gotten from being a perfect running watch/music player to a frustrating experience where your music that you downloaded is hidden with a bunch of stuff from other playlists. I was running yesterday and messing with this thinking...how did the watch go from my favorite apple device to this frustration over such a dumb thing.
Doesn't Apple have any employees that use the Watch and do these activities?
It's mind boggling to me when we see this level of agreement about an issue on the forums.
Like -- how did this happen and how has it not already been fixed?
A released to the public visual refresh should never hamper actual usability and functionality like this.
It's mind boggling to me when we see this level of agreement about an issue on the forums.
Like -- how did this happen and how has it not already been fixed?
A released to the public visual refresh should never hamper actual usability and functionality like this.
I'll do the same. We got them to put back simple swipes for watch faces, so I'm optimistic that they'll understand that changes like this interrupt our workflows, often while out and about. I do not want to be distracted on the street fussing with my watch!
The touch targets issue is driving me crazy everywhere in watchOS, not just this app. I like the new look of UI elements across the system, but almost every button press takes 2 attempts for me. The button will usually register some tap and do a bounce animation, but not actually trigger.
I miss the old layout and thought I was just being grumpy, but the slow animations and tiny play button to start does drive me crazy too.
The health app on iOS moving to have all the major data hidden behind "search" is also very unintuitive for me. I never remember where I'm supposed to tap.
I miss the old layout and thought I was just being grumpy, but the slow animations and tiny play button to start does drive me crazy too.
The health app on iOS moving to have all the major data hidden behind "search" is also very unintuitive for me. I never remember where I'm supposed to tap.
I think this related to the coaching they added. That needs the phone. Try turning that off if it’s on. I think normal Siri goes back to calling things out once you do that.
