Workout Route Map Colours

[StumpyBloke]

I’m trying to work out what the colours on the route map for my walking workout mean.

I believed that green indicated faster and red indicated slower. However yesterday and today I have done the same route, and yesterday‘s was substantially quicker with an average pace of 15’33”/mi and today’s pace of 21’54”/mi. Yesterday‘s walk was nearly 12 minutes quicker than today’s.

That’s all well and good, but the map for yesterday (a substantially quicker walk) shows more yellow and orange colours whereas today’s substantially slower walk shows more green. What is going on? Thanks.

 

[Runs For Fun]

I think you’ve got it backwards. Yellow, orange, and red show higher intensity. Green is lower intensity as can be seen by your pace examples.

See below.

 

[StumpyBloke]

You see, that’s what I wondered. But I googled before posting and every single post I came across on all different sites, including Apples, say that it’s to do with speed: green equals faster for example, red is slower.

So are you saying that the warmer the colour: red or orange means I was putting more effort into it? And green means I was just being a bone idle git and barely moving?

 

[jz0309]

I have always thought colors reflect speed. I do mountain biking and it shows green on downhills, red on the way up.
But, it could also be intensity, red on the way up my heart rate is way higher than on green downhill ...
So now I'm confused, so I did a google search too nd no official apple document showed up, but the question has been asked for years and I have the impression that the majority says its speed ...
Since I do have AC+ on my watch, I might just ask apple support ...

 

[wilberforce]

Green is faster and red is slower pace, but it is only relative within one workout (i.e., relative to the average pace for that workout), not relative between workouts.

Sometimes I forget to stop the workout when I get in my car, and the portion on the freeway at 70 mph (what a pace!) shows as green and all the rest of the actual walk/run all shows as red/orange.

 

[mk313]

I’m 99% sure that it’s speed, green is faster and red is slower, but it’s only from that particular activity. Each individual walk, etc will only show color gradients based on that walk, not relative to any prior activity. The slower walk sounds like you walked at a more steady rate, with less fluctuation in your speed, whereas the first walk has more variation, with faster and slower sections.

 

[StumpyBloke]

I’m 99% sure that it’s speed, green is faster and red is slower, but it’s only from that particular activity. Each individual walk, etc will only show color gradients based on that walk, not relative to any prior activity. The slower walk sounds like you walked at a more steady rate, with less fluctuation in your speed, whereas the first walk has more variation, with faster and slower sections.

My first walk was a non-stop very quick walk (by my standards) and the second walk was with my dog so stopping and starting and that’s why it took so much longer. None of this makes any sense to me.

 

[StumpyBloke]

It does seem like nobody truly knows. You would think Apple would make it clearer wouldn’t you?

The only one that makes sense in my case is that the warmer the colour, the more energy needed at that particular of the workout (I guess linked to heart rate and speed) as a couple of the posts above suggest.

But thanks for the replies anyway.

 

[wilberforce]

It does seem like nobody truly knows. You would think Apple would make it clearer wouldn’t you?

Apple says, quote: "The colors found in your route indicate your pace, with green the fastest pace and red, the slowest."

Apple Watch User Guide

Here’s everything you need to know about Apple Watch and the Apple Watch app on iPhone, straight from Apple. This definitive guide helps you get started using Apple Watch and discover all the amazing things it can do.

support.apple.com

 

[StumpyBloke]

Apple says, quote: "The colors found in your route indicate your pace, with green the fastest pace and red, the slowest."

Apple Watch User Guide

Here’s everything you need to know about Apple Watch and the Apple Watch app on iPhone, straight from Apple. This definitive guide helps you get started using Apple Watch and discover all the amazing things it can do.

support.apple.com

Thanks for that. I’m even more confused then. Clearly I am missing something here. But I did a sustained speed walk and I would’ve expected that then to have been more green rather than orange and yellows.

Edit: just checked today’s working walk out with the dog. He stopped loads and I can see every point where we stopped on the map which is marked in red. So that very quick walking workout the other day did not highlight in the right colour.

 

[Runs For Fun]

Apple says, quote: "The colors found in your route indicate your pace, with green the fastest pace and red, the slowest."

Apple Watch User Guide

Here’s everything you need to know about Apple Watch and the Apple Watch app on iPhone, straight from Apple. This definitive guide helps you get started using Apple Watch and discover all the amazing things it can do.

support.apple.com

Good find. I was also searching for an official documentation but couldn’t find anything.

 

[StumpyBloke]

Ignore

 

[mk313]

Thanks for that. I’m even more confused then. Clearly I am missing something here. But I did a sustained speed walk and I would’ve expected that then to have been more green rather than orange and yellows.

Edit: just checked today’s working walk out with the dog. He stopped loads and I can see every point where we stopped on the map which is marked in red. So that very quick walking workout the other day did not highlight in the right colour.

If it was a sustained speed walk, and you were walking approximately the same speed the whole time then you would expect the colors to be mostly orange and yellow. The colors highlight speed differences within that activity session . Your overall speed, relative to other sessions is immaterial.

You can see that on your other walk, where you have reds when the dog stopped.

 

[StumpyBloke]

If it was a sustained speed walk, and you were walking approximately the same speed the whole time then you would expect the colors to be mostly orange and yellow. The colors highlight speed differences within that activity session . Your overall speed, relative to other sessions is immaterial.

You can see that on your other walk, where you have reds when the dog stopped.

Aaahhhh thank you. That makes absolute sense. Of course, if I thought about it properly, the colours aren’t matched across workouts, rather, purely for each individual workout, as you quite rightly say.

Thanks again

 

[Spindel]

I’m late to the party, but I’ll say this anyway.

I use the watch for running and when doing that it’s really clear that green indicates a higher pace and red lower pace (within the same workout). For me on one of my usual routes I’m green on a flat part and then there is a 1 km part with an incline and it goes to red, all in line with my loss of tempo.

It isn’t as clear when walking for me since the variations in pace aren’t that big compared to when I’m running.

 

[StumpyBloke]

Absolutely. I genuinely can’t believe I couldn’t see that for myself and I needed it spelling out to me. Sometimes I really can’t see the wood for the trees.