“Much-Awaited Addition: Apple Watch Includes Long-Demanded Feature”

This week at WWDC 2024, that prize went to Apple Intelligence. It’s something that I’ve been requesting from Apple for several years, fueled by my own health struggles and the fact that I’ve somehow managed to contract COVID four times so far. The ability to pause your activity rings is a minor feature update for most, but for those of us who obsess about such things to an unhealthy degree, it’s the best Apple Watch update in years. There are several options for pausing: You can do it for one day, by day of the week or for entire months at a time. Once entered, this will be the goal for that day of the week until it’s changed again.

It is always enthralling to witness what excites individuals during keynote speeches. While there are the customary headline-grabbing announcements, it’s often the smaller details that the presenter quickly covers that truly sparks the enthusiasm of the audience.

Recently, at WWDC 2024, this year’s most buzz-worthy announcement went to Apple Intelligence. However, even before showcasing its impressive equation-solving capabilities, the arrival of Calculator for the iPad received the biggest pre-AI buzz of the event. Sometimes, delayed gratification is enough to ignite excitement.

Surprisingly, the most thrilling non-AI news came during the watchOS segment. It’s a feature that I’ve been anticipating from Apple for years, fueled by my personal health struggles and the fact that I’ve had the misfortune of contracting COVID four times already.

The ability to pause your activity rings is a seemingly minor update for many, but for those of us who obsess over our fitness goals, it’s the most significant Apple Watch update in years. Whether you’re down with a cold, on a long flight, or frantically shaking your wrist at 9 p.m. just to close your rings, you can now pause your progress through the Watch or connected iPhone app.

There are several options for pausing your rings. You can do it for one day, a specific day of the week, or even for an entire month. Your metrics will still be collected, but if you are unable to meet the target that would normally close your ring, you won’t lose your streak.

With WatchOS 11 comes further customization for your activity rings, allowing you to adjust your goals for each day. For instance, if you have designated Sundays as a recovery day in your marathon training schedule, you can lower your exercise goal. Once set, this will be the goal for every Sunday until you manually change it again.

Overall, I am thrilled that I won’t have to squeeze in a 30-minute workout session when inevitably, I catch COVID for the fifth time. It’s the little things that make a big difference.