As a marathon runner, I know how important rest days are, but having worn an Apple Watch for the past decade, I also know how addictive closing your rings can be. Read on to find the simple trick I’ve used to help me get fitter and stronger than ever.
As a reminder, rest days are when the actual transformation happens. When you work out, whether that’s lifting weights in the gym or, like me, training for a marathon, you create microscopic tears in your muscle fibers. On your rest day, your body repairs those tears, making the fibers ever so slightly thicker and stronger than before. If you never let your body rest, you’ll keep tearing the same tissue, and you’re likely to get injured, rather than stronger.
Rest days are also vital for restoring the glycogen needed to work out. This can lead to feelings of heaviness in your muscles. Plus, constant training can hurt your central nervous system and raise cortisol levels, as both will keep your body in high alert. This can, in turn, affect your sleep and even cause weight gain, which is probably something you’re trying to avoid.
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I wear an Apple Watch every day, and this is the one feature I changed to help me avoid getting injured
So how can you stop those pesky Apple Watch rings from keeping you more active than you should be on days when you need to rest? Luckily, in the past few years, Apple has heard our pleas, and you can now easily pause your rings if you’re injured, or taking a week’s recovery following a race or big event.
(Image credit: Future)Here’s how to pause your rings: Go to the Activity app on your Apple Watch (this is the icon showing your rings)Tap the graph icon in the left-hand cornerTurn the Digital Crown to scroll to the bottom of the screen and tap Pause RingsChoose a duration, or Custom to set a specific time
To resume your rings at any point, head back to this screen and tap Resume Rings.
But what if, like me, you’re following a more structured plan? Apple also allows you to customize you Apple Watch Activity ring goals based on the day of the week. I’m training for my sixth marathon, so most weeks, Tuesday and Saturday are rest days. I can easily tailor my weekly schedule for my Move, Exercise and Stand goals, rather than having the same goal each day.
(Image credit: Future)How to make a weekly schedule for your Activity Rings:Go to the Activity app on your Apple Watch (the icon showing your rings)Turn the Digital Crown to a ring, then tap on the plus/minus sign in the bottom right cornerYou can choose between changing your Activity ring goal for the day (perhaps you’re taking an unscheduled rest day) or changing your daily goal. Click on Change Daily Goal if you want to customize your rings for certain days of the week.From here, tap plus or minus to change your goal, either by how many calories you want to burn on a rest day or how active you want to be, then tap the schedule app in the top-right corner and select Schedule.You’ll need to repeat this step for all of the rings.
Every Monday, you’ll be notified about your previous week’s achievements, and you can adjust your goals for the next week. Your Apple Watch will also suggest goals based on your previous week’s performance.
If you’re currently in the middle of a training block and you’re finding you’re exhausted, irritable, or your resting heart rate is elevated, these are all signs you should probably add an extra rest day to your week. If this continues, or your muscle soreness lasts longer than 72 hours, it’s worth talking about your symptoms with a doctor or physiotherapist.
Of course, a rest day doesn’t mean sitting still with your feet up. Active recovery is important — it can help ease sore muscles, improve mobility, and lower stress levels. Think walking, swimming, yoga, and Pilates workouts. All of these will also contribute to closing those all-important Apple Watch rings, if you’re as addicted to them as I am.
Happy resting!
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