How to Use Apple Health To Track Sleep on iOS
Apple Health has been at the center of all operating system updates since its inception. At each iteration, the app has got more features with different ways to track fitness data. You can use Apple Health to track steps, calories, add cardiac data, thoughtful minutes, and more.
However, Apple has not integrated these default functions. The company relies on third-party developers to fill gaps with categories such as nutrition, food sugar, sleep data, and so on.
Unfortunately, there is no way to automatically follow sleep on the Apple Health iOS app. Competitors, such as Samsung Health, offer the ability to directly follow sleep with the user's movements. Apple should add the feature with the next update of Apple Watch.
There are however some solutions. Users can sleep on Apple Health with the official Bedtime feature, third-party apps, and mobile devices. In this article, we will offer you a step-by-step guide to tracking sleep hours on Apple Health.
First, you need to add the sleep tab in the Apple Health app. For quick access, open Apple Health> Browse> Sleep> Add to Favorites. From now on, it will appear directly on the home screen.
2. Add data manually
The Bedtime function has two limitations. First, it only works at night, and secondly, it does not count the afternoon naps in the Apple Health app. In addition, if you sleep before bedtime, there is no way to see this data because bedtime only starts at the mentioned time.
In such cases, you can manually add hours of sleep in the Apple Health app.
Go to Apple Health> Sleep Analysis> Add data and log the start / end time.
3. Use third-party applications
Apple encourages users to try third-party apps on the App Store to track different health activities. The company has added the section of suggested apps in the various sections of the Apple Health app.
For sleep tracking, the company offers Sleep Cycle, Sleepiest, Beddit, Pillow and Sleep ++ in the Apple Health app.
You can use these applications to keep a log of sleep times and these apps will sync data with Apple Health.
Third-party applications also have rich features such as detailed sleep data with graphics, sleep sound, alarms, stories, and more.
Do not forget, you must give applications access to Apple Health from the settings menu. It's only then that he will be able to talk to Apple Health to send the data.
In the example above, I tried the Sleep Cycle and Sleepiest apps and gave them access to Apple Health to synchronize the data. They come with subscription plans, which usually cost $ 30 / year.
Sleep in peace
Use one of the tips above, and you'll be fine with tracking the hours of sleep with the help of the Apple Health app. Bedtime works perfectly during the night, manual mode is for missed hours during noon, and third-party apps are expensive, but offer a lot more features out of the box.
And finally, portable devices offer other smart features such as notifications, calls and, of course, sleep tracking.
Next step: Calm and Headspace are two of the best apps to relax the mind. Read the post below to see which application is right for you.