Top 9 Apple Health Tips and Tricks to Use It Like a Pro
Over the years, Apple has opened the Health app APIs to allow third-party apps to access and write health-related data.
By default, Apple Health tracks steps and walking distance throughout the day. You will be surprised to know that the app is able to track everything, from vitamins to water intake, from sleep to thinking minutes and much more.
At the same time, it also allows you to create and store integrity profiles and export the data to a separate file on a device.
In this article, we are going to talk about the nine best Apple Health tips and tricks for using it like a pro. The list will include the functions mentioned above as well as a few others. Let's start.
1. Add activities to the feed
Apple Health will take you to the summary tab on the home screen. It consists only of stepped floors and steps. However, you can add other tabs from the edit menu.
Press the edit button in the upper right corner, and this will allow you to add height, weight, water intake, sleep tab and more.
Go to all the tabs and there you will see the long list of activities supported by Apple Health. The articles are carefully organized into relevant categories. Tap the favorite icon and add them to the home screen.
Alternatively, you can go to Browse> Categories and add the activities as a favorite on the main page.
2. Create a medical identifier
This is useful in case of an emergency. I strongly recommend that you configure it. On the home page, tap on the medical ID and you can add all relevant health and medical history information in one place.
You can list your past medical conditions, notes, allergies, reactions, medications, blood group, weight, height and even set the preferred emergency contact.
In critical situations, people can check your medial ID and help you appropriately.
3. Connect third-party apps to Apple Health
Apple offers all of the fitness tracking capabilities in the Health app. Now, that doesn't mean that the app itself does all the heavy lifting. Apple Health relies on third-party apps to fill the gaps here.
Apple is generous enough to suggest relevant apps based on activity. For example, you will find Adidas, iHealth, etc. on the home page. You can see apps like MyFitnessPal, Lose It in the nutrition section.
Now when you install these apps on the phone, activate the permission to let them read and write data in the Apple Health app. Alternatively, you can also change the Apple Health authorization.
In any section, scroll down to the Resources and Data Access menu to see detailed information regarding the applications that read and write data for this activity.
6. Tracking Mindfulness Minutes
In today's busy schedule, it is often advisable to take time off from work.
The iOS ecosystem is filled with such apps for relaxation and meditation. Apple recognizes it as a fitness activity and has added a mindfulness section in the Apple Health app.
You can choose from apps like Calm and Headspace to track peacetime.
7. Use Siri shortcuts
By default, Apple offers various Siri shortcuts to track activities. With Siri shortcuts, you can record water consumption, add hours of sleep, count reflected minutes, etc. Here's how to install it.
Go to Shortcuts> Gallery> Shortcuts from apps> Health and you'll see a bunch of ready-to-use shortcuts.
Tap it and add an associated voice phrase to activate Siri. I use it to track my water consumption throughout the day. From the Siri Shortcuts widget, I tap on the water logging option and add the current figure in an ounce.
Stay fit and healthy
The Apple Health app is more than a simple step tracking app. You can use it to track your health and activities with or without the Apple Watch. Of course, the Apple Watch will only add more functionality to it. In the meantime, you can try the tips and tricks suggested above to get started. And if you have a tip or two under the sleeve, share it with us in the comments section below.
Then: Google Fit is also a compatible application on iOS. Read the post below to find a detailed comparison between Apple Health and Google Fit.