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I ran the automatic IOS update for Apple Watch a couple of weeks ago and since then my fitness tracking has not worked at all. No steps, movement, walking or other fitness choices, etc. are working, not even my sleep tracking. My iPhone is working fine. I have tied re-paring it with my phone, turned everything off then on again, turned off fitness/health tracking on my iphone then turned it on again, etc. NOTHING is working. Any suggestions?
Apple Watch Series 5
Series 5 user here too… I have had a very similar problem occur twice now.. last year (July) I woke up one morning and my watch wouldn’t track any steps, activity, heart rate, or recognize the wrist raise for screen wake. The only thing that it would do was sync any data I entered from my phone to the watch.. wouldn’t record anything on its own. I searched every stupid message board from Apple and other online forums.. never saw any mention of a similar problem to mine (which was infuriating). Anyways, I eventually sent it in to Apple because their suggestions (same ones we see from their online forums) were worthless. They claimed to be unable to diagnose the issue, citing possible hardware issues, so they “replaced” the watch..
Yesterday I woke up to see signs of the EXACT same problem. Sure enough, same issues (i.e. not tracking any movement, sensing, or writing its own data.) I have yet again done everything under the Sun. Unpaired & repaired it 10+ times, re-paired as new/backup versions… NOTHING. I am beginning to wonder if they actually “replaced” it like they said. I take absolutely great care of this watch, never get it wet (whether in the shower or otherwise) and am meticulous about utilizing it properly.. I fail to understand how this has happened again, and at this point I feel like I’ll have to continue the same process w/ Apple again.. only this time, my coverage is expired. Would love to know what you find out.
Series 5 user here too… I have had a very similar problem occur twice now.. last year (July) I woke up one morning and my watch wouldn’t track any steps, activity, heart rate, or recognize the wrist raise for screen wake. The only thing that it would do was sync any data I entered from my phone to the watch.. wouldn’t record anything on its own. I searched every stupid message board from Apple and other online forums.. never saw any mention of a similar problem to mine (which was infuriating). Anyways, I eventually sent it in to Apple because their suggestions (same ones we see from their online forums) were worthless. They claimed to be unable to diagnose the issue, citing possible hardware issues, so they “replaced” the watch..
Yesterday I woke up to see signs of the EXACT same problem. Sure enough, same issues (i.e. not tracking any movement, sensing, or writing its own data.) I have yet again done everything under the Sun. Unpaired & repaired it 10+ times, re-paired as new/backup versions… NOTHING. I am beginning to wonder if they actually “replaced” it like they said. I take absolutely great care of this watch, never get it wet (whether in the shower or otherwise) and am meticulous about utilizing it properly.. I fail to understand how this has happened again, and at this point I feel like I’ll have to continue the same process w/ Apple again.. only this time, my coverage is expired. Would love to know what you find out.
Thank you very much for these clear directions. yes, I had ensured all of the initial steps you mentioned, have no tattoos, etc. Unfortunately, it is still not picking up my steps, when I stand, or walking though it did pick up my functional training time and heart rate which seems to be an improvement.
I have been using the tracker for 2 years and have never had an issue so I am at my wits' end. Maybe the next step is to go to the Apple store. This is extremely frustrating.
Check your personal details are correct in your health app profile.
Make sure the watch band is snug but not too tight.
Don't wear the watch on top of any tattoos.(Very important)
Check that the 2 side buttons aren't being accidently pressed by your hand or a sleeve
On your iPhone, go to Settings, then tap on Privacy and then select Location Services option and ensure that it is enabled.
On the Location Services section, tap on System Services and then toggle the Motion Calibration & Distance option to enable it.
Then go back to the Home Screen of your iPhone and launch the Watch app.
Then,tap on My Watch option, then tap on Privacy and toggle the Heart Rate option to enable it.
Go back to My Watch section, then tap on Passcode, and toggle the Wrist Detection option to enable it.
Finally, go back to My Watch section, then tap on Workout, and make sure Power Saving mode is disabled. If enabled,turn it off.
Unfortunately, the same thing happened again to my Apple watch. I will try the fix again, but I don't understand why this is happening. I made no updates, keep it charged, etc. Is this a known issue for the Apple Watch series 5?
Hi fieryjack, I have already tried the unpair and re-pair and that did not work. However, I had not tried the two-button restart (I turned off along with my iphone and then my iphone back on to check and toggle settings in health, privacy settings, etc. but that didn't fix it). So, fingers crossed this simple forced restart will work! So far it still is not sensing any steps but I'm going for a walk in a little while so I'll see then. Thank you for all of your help already. I'll keep you posted.
Try option 2;
I am going to try it again. I just unpaired my Apple watch. How do I repair it and set up an new? I am given the option automatically to start pairing which is what I did before. Is this considered a new pairing or a re-pairing? Thanks.
I am going to try it again. I just unpaired my Apple watch. How do I repair it and set up an new? I am given the option automatically to start pairing which is what I did before. Is this considered a new pairing or a re-pairing? Thanks.
When you unpaired and repaired did you set it up as new?.
fieryjack: it worked! I finally had a chance to re-pair the Apple watch yesterday and set it up as new and it worked, although it took several hours to kick in after I completed. Thank you so much!
I will definitely let you know jtl9945a. I have been talking to someone at Apple. She tried a few things, so far no luck. I'm scheduled to talk to her again today.
Apple watch fitness not tracking
