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Apple watch fitness not tracking

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

Posted on Feb 27, 2022 6:50 PM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Mar 30, 2022 9:05 AM

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.

11 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Mar 30, 2022 9:05 AM in response to Monique516

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.

Feb 28, 2022 5:53 AM in response to Community User

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.

Feb 28, 2022 1:21 AM in response to Monique516

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.

Feb 28, 2022 6:10 AM in response to Community User

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.


Apple watch fitness not tracking

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