Original topic:

Activity tracking in Samsung Health phone app not showing much data on Galaxy Watch

(Topic created: 09-13-2024 02:24 PM)
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esnikra
Constellation
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Galaxy Watch

I have been using my Galaxy Watch (6)  for tracking all of my training runs, which has been great.

A few weeks ago I was at a race/event and it didn't track the start of the race properly (even though it indicated that it had GPS signal), most likely due to the number of people at the start.  After the race I thought that it may be a good idea to track the event activities via the Samsung Health app on the phone, being that it should have better sensors, then just use the watch to see the current stats (rather than move to another solution which I would like to avoid). However, I found that it only shows your heart rate on the watch.

From this, I think I have a few related questions:

1) Should it be able to show more data on the watch, and I am just missing something in the settings?

2) If not, is it possible that this could be implemented at some point, or is it a limitation of how WearOS interacts with the phone (I was sure that Strava could work in this way in the past, but from checking it seems that it runs independently from the phone app also)?

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4 Replies
LongHiker
Galactic Samsung Care Ambassador
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Galaxy Watch

@esnikra If you start a run on your watch, you actually have several screens to look at. If you swipe up you will be able to see 4 different screens of information. 

realaud
Honored Contributor
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Galaxy Watch

You can also customize the data on each of the screens so you can reduce how many screens there are.  Go into the settings for the running workout on the watch, choose workout screen and select the data to be shown on data screen 1 and data screen 2 or put it all on data screen one, and turn off data screen 2 and keep or turn off the HR zone screen and asymmetry screen.  Or keep it the way it is and just know you have to scroll through the screens.  Given how almost everyone here would die before having to take another swipe or click, I think reducing the data to one or more less screens would be ideal for them.  All workout stats would still be available on the phone app.

esnikra
Constellation
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Galaxy Watch

Thanks @LongHiker @realaud for your responses. I was actually looking to start the tracking from the Samsung Health phone app specifically, with the hope that the stats would pull through on the watch when I'm out running just as they do when you start it from the watch.

Normally I do run it from the watch app and that works great but there are times such when in a race where there are a lot of people around that I feel the sensors on the phone may be more reliable, so starting the tracking from the phone may make better sense.

It feels like the two apps are somewhat independent though and the watch only acts as heart rate accessory to the phone app when connected that way around. The watch at that point, from what I can see only shows the heart rate (which it is recording).

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realaud
Honored Contributor
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Galaxy Watch

The phone app and the watch work concurrently with each other.  If you set the data screen for the exercise, if you start it on the phone it will start on the watch as well after the countdown.  If you go to the workout settings, as I said before, you can set which information you see on the data screens.  It has been my experience that the data screens show at the intervals set for the split guide (i.e. every .5 miles) and at the end of your workout.  I don't often look at the screen when I'm walking, as if I'm doing an exercise walk, I usually have my headphones connected by BT and the audio guide tells me the stats. If you are racing, how do you have time to look at your watch anyway? How do you figure the sensors on the phone would be more reliable? The watch literally sits on your wrist.

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