If you have an Apple Watch, chances are you're sharing your progress with contacts, including friends, family members, or colleagues. You might also engage in a little friendly Apple Watch one-on-one competition from time to time, comparing your activity ring results with others. Something to consider when starting an Apple Watch competition, however, is that everyone has different personal goals set in the app regarding calorie burn, exercise minutes, and stand hours, which can skew results. What’s more, as you work to get stronger and more fit, you might find that you are ready to change your own goals. You can change your activity ring goals at any time on Apple Watch.

How to change your activity ring goals on Apple Watch from iPhone

  1. Open the Apple Fitness app.
  2. Tap on the Activity section at the top of the page, which shows your current goals.
  3. Scroll down to Change Goals and select.
  4. First, you’ll see Your Daily Move Goal. Use the “-“ or “+” symbol to adjust to the desired number. Select Change Move Goal.
  5. Next, you’ll see Your Daily Exercise Goal and the recommendation of at least 30 minutes per day. Again, use the “-“ and “+” symbols to adjust. Select Change Exercise Goal.
  6. The final one is Your Daily Stand Goal. The recommendation is to move for at least a minute for every hour you’re awake during the day. Use the “-“ and “+” symbols to adjust and select Change Stand Goal.

How to change your activity ring goals from your Apple Watch

  1. Open the Activity app on the Watch.
  2. Swipe up and select Change Goals.
  3. Continue with steps 4-6 from the section above, but from the Watch itself, tapping Next each time when done for the first two, then Done once you update your Daily Stand Goal to complete the process.

Changing your goals on any Apple Watch, even the Apple Watch Ultra, is a great way to work on progressing through your fitness journey. Start with an attainable goal and get more motivated when you consistently see those rings close. Then, you can increase your goals for each of the three rings little by little or challenge yourself one at a time. If you only want to change one or two of the three rings through the process, tap Change X Goal without adjusting the number, and it will move to the next one in sequence.

Arguably the easiest goal to meet is the Stand goal since it requires you to stand for at least one minute every waking hour. Start with 8-10 and move up to 12. For the Exercise ring, you might want to start with 15 minutes a day, working your way up to the recommended 30. This can easily be achieved with a brisk walk around the neighborhood. The most difficult ring to close is calorie burn, which relates to the intensity of your workouts and heart rate. The more you exercise, the more calories you’ll burn. Even taking more steps and doing more active things (think taking the stairs versus the elevator or parking further away) can make a difference.

  • Apple watch series 8 render
    Apple Watch Series 8
    $329 $399 Save $70

    The Apple Watch Series 8 is the 2022 smartwatch from Apple. It offers fresh features like crash detection, a temperature sensor, and more, in addition to existing ones, such as ECG and blood oxygen monitoring.

  • Apple Watch Ultra render
    Apple Watch Ultra
    $749 $799 Save $50

    The Apple Watch Ultra is the highest-end smartwatch Apple makes. It's not for everybody, but if you spend a lot of time outdoors, are a serious athlete, or just want the ultimate protection, this is the watch to pick.