Many people use their smartwatch and smartphone to track their fitness, and to help Android users achieve their goals, Google is refreshing its Google Fit app.
The new Google Fit is focused on two activity goals that are based on the American Heart Association (AHA) an World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations shown to impact health: Move Minues and Heart Points. You get Move Minutes for all of your activities, and you'll earn one Heart Point for each minute of moderate activity or double points for intense activities. Like Apple, Google has you closing rings when you earn Move Minutes and Heart Points.
When you're moving or exercising throughout your day, your phone or smartwatch will use sensors like the accelerometer and GPS to estimate the number of Heart Points that you're earning. You can also choose activities like gardening, pilates, rowing, or spinning, and Google Fit will calculate the Heart Points and Move Minutes that you earned during your exercise. And if you prefer a third-party fitness app like Runkeeper or MyFitnesPal, Google Fit integrates with them so that you can get credit for exercises tracked there, too.
Another notable feature of the new Google Fit is its coaching tips. The app will give you customized coaching and actionable tips based on your health and activity history.
Smartphones and smartwatches are handy tools to help people track their fitness, and closing rings can really help motivate people to get moving. Now Google Fit has rings that you can close, too, which could help users to take an extra walk in the evening or work a little harder near the end of their workout to close their rings.