How to change the calorie goals on your Apple Watch, for both daily goals and specific workouts

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Apple Watch

Apple Watch owners are very well acquainted with the three colored activity rings — move (red), exercise (green) and stand (blue) — and the sense of pride you feel when you reach all of your goals and close all three rings in a day.

Although the exercise and stand goals are fixed (you must have 30 "active" minutes and stand for at least 1 minute per hour for 12 hours each day), the move goal (the number of calories you burn in a day), can be adjusted to suit your lifestyle.

Your move goal should be challenging for you to complete, but still attainable. Your Apple Watch will start you off with an average calorie amount, around 500, but after a week will ping you with new suggested goals if necessary.

This suggestion is based on whether you’ve regularly reached or failed to reach your goals. If you’ve been very active during week one, your Apple Watch will likely encourage you to increase the number of calories needed to close your move ring.

But what if you want to change this calorie goal at another time? Maybe you were a bit too optimistic when setting the goal and want to decrease it, or you’ve started a new morning fitness regime that means you’ve closed the ring by 10 am.

Thankfully you can change your calorie goal at any time from the Activity app on your Apple Watch.

How to change the calorie goal on your Apple Watch

1. Locate and open the Activity app on your Watch (it’s the one with three rings). If you’re using one of the Activity styles as your Watch Face you can access the app by tapping on the Activity rings.

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2. In the app, you’ll see the three rings as well as more detailed stats, such as the percent completion of each goal. Force press (press and push slightly into the screen) on the Activity Rings.

3. You will now see two options on the screen. Tap "Change Move Goal."

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4. Your current calorie goal will be displayed on the Apple Watch screen. Use the + and – buttons to adjust your calorie goal to your desired number—you’re able to set it in 10 calorie intervals.

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5. Press "Update" to set this value as your new calorie goal.

How to change your calorie goal for a workout

You can also set a calorie goal for a specific workout session. Your Apple Watch will track your activity and tell you when you’ve reached your calorie goal.

1. Go to the Workout app on your Apple Watch. It’s the symbol of a person running, with a green background.

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2. Swipe down until you find the type of workout you want to do (running, walking, cycling etc.) but don’t tap on the option just yet!

3. Tap the three dots in the top right corner of your workout option to find the goal option menu for this type of exercise.

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4. You’ll be given four options of what to use as the goal in your workout. Select "Calories."

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5. Adjust the calorie goal by pressing the + and – buttons. You’ll be able to set it in 25 calorie intervals.

6. When you’ve set your desired calorie goal, and are ready to start your workout, tap "Start."

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7. Once you’ve reached your calorie goal, your Apple Watch will give you a ping and you can finish your workout.

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Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Christine Kopaczewski)

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