Apps WorkOutDoors: New workout features

[cfc]

I've had a couple of watch app crashes, I think they have all been on the connecting sensors screen just before starting a workout. I am using a Stryd and a Polar HRM, as well as using my AirPods to listen to a podcast via Overcast on my watch.

I've also had 2 workouts fail to record properly. The most recent was this morning, essentially at a certain point the time elapsed stops getting recorded properly, resulting in an almost infinite pace, at some point later it starts again. The same period of infinite speed has no heart rate and no power data, the elevation and GPS logs are fine.

My guess is that there is an issue getting data from the HRM and the Stryd and the app is getting confused by this especially as I think pace is derived from the Stryd.

When the workout is uploaded to Strava as a FIT file the total time elapsed is short by the amount of infinite speed resulting in some really wonky stats.

Luckily I was able to use HealthFit to export a FIT file based on the Apple Fitness version of the workout which has uploaded with the correct pace data (even if it is missing a section of heart rate and power data).

Would you like me to send you the FIT files? IIRC there is some debug data for the workout I can export too?

I haven't heard of those specific problems before. When there are multiple random problems like that then it is best to reboot the watch before using it again. If that doesn't help then please send the wkt file for that workout to info@workoutdoors.net and I will take a look. To do this tap the Export button 3 times quickly.

To be honest I probably won't spend too much time investigating because no-one else has mentioned it and the app hasn't changed since last year. However it could be related to recent versions of watchOS, Stryd etc, so if more people start reporting it then I will look into it in more detail.

 

[Nelu]

Btw: you can see the remaining distance if you set a Fixed Distance at the start of a hike. It's not as useful as it will be when the app follows a route but it can help.

I have a question about setting the target distance. Is there another way to do it apart from pressing the + or the - buttons to get to the desired value?
That's a lot of pressing, for example to go from your presets, let's say 10KM to 16km, in 50m increments...
I did try this today and if you know the total distance AND you don't stray from the route, it works just fine.

 

[cfc]

I have a question about setting the target distance. Is there another way to do it apart from pressing the + or the - buttons to get to the desired value?
That's a lot of pressing, for example to go from your presets, let's say 10KM to 16km, in 50m increments...
I did try this today and if you know the total distance AND you don't stray from the route, it works just fine.

You can turn the crown to change the distance more quickly.

I'm glad that it was a reasonable workaround to see the remaining distance metric!

 

[iamasmith]

@cfc I keep coming here to check for changes etc but it would be super good to be able to just go to www.workoutdoors.net for a chanegelog or even a whatsnew? It may be there somewhere but I don't see it within a few mins of browsing.. what do you think? It shouldn't take long to set up.

This is really based on the info coming into the app update detail through Apple maybe being a bit slow and, as you know, the update of the iPhone app doesn't mean you get the watch update at the same time.

 

[cfc]

@cfc I keep coming here to check for changes etc but it would be super good to be able to just go to www.workoutdoors.net for a chanegelog or even a whatsnew? It may be there somewhere but I don't see it within a few mins of browsing.. what do you think? It shouldn't take long to set up.

This is really based on the info coming into the app update detail through Apple maybe being a bit slow and, as you know, the update of the iPhone app doesn't mean you get the watch update at the same time.

Sorry - I should probably do something like that but I am not very good at that side of things. I am basically just a coder and what time I am not coding is spent doing support work for the app. I try to improve the website when I get the time, but that rarely happens.

Generally the what's new section on the App Store shows what is in the latest version of app.

 

[lucco78]

Hi, I'm a beta tester and I have a little question:
I have intervals voice alerts that tells me data from previous interval (pace, distance & heart avg.): it's possible to mute them from first interval?
Because it's annoying to hear "no data available" or other stuff...

 

[cfc]

Hi, I'm a beta tester and I have a little question:
I have intervals voice alerts that tells me data from previous interval (pace, distance & heart avg.): it's possible to mute them from first interval?
Because it's annoying to hear "no data available" or other stuff...

No-one has ever suggested that before, probably because most interval schedules do not start with a repeat loop. It sounds like a good idea, so I will add it to my list, but that is ordered by the number of requests, so it will be low down the list. Sorry about that.

 

[twisted-pixel]

Can you do anything about this?
WorkOutDoors shows 30 laps, 25m each = 750m

Apple workout shows 30 laps, 25m each = 725m

Seems to be the same for other pool swims too

 

[cfc]

Can you do anything about this?
WorkOutDoors shows 30 laps, 25m each = 750m

Apple workout shows 30 laps, 25m each = 725m

Seems to be the same for other pool swims too

I haven't heard of that before but there is a known issue where Apple's workout system takes a long time to inform the app about a lap (sometimes up to a minute or two). The fix for that is to wait a while at the end of a workout, to give time for the last lap to be reported, so that may also help in this case.

 

[blimundus]

Inspired by a recent discussion here, I tried the voice alerts on my run this morning. Easy to set up, works great, but I get some technical info at the start and the end, also audible in this test recording. Any ideas?

 

[cfc]

Inspired by a recent discussion here, I tried the voice alerts on my run this morning. Easy to set up, works great, but I get some technical info at the start and the end, also audible in this test recording. Any ideas?

That is very odd. Do you maybe have some voice-related accessibility options enabled?

 

[iamasmith]

Think I found an issue, possibly known about. I usually run with AirPods in and start playing music before kicking off the run with the HRM paired to the app.

If I don't connect the AirPods and start then it won't find the HRM unless I swipe left and kill the app and restart it.. likewise if I've done this and start a run with the AirPods playing first I have to repeat the process.

Seems like it's sticking to some kind of channel, like there's 2 to choose from and on startup it will find the one with the HRM but then stick to that until it's properly restarted,

 

[blimundus]

That is very odd. Do you maybe have some voice-related accessibility options enabled?

Googling, if found this and then picked a different voice under Accessibility -> Spoken Content -> Voices, which solved the problem.

 

[cfc]

Think I found an issue, possibly known about. I usually run with AirPods in and start playing music before kicking off the run with the HRM paired to the app.

If I don't connect the AirPods and start then it won't find the HRM unless I swipe left and kill the app and restart it.. likewise if I've done this and start a run with the AirPods playing first I have to repeat the process.

Seems like it's sticking to some kind of channel, like there's 2 to choose from and on startup it will find the one with the HRM but then stick to that until it's properly restarted,

I haven't heard of that before. In theory the AirPods being connected to watchOS should not affect the app's Bluetooth connectivity. However the app uses the watchOS Bluetooth system, so there could be a problem behind the scenes.

It's worth connecting the HRM via watchOS to see if that helps. Luckily there are two ways to connect HR sensors and connecting via watchOS can fix issues when the app is using 2 sensors, so maybe it will help with the AirPods.

 

[jon08]

Is there something that could be done about more accurate time calculation when combining FIT files exported from WOD and then uploading them to Strava?

For example, if I combine WOD-exported FIT files on FITfiletools website, I get wildly incorrect times - e.g. 2h30 mins for the below:

Hike 1: 1h39 mins
Hike 2: 1h49 mins
TOTAL should be: 3h28 mins

 

[cfc]

Is there something that could be done about more accurate time calculation when combining FIT files exported from WOD and then uploading them to Strava?

For example, if I combine WOD-exported FIT files on FITfiletools website, I get wildly incorrect times - e.g. 2h30 mins for the below:

Hike 1: 1h39 mins
Hike 2: 1h49 mins
TOTAL should be: 3h28 mins

What times do they show in Strava when loaded individually? If they look ok then the app has exported them correctly.

Make sure that Strava is showing elapsed times instead of moving times, because that is the most common reason for discrepancies. If you are running then setting the Run Type in Strava to Race is a good way to force them to show elapsed times.

 

[jon08]

What times do they show in Strava when loaded individually? If they look ok then the app has exported them correctly.

Make sure that Strava is showing elapsed times instead of moving times, because that is the most common reason for discrepancies. If you are running then setting the Run Type in Strava to Race is a good way to force them to show elapsed times.

When loaded individually in Strava, they show the following times:

Hike 1: 1h02 mins
Hike 2: 1h27 mins

Which is pretty much identical to combined 2h30 mins as per FITfiletool.

Should be:

Hike 1: 1h39 mins
Hike 2: 1h49 mins
(moving times)

 

[cfc]

When loaded individually in Strava, they show the following times:

Hike 1: 1h02 mins
Hike 2: 1h27 mins

Which is pretty much identical to combined 2h30 mins as per FITfiletool.

Should be:

Hike 1: 1h39 mins
Hike 2: 1h49 mins
(moving times)

Strange. Please could you send the wkt files for those workouts and I will take a look. To do this tap the Export button 3 times quickly and send to info@workoutdoors.net.

 

[nilsalb]

Hi cfc! Thanks so much for the amazing work.

I know you are hard at work re-writing the app in swift to have the always on display (I'm training for a 70.3 in september and definitely looking forward to that to see power as I ride on my bike)! Do you have an ETA on when you think you'll be done?

A couple of feature requests if you're tracking them:
1. Import custom workouts (from TrainingPeaks). I wish I could import the .FIT / .ERG / .MRC / .ZWO / .JSON file to Workoutdoors so I can see it as an interval schedule. Instead, I have to use https://watchletic.com/ which isn't nearly as good as Workoutdoors.
2. Multi-sport. Apple has enabled this with their boring workout app. Would be awesome to get this on WOD.

Thanks for the hard work. Apple has you to thank for Apple watch retention. I would definitely have bought a garmin if it wasn't for WOD

 

[javataco]

Hi cfc! Thanks so much for the amazing work.

I know you are hard at work re-writing the app in swift to have the always on display (I'm training for a 70.3 in september and definitely looking forward to that to see power as I ride on my bike)! Do you have an ETA on when you think you'll be done?

A couple of feature requests if you're tracking them:
1. Import custom workouts (from TrainingPeaks). I wish I could import the .FIT / .ERG / .MRC / .ZWO / .JSON file to Workoutdoors so I can see it as an interval schedule. Instead, I have to use https://watchletic.com/ which isn't nearly as good as Workoutdoors.
2. Multi-sport. Apple has enabled this with their boring workout app. Would be awesome to get this on WOD.

Thanks for the hard work. Apple has you to thank for Apple watch retention. I would definitely have bought a garmin if it wasn't for WOD

A few pages back cfc said it’ll likely be tested when the new iOS beta is announced and released. So I figure a few months after that.

Also, I believe they’ve said importing custom workouts is in the to-do list, albeit not a priority. I’d love it too personally.

 

[cfc]

Hi cfc! Thanks so much for the amazing work.

I know you are hard at work re-writing the app in swift to have the always on display (I'm training for a 70.3 in september and definitely looking forward to that to see power as I ride on my bike)! Do you have an ETA on when you think you'll be done?

A couple of feature requests if you're tracking them:
1. Import custom workouts (from TrainingPeaks). I wish I could import the .FIT / .ERG / .MRC / .ZWO / .JSON file to Workoutdoors so I can see it as an interval schedule. Instead, I have to use https://watchletic.com/ which isn't nearly as good as Workoutdoors.
2. Multi-sport. Apple has enabled this with their boring workout app. Would be awesome to get this on WOD.

Thanks for the hard work. Apple has you to thank for Apple watch retention. I would definitely have bought a garmin if it wasn't for WOD

The always on version will probably start beta testing in the next few weeks. I have finished the coding and am currently alpha testing it myself and when I am happy then I will start beta testing. As @javataco said it won't be released to the App Store until some time after WWDC because I want to make sure that the new version works on the watchOS 10 beta.

Importing schedules from FIT files is on my to-do list. I have coded it up to work with the current interval schedules, but they don’t yet support nested repeat loops. I asked around on this forum and most people said there would be complaints if I released without supporting nested repeats. So I am holding fire because nested loops would take a while to implement and there are higher priorities at the moment.

Multi-activity sports are also on my list of features to add, but are surprisingly rarely requested, and are therefore not high on the list. When I first wrote the app 6 years ago I was expecting that to be one of the most requested features, but strangely it hasn't been, even since Apple improved support for it in watchOS 9. My guess is that the share of the market for Apple Watch is still much lower amongst triathletes etc, but maybe the Ultra will help to change that over time. However at the moment multi-sport support is low on my list. Sorry about that.

 

[grantgam]

Odd query...

Scenario:

Set an open workout (run) on my watch, warm up for 15 minutes and then run a 5k at max effort, cool down and then save the workout.

If I set a PR for that 5k, would it log as such with a FIT export to Strava? Or does Strava compute PR's from the start of a workout only? i.e. can't set a PR for 5k in the middle of a 15k workout as example?

Thanks!

 

[BrianGGG]

The always on version will probably start beta testing in the next few weeks. I have finished the coding and am currently alpha testing it myself and when I am happy then I will start beta testing. As @javataco said it won't be released to the App Store until some time after WWDC because I want to make sure that the new version works on the watchOS 10 beta.

Importing schedules from FIT files is on my to-do list. I have coded it up to work with the current interval schedules, but they don’t yet support nested repeat loops. I asked around on this forum and most people said there would be complaints if I released without supporting nested repeats. So I am holding fire because nested loops would take a while to implement and there are higher priorities at the moment.

Multi-activity sports are also on my list of features to add, but are surprisingly rarely requested, and are therefore not high on the list. When I first wrote the app 6 years ago I was expecting that to be one of the most requested features, but strangely it hasn't been, even since Apple improved support for it in watchOS 9. My guess is that the share of the market for Apple Watch is still much lower amongst triathletes etc, but maybe the Ultra will help to change that over time. However at the moment multi-sport support is low on my list. Sorry about that.

I personally would love the workout import features and have no use for nested repeats.

 

[kplunk]

Morning. I was set up as a beta tester but somewhere along the way (new iPhone and watch upgrade) I seem to have lost this. Please can you remind me how to set this up? Thanks

 

[cfc]

Morning. I was set up as a beta tester but somewhere along the way (new iPhone and watch upgrade) I seem to have lost this. Please can you remind me how to set this up? Thanks

There isn't a proper beta at the moment (just a minor bug fix beta), but I will let you know when there is one with the always on display. Thanks for testing the app!