Apple Intervals App for Runners

The Apple Intervals App has changed so much (for the better) since I first did the post about it that I decided to start from scratch.

The great thing about the app if you are a beginning runner, is it has a Run/Walk training program already built into it. I really like to start people out on a run/walk program if they are new to running, so this app is great for a beginner as well as an advanced runner that wants to do intervals.

One of the things I have learned as I have advanced in the sport is that workouts are important to my running fitness.

Incorporating things like tempo runs, intervals and strides is one of the keys to me breaking the 2 hour half-marathon mark.

I also am very bad at fueling long runs. I forget to take in carbs when I should, so I have also used this app to remind me to eat something at set times.

Let’s jump into the app.

I do have the pro version and since it has changed so much since I first got it, some of what I show you may not be available on the free version.

If you find that to be the case, please let me know so I can update the post to include that information.

Timers

You can see I have a list of a lot of runs/running workouts that I can choose.

Let’s look at my 8×600 M 400 Recovery Run. If that sentence seems like shorthand to you, access an explanation here.

This is a Custom Timer, so one that I put in myself. The total time is 3 minutes plus 5.72 miles.

There is a Preview of the whole run (the run scrolls down and shows every interval…8 of them plus the recovery). You can start the timer by hitting the “start” button on the bottom, or start anywhere by hitting one of the Intervals (numbered 1-8) or the Rest.

You would use this feature if say, you were going to do 4×600’s instead of setting up a whole different timer. Just hit the Interval 5 section and you could start from there.

So that is what you will end up having when you start inputting different workouts. I think when I had the free version, I was only able to have 1 timer and had to set it up each time I wanted a different timer.

Adding a Timer

Let’s go down to the blue button on the lower right and add a new custom timer.

These two images show the Add New Timer page in the app…the second photo is just what you can scroll down to.

The app has built in Workout Templates for a Run/Walk, 4×4 Run, etc.

It also includes 2 Training Programs…a 9 week 5K Training and a 12 week None to Run program which utilized the Run/Walk.

For this tutorial, we are going to add a Custom Interval Timer for a Run/Walk that my husband likes to do when we want to go for a long run, but we aren’t training for anything.

This method allows him to go 10 or 12 miles comfortably.

Custom Interval Timer

We will use a 10 miler as the example.

The app will ask you for permission to save the data to Apple Health. You can see your info/history in the app itself, but it will also upload to Apple Health Workout if you tell it to.

The first thing I do is name the new timer. We will call it 10 Mile Run Walk 1.5/.5

Next go to the Apple Health Workout Tracking “Select an Activity Type” screen.

Keep the “Workout” button on and hit the “Select an Activity Type” button. You will see a list of all different activities and sports. Running is near the top of the list, we will choose that.

Be sure to hit the “Done” button on the bottom, or it will not register.

The next line asks whether you will be working out indoors or outdoors…there is also an “unknown” button, but I can’t for the life of me figure out why I wouldn’t know where I am going to work out, lol!

I am an outdoor runner, so will choose the outdoor button.

The next button asks if you want to track the distance and workout route based on whether you are doing a “Walk/Run”, “Cycle” or “Wheelchair”. Since you chose “Running” as your activity, the “Walk/Run” button will automatically be selected for you. If it is not, go back up to the Activity Type line and make sure it says running. Sometimes I forget to hit the “Done” button and this reminds me its not registered as a run.

The last button on this screen is the “Disable Fitness Tracking” button. If you are also going to use the Apple Watch Workout app (or any other one) at the same time, you can turn this on and the Intervals app won’t track the fitness data.

I want it to, because this app does a fantastic job of integrating with Apple Health Activity on my iPhone. You will be able to see the workout in the Apple Health section, as well as in the App itself.

Setting up the Intervals

We are only going to have 2 Intervals, even though we are going to run through them multiple times.

You can set up more than 2 intervals, for example if you are doing a “Ladder” workout where you will start out at a lower distance or time of fast running, have a recovery period and then gradually add in longer distances or times.

For this Run/Walk though, we will run 1.5 miles and rest for .5 every time.

Note- We will be setting up a Warm Up and Cool Down later, but this part is only for the “regular” part of the run.

Go to the Interval 1 page.

Interval 1

Name the interval “RUN”.

Next hit the “Duration” button.

We are going by Distance, not Time so you will need to switch to the Distance button. It will show Kilometers and Miles. We want to use 1.5 miles for this run, so set the Duration for that.

Below the Duration you will see a switch for “Continue After Duration”. The explanation for this is if you want to manually go to the next interval, instead of automatically. I have enough to worry about, so I want everything as automatic as possible!

The “Alert Sound” just lets you know you are going to be switching to the next interval. I use “Text to Speech”, so it will speak to me when it is time to switch to the next interval either through my watch or phone or headphones.

Again, hit “Done”.

We will skip the color, but if you want to change the color for the interval, go ahead.

The next button is for the “Halfway Alert”. Some people like to know that they are halfway through an interval, and some people absolutely hate it. I usually want to know, so I have that toggled.

Repeat count is next. Usually for a run type interval workout or a walk/run you won’t be repeating the interval without a recovery (which is interval 2). So this has always been None for me.

If you have a heart rate monitor or the Apple Watch, you can use the next part of the interval set up.

To set a Target Running Pace, go to the page and select “Enable Target Pace”, which will then “un-gray” the “Set Target Pace” prompt.

You will then be taken to a screen that allows you to set a range. This is awesome if you ever used the Apple Watch as a pace setter. It only allowed you one Target, so I found it constantly alerting me that I was going too fast or too slow.

We will set the target pace for 10:00-10:30 (minutes per mile).

If you are doing heart rate training and want to set a range for that, you can also do that here.

When “Interval 1” is how you want it, go back.

Interval 2

Interval 2 will be mostly the same.

Set the Duration as .50 mile, and don’t include a Target Running Pace.

Adding Intervals

If you want to add intervals, you can hit the “Add Interval” button. “The Interval 3” line will pop up and you can add what you want.

Rest After Interval

You can set up the same thing if you want to rest after an interval. Say you are going to walk half a mile, run half a mile and then flat out sit down for 5 minutes.

For most of us using this as an interval timer for running, we won’t need this feature.

Repeating the Timer

So this is important, because it can be confusing.

A “Cycle” is how many times you want to run the FULL timer. So 1 cycle is Interval 1 and then Interval 2 (or however many intervals you have set up).

If I want to Run/Walk 4 miles, I would set the Number of Cycles to “2” (which would add up to 4 miles with 1.5 run/.5 walk 2 times).

You can also choose to rest between cycles as well, but again that isn’t usually done for a Run/Walk since the walk part is the rest.

Warm Up/Cool Down

The “Warm Up” and “Cool Down” is set up like an interval, but will be separate in that it is not included in the Cycle count.

Also…obviously…the Warm Up is before the first Interval starts and the Cool Down is after the last Interval 2 timer (when the number of cycles you chose is finished).

Finishing Up a Custom Timer

The Intervals will give you a countdown before switching the next one if you want one.

The default is 5 seconds, which I like.

You can choose anything from no countdown to 20 seconds.

Just like the alert to let you know it’s time to switch, the alert to let you know you have “X” amount of seconds before the switch is set up the same.

If you have an Apple Watch, you can set the Haptic as your alert as well.

There is an option to add the interval to Siri and customize what you want to say to start it. Keep in mind, each timer will need a different phrase so keep it simple.

You can add time or distance goals, half-way alert for the whole workout, skip last rest interval (which I usually do), etc.

SUPER IMPORTANT: Don’t go out of the Timer without saving (in the upper right hand corner). All the work you just did will be lost if you forget to hit “SAVE”. This I know from painful experience.

Apple Watch Settings

If you have an Apple Watch, there is a section that you can set up for that.

You can choose what taps on the watch will bring up different information, such as your workout status or to pause or resume the interval.

You can also tell it to talk to you only when you have headphones on or have the speech (such as the next interval prompt) come through the speakers on the watch.

If you want to use the watch to open the app, set up the interval in the app on the phone and then go to the app on the watch and the list of intervals will be on the face. Tap the interval you want to use and hit start.

A lot of the traffic to this website is because of this Interval App post, and I get many questions because of it. If you have any yourself, you can email me at sherry@wrinkledrunner.com and I will get back to you.

Sometimes I have to do some researching within the app to see if what you want it to do is possible, so it may take a few days for me to reply.