Bug with Watch OS11 workout app

Question

Level 1

31 points

Bug with Watch OS11 workout app

Since upgrading to Watch OS11 (AWU 2), I've noticed that when using the native workout app, it defaults back to the watch face screen even if the water lock is turned on. I've yet to narrow down the circumstances in which this occurs but there are four possibilities:

in the rain. (it's only happened in the rain so far but the second time the watch was under my sleeve and dry so not sure the rain is an issue)
when I pause the workout. (tried this in testing but couldn't replicate. Only noticed during a run)
after an hour of running (this has been common to both times I've observed the issue. As a side bar, I notice the that timer also now counts mm:ss instead of hh:mm:ss, but after 1hr 50m I noticed this reverted back to hh:mm:ss. This also didn't happen with watch OS10)
any combination of the above

Anybody else coming across this bug / issue?

Posted on Sep 24, 2024 1:20 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

1opossum

Level 1

22 points

Oct 4, 2024 3:35 PM in response to 1opossum

Update: I installed the 11.0.1 software update and this issue has not returned after 3 rides this week. 🎉

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Answer 2

Sep 29, 2024 6:06 PM in response to Hwjgage

Yes!! This is so annoying. It has happened twice now while using the Hiking workout. Both times I was over 2 hours into my hike and it occurred just after using the pause feature. Fortunately it keeps running in the background. Hopefully this will be resolved soon.

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Answer 3

Hwjgage Author

Level 1

31 points

Sep 29, 2024 11:44 PM in response to hansolo66

Thanks for your reply. It leads me to think its more likely to be a software issue affecting only a few, rather than a hardware issue. For what it's worth, I haven't yet been able to replicate the problem using the WorkOutDoors app. I've raised the issue with Apple Support and they've sent it to engineering but it will only be addressed if they see a lot of other people experiencing the same issue. If it persists, I'd suggest reinstalling Watch OS (which is what I will do after an upcoming race).

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Answer 4

1opossum

Level 1

22 points

Oct 3, 2024 4:03 PM in response to Hwjgage

I’m seeing it regularly with Outdoor Cycle workouts well before the 2-hour mark. Definitely looking forward to a fix.

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Answer 5

rswst8

Level 1

15 points

Oct 5, 2024 3:15 PM in response to 1opossum

11.0.1 did not fix this for me. I tried changing the time to 1 hour for workout under return to clock in settings so hopefully it will only happen once per hour but it seems like the return to app setting is broken

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Answer 6

Oct 4, 2024 5:10 PM in response to 1opossum

That’s good news. I’m going for a big hike tomorrow and will test it out.

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Answer 7

jllewis5

Level 1

5 points

Oct 9, 2024 5:03 AM in response to Hwjgage

11.0.1 did not fix this for me. It is driving me crazy! It happens to me when I am doing my outdoor biking workout. I may be 11 or 12 miles into a ride. As long as I don't pause, everything is fine. If I pause and then resume...it will show the workout app for a little while and then resort to the normal clock watch face. From that point on, I can't see any of my current stats like distance, speed, etc. unless I open the app back up. Also, the distance is way off now compared to before. I ride the same route very often and know the distance. It used to always show as ~22.18 miles. Now its showing as 21.47. That's a huge difference!

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Answer 8

Hwjgage Author

Level 1

31 points

Oct 4, 2024 9:16 PM in response to 1opossum

The update hasn’t landed for me yet but fingers crossed. Thanks for the update

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Answer 9

Hwjgage Author

Level 1

31 points

Oct 9, 2024 5:13 AM in response to jllewis5

Sorry t hear that. Please can you upvote as many of these messages as possible. The more it gets, the further up the chain it moves, then eventually Apple will get around to fixing it.🤞

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Answer 10

BobHarris

Level 9

55,109 points

Oct 9, 2024 5:36 AM in response to Hwjgage

Apple does not read this user-to-user technical support forum for feedback, not bug reports.

Ways to Contact Apple:

Feedback:

https://www.apple.com/feedback

https://www.apple.com/feedback/watch

Apple Support:

https://getsupport.apple.com

https://support.apple.com/contact

Contact - How to Contact Us - Apple

https://www.apple.com/contact

Genius Bar Reservation and Apple

https://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar

Apple Support International Links:

https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-250007041

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Answer 11

jllewis5

Level 1

5 points

Oct 9, 2024 5:45 AM in response to BobHarris

Yes, I actually just got off the phone with Apple. They gave me a couple of things to try. I'm not real optimistic with the pause/resume feature but maybe their GPS suggestion will work. They basically had me turn auto pause on and asked to see if that fixed it. I told her that I never had to use autopause before and that I don't really like it because I like to make sure that my starts and stops are instant and in my control. She said this was just a step to isolate the problem.

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Answer 12

cdc782

Level 1

8 points

Nov 19, 2024 3:50 AM in response to Hwjgage

I think the problem is related to ‘return to clock’ in general. I have a workout problem as well. I ride peloton and workout app usually stay on the screen because the ‘return to clock’ settings for Workout are ‘return to app’. Before 11 the watch would stay in the workout app so I could watch my heartbeat and time the whole time. Now it will randomly go back to the watch face in the middle of my ride. Others have the same issue, check Reddit.

I saw another bug yesterday related to the timer. Usually when I ask Siri to set a timer on my watch she will, and the watch face will return. It never really went to the timers app. Now she will open the timers app, show me the timer, and hang on the timer screen forever. It won’t return to watch face until I press the crown

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