The Apple Watch 5 has a lot of potential to track your movements or record your runs and walks. Apple adds more functionality to this smartwatch with each iteration. And now, sleep tracking is one of the features of joining the pack.
While you could track your sleep patterns before, Apple didn’t integrate these functions by default until watchOS7 and iOS 14. While this feature is useful, it’s unimpressive, at least for now.
That’s why we thought of compiling two ways to track your sleep habits and patterns using the Apple Watch. The first uses the native app, while in the second method we discover a third-party app that gives sleep tracking a whole new meaning.
So what are we waiting for? Lets start.
How to Monitor Sleep Naturally on Apple Watch 5
As mentioned earlier, the Apple Watch 5 comes with a sleep tracking mechanism, but it’s pretty straightforward. You can only see your sleep schedule, highlights and average time you slept.
To view it, go to the All Health data app on your iPhone and scroll down until you see the Sleep option. Tap on it to view the data.
And yes, you can also switch between week view and month view.
As stated above, this data is very basic and does not give you in-depth information. For example, you cannot control your sleep heart rate or the quality of your sleep.
If you want to dive deep into your sleep routines and patterns, you will naturally need a more skilled app than the basic app.
We tried several iOS apps and one that we discovered worked well and had the right balance of features and settings is called Auto-Sleep.
How to Set Up AutoSleep on Apple Watch
AutoSleep is a feature rich application with many interesting features. Besides monitoring your sleep data, it also has a smart alarm and sleep bank, among others.
Stage 1: After downloading the app to your phone, open the Watch app and scroll down until you see Available Apps. Once you find AutoSleep, simply tap the Install button next to it; The application will be installed on your watch in a short time.
One of the good things about AutoSleep is its simple and straightforward interface. Most of the options are displayed directly on the home screen. And if you want to see detailed information, all you have to do is tap on the required option.
Quite obviously, the app will need data to function properly.
How to Monitor Sleep in AutoSleep
For starters, the AutoSleep app shows a 12-hour and 24-hour view of your sleep patterns. Compared to its native counterpart, the presentation is more detailed. Besides the time you spend sleeping, you can also see the quality, sleep heart rate and amount of deep sleep. And the good news is that you can track your daytime naps, too.
Click on one of the four bubbles in the center to get a little deeper insight and all the information will be revealed to you. Besides the details, what I particularly like about this app is the subtle yet fluid animation.
One more tap and the app will show you your sleep report for the whole week along with the 7-day trend. You can also check out the Sleep Hygiene option for an overview of your sleep patterns for the past week.
As you start to wear the watch more often while going to bed, you will see the green circles on the top, showing your past sleep patterns. Simply tap the circles to see all the information in front of you.
And it doesn’t end there. AutoSleep has a feature it calls Sleep Bank. You can set the average sleep time in Settings. And when you sleep longer than the stipulated time, your bank will show excess data.
You can also check out the Sleep Hygiene option for an overview of the last week’s sleep patterns.
However, if you are a low sleeper like me, the bank will give you a deficit. The mantra here is to maintain the right balance so that the bank does not show a zero rating.
In short, the app gives you a detailed insight into your sleep, whether it’s the amount of light sleep, rest, and deep sleep.
Apart from that, the app has many options to explore. Below are three of the interesting ones.
Additional features
1. Control Environmental Noise
Environmental noise often has a disastrous effect on our sleep and body when left uncontrolled for a long time. If you often find yourself waking up in the middle of the night and suspect that noise is one of the problems, this app can help you find the culprit.
Go to sleep session for that night and scroll down. Here you will see a handy chart for Environmental Noise. If it’s on the high side, you know what to do.
2. Smart Alarm
The AutoSleep app’s smart alarm lets you wake up at just the right time, avoiding sluggish mornings. It gives you a 30-minute window for when you want to be woken up and sounds the alarm when your sleep is lightest.
That way, you’ll wake up fresh and likely less dizzy in the morning and afternoon. All you need to ensure is that the watch needs to stay charged.
3. Lights Off
Another interesting feature of the application is the Lights Off feature. This measures the time it takes you to fall asleep.
All you have to do is tap the option on your watch and the app and clock sensors will do the rest.
Sleep Like a Baby
The trick here is not to get obsessed with data, but to strike the right balance to achieve all your goals. After all, you don’t want to lose your sleep by over-analyzing your sleep data, do you?
At the end of the day (oops night), make sure you wear a comfortable watch strap while you sleep. While the sturdy and armored straps protect the watch, it is not comfortable for sleeping as its hard edges can further disrupt your sleep.
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