Imagine seeing your real-time sweat rate and adjusting your workouts accordingly. How valuable would that be for an athlete or anyone looking to track that information for their workouts and more? Well, that may be in the works already with Apple.
Apple is rumored to be developing future Apple Watch models with built-in sweat sensors. These sensors, embedded as electrodes, would track perspiration levels during workouts, providing more detailed fitness data.
Apple’s latest patent for sweat-tracking
Recently, Apple received a patent for “Wearable Devices with Perspiration Measurement Capabilities,” hinting at a future Apple Watch with sweat-tracking abilities. This sensor could measure the sweat rate and total fluid loss during workouts. Additionally, Apple plans to incorporate data from other sensors like body temperature and local humidity to provide a more comprehensive picture of your workout performance and hydration needs.
Advancing personalized workout information
Future Apple Watch Ultra workouts could get even more personalized with sweat rate tracking things like the average fluid ounces lost per minute or total sweat loss over your entire workout. This information, alongside instantaneous sweat rate for the past 15-30 seconds, would be displayed on your watch.
The Apple Watch would consider external factors like temperature and humidity based on your GPS location and weather data to ensure accuracy. This helps account for variations in sweat production due to environmental conditions.
This data could be incredibly valuable for athletes like marathoners and cyclists, allowing them to track fluid loss and optimize their hydration strategies precisely. Apple’s sensor would provide actual measurements, unlike current fitness trackers that estimate sweat loss based on generic data.
Growing interest in more data
It’s worth noting that similar technology exists in Fitbit’s Body Scan tool, which measures electrodermal activity (EDA) to assess stress levels. While this might not directly translate to sweat loss tracking, it suggests a growing interest in personalized sweat data. With Apple’s increasing focus on fitness features, sweat tracking seems natural. Whether this patent translates into reality remains to be seen, but it certainly piques the interest of athletes and fitness enthusiasts.
