I used this simple Shortcut to turn my Apple Watch Ultra into a one-touch rest timer in the gym

Finally, a good use for my Action button

· TechRadar

How-to By Stephen Warwick published 2 November 2024

(Image credit: Future)

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I've had the Apple Watch Ultra since the advent of the Apple Watch Ultra 2 last year. It's undoubtedly the best Apple Watch the company has ever made, with a host of specialized features that make it ideal for workout tracking and exercise, including one I've only just discovered.

I've long neglected the Action button on my iPhone 15 Pro Max (and now my iPhone 16 Pro Max), and the Action button on my Apple Watch Ultra. I've never really taken the time to think about what exactly I could use either for, and I've certainly never thought about straying past the default functions into the world of Shortcuts beyond.

However, the Apple Watch Ultra Action button can be used for a variety of features. Default options include starting a workout (my previous use of the button, up until this point), starting the stopwatch, dropping a waypoint, recording your route with Backtrack, starting a dive, turning the Flashlight on or off, recording a Voice Memo, starting Translate, or turning on an Accessibility feature.

Recently, I started thinking about how I could better use the Action button on my Ultra 2, and quickly realized that my reticence to use Shortcuts was silly.

Apple's Shortcuts app is a visual scripting app that can used to trigger all kinds of actions, like controlling your smart home, taking screenshots and sending them to people, and more. For my first Apple Watch venture, I started off simple, and now I can use my Apple Watch's Action button to start a one-minute timer with just one press, making it the perfect rest timer for my gym sessions and workouts. I often struggle to make use of the Apple Watch in a weights room environment, but this is perfect for my needs.

Here's how you can create a Shortcut and turn your Apple Watch Action button into a rest timer. Don't have an Apple Watch Ultra? You can also apply this Shortcut to the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro or the iPhone 16 lineup.

What you'll need

How to create a rest timer Shortcut

Quick steps

  • Create a Start Timer Shortcut
  • Assign it to your Action button in the Apple Watch app

Step-by-step guide

1. Create a Start Timer Shortcut

Open the Shortcuts app on your iPhone and Press the '+' button in the top right-hand corner. Scroll down to Clock or simply type "clock" into the search field, then tap. Scroll down the Clock options to Start Timer, located at the bottom.

Tap the Duration field and enter the amount of time you'd like (I chose one minute, because it's versatile and works for me, but you can pick any time you like) and then press Done. Tap 'i' at the bottom of the page and make sure Show on Apple Watch is toggled green.

Your new Shortcut should show up as a colored tile on the front page of Shortcuts, from here you can long press to edit the Shortcut, including renaming it.

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