How to track boxing on Apple Watch

Method 1: Apple's built-in Boxing workout

Apple's list of workout types includes Boxing, Kickboxing and Martial Arts, so you don't need to install anything. Apple doesn't say what each one is for. Boxing is the natural pick for bag work, pads or shadowboxing.

How to start it

1. Open the Workout app on your Apple Watch.
2. Turn the Digital Crown to scroll to the bottom of the workout list.
3. Tap the Add button (+). On watchOS 10 and 11 it's labeled Add Workout.
4. Choose Boxing.
5. Tap the Play button to start. On watchOS 10 and 11, tap the workout to start.
6. When you finish, swipe right and tap End. On watchOS 26 and later, you can then turn the Digital Crown to rate your effort. On watchOS 11, scroll down and tap Add Effort first.

If Boxing is already in your list, just tap it. The list order changes based on the workouts you use, so Boxing gets easier to find.

What it tracks

Raise your wrist during training to see elapsed time, calories burned and heart rate. Before you start, you can change what it shows. On watchOS 26 and later, tap the Views button on the workout. On watchOS 11, tap More Options, then Preferences, then Workout Views. Afterwards, your workout shows up in the Fitness app on iPhone and in the Health app.

What it doesn't track

Apple's documentation lists no punch metric for Boxing or any other workout. So the built-in workout doesn't count your punches, tell a jab from a hook or estimate punch speed.

Things to know

• Start the workout yourself before you train. Apple doesn't say whether the watch detects boxing on its own.
• Auto-Pause won't help between rounds. Apple describes it only for outdoor running and cycling workouts. To pause by hand, press the side button and the Digital Crown at the same time.
• If your gloves or wraps cause accidental taps on the screen, Apple suggests turning on Water Lock.
• Apple says to tighten your band for workouts, and that water and sweat can cause a poor heart rate reading.

Method 2: PunchWatch for punch counts, types and speed

PunchWatch is an Apple Watch app that detects your punches from your wrist motion. It needs watchOS 26 or later on the watch and iOS 26.2 or later on the iPhone. The watch app comes with the iPhone app. Setup on the iPhone asks for your height, your experience level and access to Apple Health. Setup ends on a paywall for the iPhone app. You don't need to pay to use the watch app.

How to track a session

1. Open the PunchWatch app on your watch.
2. On the home screen, pick LEFT or RIGHT to match the wrist you wear the watch on. The app suggests your dominant hand.
3. Tap START. Tracking begins right away, with no countdown.
4. Train. A "Learning Your Punch" banner counts your first five punches. Per-punch tips start after that. After each punch, the screen flashes a color for its rating.
5. Swipe to the page on the right of the dashboard to see a speed meter with your last punch type and its speed. This page is in beta. Pause is on the page to the left.
6. Tap End Session. Your summary appears on the watch. The session is sent to your iPhone right away, or later when the phone is back in range.

What it adds

• Punch count and punch types. The watch counts the punches thrown with the hand that wears it, and the summary splits them into jabs, crosses, hooks and uppercuts. Punches from your other hand aren't counted. Straight punches are split into jabs and crosses by how long they take and how your wrist turns, so treat that split as a rough guide.
• Punch ratings. Each punch is rated from its estimated speed, and a quick, snappy punch can move up a grade. In practice the screen flashes green or yellow. You can turn the flash off in Settings.
• Estimated punch speed. The watch shows the estimated speed of your last punch and your best so far, in mph. The summary shows your top and average speed. The number comes from how hard your wrist accelerates. It isn't adjusted for your height. Use it to compare your own punches, not as a radar reading.
• Training cues. Short text cues pop up for a flurry of four punches in two seconds, a new top speed, punch milestones such as 100 and 500, quick runs of punches from your watch hand and a drop in punch speed.
• Apple Health workout. If you allow Health access, each session is saved as a Boxing workout with heart rate and calories. Don't start one in the Workout app too. The watch runs one workout at a time, so starting a second one ends the first.

PunchWatch has no round timer. A session runs as one block, so use your gym's clock or a round timer, and pause between rounds if you like.

Workout app vs PunchWatch

• Apple Workout app

  Cost: free and built in.

  Heart rate and calories: yes.

  Saves to Apple Health: yes, and to Fitness.

  Punch count and punch types: no.

  Punch speed: no.

  Round timer: no.

• PunchWatch

  Cost: tracking on the watch is free. The iPhone app, with your history and trends, needs a paid plan.

  Heart rate and calories: yes, if you allow Health access.

  Saves to Apple Health: yes, as a Boxing workout.

  Punch count and punch types: yes, for the hand that wears the watch.

  Punch speed: estimated, in mph.

  Round timer: no.

The Workout app is enough for time, calories and heart rate. PunchWatch adds a punch count, punch types, speed estimates and training cues.

Tips for accurate tracking with PunchWatch

• Wear the watch snugly. Only the punches from that hand count, so pick the hand you most want to track. If your dominant hand is your rear hand, PunchWatch counts that hand's punches, not your lead jabs, though some rear-hand straights may still be labeled jabs.
• Haptics are off by default. To feel a tick after each punch and a buzz for a new top speed or a punch milestone, swipe to the page on the left during a session and tap Sound.
• Two punches thrown very close together may count as one. The app ignores very short twitches and slow movements, and it's tuned to ignore walking.
• The speed is an estimate from your wrist, so compare like with like, such as shadowboxing with shadowboxing.
• If PunchWatch closes during a session, open it again. The summary saved after your last punch is then sent to your iPhone, but the punch-by-punch list is lost. Sessions with no punches aren't sent to your iPhone.

About the author

I'm George Yameen, a solo indie developer. I build sports apps for Apple Watch because I love these sports and wanted a better way to track my own training. Questions about this guide? Get in touch or find me on X at @GeorgeYameen.