GymKit has been one of the smartest Apple Watch fitness features since its launch in 2017. Tap your watch to find compatible exercise machines, and the Apple Watch shares your heart rate while the machine feeds back metrics like distance, incline, pace, and calories.
With iOS 27, Apple is expanding that vision beyond the Apple Watch. I tested the new GymKit on iPhone and AirPods Pro 3 ($179, reg. $249) with a GymKit-compatible treadmill. It gives you the Apple Watch GymKit workout tracking experience, without the watch. This can be useful in many cases.
GymKit, no Apple Watch required
Setup is easy. I tapped my iPhone on the treadmill, took the Indoor Walk (Indoor Run is also offered), and started exercising from the treadmill. With GymKit, workout data is stored securely on the iPhone and removed from the device.
Once the workout started, the treadmill received heart rate data from the AirPods Pro 3. Meanwhile, the Fitness app on the iPhone received the treadmill’s distance, speed, incline, and calorie data. Treadmills know details that the iPhone and AirPods can’t on their own, especially the incline distance and vertical band.
As a side note: Apple Watch has more accurate treadmill workout tracking as part of watchOS 27. GymKit remains the gold standard for accurate data, though.
GymKit also avoids two common exercise habits. You don’t need to hold the heart rate contacts of the treadmill while running. You also don’t need to wear a Bluetooth heart rate monitor.
AirPods Pro 3 becomes a heartbeat source (and maybe your podcast or music sound source). The iPhone becomes a workout computer, which you can monitor during your workout. And the treadmill fills the machine data while providing a place to walk or run.
iPhones and AirPods are now synonymous with the Apple Watch
Apple has been moving a lot of durability features to the iPhone for years. iOS is the first to make a fitness app useful outside of the Apple Watch as Apple Fitness+ relies on the iPhone as an entry point. AirPods Pro 3 went ahead as the first AirPods with heart rate tracking, after Apple tested the idea with Powerbeats Pro 2.
iOS 27 brings those pieces together. GymKit on iPhone shouldn’t replace the Apple Watch for people who wear one every day. Instead, it’s a great backup if your Apple Watch is dead, charging, or left at home.
It also gives iPhone and AirPods users a taste of the Apple Watch experience, which can attract future Apple Watch customers.
In testing with iOS 27 beta 1, my Fitness ring didn’t update as I worked out without wearing an Apple Watch. But after I put my watch back on, the Workout ring caught on, and the workout showed up in Fitness with the right data.
My sample 16-minute treadmill walk showed 0.66 miles, 65 calories active, 97 calories total, 32 feet of elevation gain, and a heart rate of 115 BPM, just like when I would wear the Apple Watch.
When I try to use GymKit on an iPhone without AirPods, the iPhone is disconnected when the workout starts because it doesn’t have a heart rate source. When I tried to start GymKit from an iPhone while wearing an Apple Watch, iOS pointed me back to the Workout app on the Apple Watch instead, although you can continue without using the watch.
AirPod’s heart rate rating is also important. You can manage it in Settings under your AirPods settings and privacy options. I had turned it off, mostly as a battery-saving move, but this test convinced me to turn it back on. AirPods Pro 3 can work with Apple Watch to provide the best available heart rate data.
GymKit on iPhone with AirPods is a great addition to Apple’s Fitness ecosystem
GymKit on iPhone is one of those iOS 27 features that sounds small until it solves a real problem. If the Apple Watch is your default activity tracker, it probably always will be.
But if your watch dies or you forget it at home, iPhone and AirPods Pro 3 can now access the treadmill for exercise with real heart rate data and real treadmill metrics. That’s a nice upgrade, and it makes Apple’s broader Fitness strategy feel complete.
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