429 Too Many Requests

Sorry, but Apple does not follow these user to user communities and can only be reached by using the Feedback link.

The more users do that, the more likely the issue will be noticed by Apple Techs and hopefully Apple will come up with a solution for those users effected.

Feedback - Apple Watch - Apple

Apple introduced a new algorithm to estimate steps and distance during a workout in watchOS 27.

However, counting steps during an indoor walk always depended on the free movement of your watch arm.

To test this, start an indoor walk without moving your feet and move your watch arm rapidly back and forth.

You should see your step count increasing without taking any steps.

Calibrating the watch a few times, as explained in the related article, may help to get more accurate results.

Calibrate your Apple Watch for improved Workout and Activity accuracy - Apple Support

I've been following along since I updated to watchOS 27. I am incredibly frustrated and downright miserable with the results of my indoor runs. As an avid indoor runner, I have been running without my watch since early October and without the accurate metrics I am at a loss. I submit feedback to apple on the daily (I highly recommend you all do this as well). I just read this on another community board and I am SO ANGRY-

The Irony: Apple Thinks It's a Feature

The community's frustration is amplified by Apple’s official documentation. In the promotional materials and core release notes for watchOS 27, Apple proudly lists:

Apple fundamentally rebuilt their pedometer model with new machine learning algorithms for watchOS 27. Because Apple's engineering team believes this new machine learning logic is "more precise," they have not classified the massive 20% distance drops reported on r/AppleWatchFitness and the Apple Support Communities as a traditional glitch or bug. [1, 2, 3]

I keep waiting for a fix. I almost bought a series 11 watch to just have it on OS 26 and didn't.. seemed like a complete waste of money.

Thank you for the information. I wasn’t sure where to start; I’ll submit feedback. From the number of replies so far here and out on Reddit, it does appear I’m not the only one experiencing this issue. I’ll try what was suggested. It stinks because when I walk while I work, I strap my watch to my ankle because my wrists are normally on my desk, but I want to get my steps in and counted for. I have reset the fitness calibration on both my Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Watch 10 but they are undercutting my pace for runs and steps for walks.

Watch 11, updated to 27. Indoor walk workout gives me (and my wife, with same watch) about 1/3 the number of steps, for the same workout, for the same amount of time (30 minutes) than it has averaged for the past five years, through multiple watch versions and multiple OS versions. The undercount affects daily activity tracking and active energy tracking. This is all over Reddit as well as here. Yesterday I recalibrated from scratch using an outdoor walk workout as required, and yes, I've restarted my watch and phone. No improvement (in fact, a bit worse) for today's indoor walk workout. The number of "Me Too" clicks currently, 40, does not match reality (yet). I know we are not alone, but it will take many more complaints, to Apple, to prompt a fix. My only question, rhetorical, is how could this issue be missed by thousands of beta testers, including Apple employees? Moral of the story: Never upgrade any Apple system to a version with a number that ends in "point zero".

I’m seeing the exact same thing, and I agree, something definitely doesn’t add up. I compared a 4-mile walk I did earlier this month, where I recorded roughly 6,000+ steps, to a 4-mile walk yesterday that recorded only around 2,400 steps. Both walks were on my walking pad at 3.1 mph, which is my usual speed.

I even reset the calibration on my Watch 10, but if anything, it seems to be worse now. I’ve also seen people reporting the same issue all over Reddit.

Someone else mentioned that Apple doesn’t read the comments here and recommended submitting feedback directly, so I’ve been doing that daily now. I completely agree, how something this significant made it through testing is beyond me.

One thing I should mention is that I normally wear my Watch strapped to my ankle because I walk while I’m working, so my wrist is actually free. That has never been an issue before, though, and it certainly doesn’t explain going from roughly 6,000 steps to 2,400 for the exact same 4-mile distance and speed.

Feedback - Watch - Apple

Trust me, I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been reporting the issue almost daily through the feedback link. I’m frustrated as well, and I’m trying to spread the word about the feedback link another user shared with me so people can report it directly to Apple.

I walk while I work, and like you said, I feel like I’m just wasting my time because it’s not picking up my steps like it used to. I’m almost to the point of getting a Fitbit as a workaround until Apple puts out an update. I like hitting my step goals, but my wrists are resting on my desk while I work, so I can’t exactly sit there swinging my arms just to get my Watch to count my steps. 🤬

Apple feedback: Feedback - Watch - Apple

There's only a half dozen people posting to this thread. It seems odd to me that there are not more. Regardless, I updated my Watch and iPhone to 27.0.1 last night, hoping this was a bug they had fixed, but ... no. It made no difference in my morning indoor workout step count. Ingo2711 (Level 10) said in the first reply, "Apple introduced a new algorithm to estimate steps and distance during a workout in watchOS 27" so it seems it's a feature, not a bug. If it's a feature, it's a disappointment: steps are steps and why should that change? I can't be the only one that's getting trend admonishments like, "You burned fewer calories over the last 13 days" and "On average, your total distance decreased over the last 13 days" all while doing the same thing I've done for years. I've adjusted (lowered) the daily goal set for my Activity Ring so it's reachable, and I'll remain in "wait and see" mode.

I have the same problem since I have updated to Watch OS 27. Also my indoor walking is not counted in the training minutes anymore, because the number of steps is too low. This is very frustrating, instead of doing my training I am wasting time here. I have an Apple Watch 9, which is still working very well. I hope Apple fixes this soon, this is really a bug!!!

Yes! This is so frustrating! I do YouTube indoor walks, and for years, main walks I do have constantly recorded correct steps. Until this updating iPhone 16 Plus and Apple Watch 11 and today my new 12 to 27. Totally broke indoor walks, only gives me HALF the steps! Exact workout and exertion. I did the outdoor walk calibration. Outdoor walk correct. But didn’t help indoor walks at all. I’ve turned in the problem/complaint

Trust me, I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been reporting the issue almost daily through the feedback link. I’m frustrated as well, and I’m trying to spread the word about the feedback link another user shared with me so people can report it directly to Apple.

Apple feedback: Feedback - Watch - Apple

Trust me, I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been reporting the issue almost daily through the feedback link. I’m frustrated as well, and I’m trying to spread the word about the feedback link another user shared with me so people can report it directly to Apple.

Apple feedback: Feedback - Watch - Apple

There have been about 150 "Me Too" clicks to this post -- every one of those should submit feedback to Apple using the link Ingo2711 provided below. Apple Watch 11 here. Because of this 'improvement' by Apple my watch has become a brick I wear on my wrist. My wife and I have been doing indoor walk routines for more than five years and yes, immediately after the upgrade to v27 we're getting only one-third (1/3) the number of steps. We are Seniors and we have relied on the Apple Watch to keep us healthy -- but now we're more disappointed than healthy. This is a ridiculous change that must be hurting more people than it helps -- not anything like I've experienced in 43 years of owning and relying on Apple products. Please submit your feedback to Apple. My questions are: Who on earth wanted this change? Who on earth benefits from this change? Apple supposedly consults medical professionals -- so, did Dr. Oz decide that an indoor workout "step" was not a real "step"?

hi, it's been well over a month since I updated my watch to OS27.. now 27.2

I've done all the things. Worn it outside, recalibrated, turned off location services, hard reset. Everything that has been suggested I've done. I continue to submit feedback weekly to Apple and I've email the CEO 3 times. I am beyond frustrated. I prefer to run indoors vs outdoors and my watch is putting me at least a minute and a half slower than my treadmill per km. As someone who enjoys tracking her steps and movement this is a hard pill to swallow for me. I check for updates daily and there doesn't seem to be a fix. Sigh.

I'm still experiencing all these same issues and am beyond frustrated. I am now submitting feedback daily (if not more when I remember too) through the apple direct feedback link in hopes that they might do something sooner rather than later to fix this issue. I highly encourage everyone to do the same.

I have the same issue with Apple Watch series 12 (w/iOS 27.2). The exercise minutes just freezes and wouldn’t continue. The steps are being under-counted. Tried unpairing/re-pairing, Bluetooth disabling/enabling, motion fitness on/off. Spent over an hour with apple care with no result. It’s an issue with this particular version of iOS.

My wife’s watch is still on iOS version 26.6 and it works great for her.

we both went out for a walk and could easily tell that my watch (12 with iOS 27.2) have been under counting my steps.

Ok I’ve done everything I know to do. Unpaired. Reset watch, used a backup from 26.7. No use. Have done 2.5 miles indoor walk, gave me .25 miles. I’ve paused my rings until October and going to use my daughter’s FitBit! So wrong!😡

I have the same issue happening on my outdoor walk as of today. It’s tracking way less steps and mileage on the same walk I’ve done for the last five years with different watches - so I know the distance is incorrect now.

I indoor walk for 50 minutes and with iOS 26 on watch nine that would be about 5 miles. On the same watch doing the same thing for the same length of time, it’s less than 2 miles

And please don’t tell me I need to keep moving my arm to make this right

I did just that today…purchased a Fitbit Air! Awkward for an Apple user. The Air has no screen, so everything’s managed thru a Google health app. I did my first indoor walk, video on YouTube, and the count was off only 100 steps from when my Apple watch kept track. 😢 Those were the days. Sigh. In a bit, I’m taking it for a walk at a park with nice trail. I’m giving this a few days, and if nothing improves on Apple’s end, I’ll turn in one more complaint and tell them what I’ve had to do. I still wear my Watch 12, but just because I love all the other features, but I won’t be upgrading like I used to.

Outdoor walk was a huge success! The Fitbit Air is lightweight and absolutely correct step/mileage. You can communicate with a “Coach” and he said my indoor walk will be more accurate if I çount it as a “workout “ rather than walk. It is just a tracker, not a smartwatch, so it’s still at 92% battery, so won’t have to charge it for “sleep”. Nite all.

Glad you’re having a nice experience! Agreed, it’s going to feel weird for a heavy Apple user to buy something that’s “Google,” lol. I’m right there with you—I have one in my cart, ready to order and pick up.

Quick question: When you finished your indoor workout and did the outdoor trail, did you wear it around your ankle to track your steps? That’s been my biggest issue lately with my Watch and OS 27. I tested it again today with my Ultra 3, and it barely picked up any distance compared with the 3.1 mph I was walking on my walking pad. My walk distance made it seem like I was moving at a sloth’s pace, but my legs say otherwise. I finally gave up and put it on my wrist. It seemed to work better, but it’s hard to work when I have to keep my hands off the keyboard and swing my arms naturally like I’m walking.🙃

I miss when it just worked in watchOS 26. I reported it to Apple again through the feedback link, but I still haven’t heard back.

Well, I just turned in my last complaint via the link. Told them I purchased a Fitbit to get accurate readings. I feel they’ve abandoned us and aren’t listening to us and to have fun with their faceless algorithms. I’ve apgraded my Apple Watch yearly since 7. I’ll no longer be doing that. Hope I wasn’t too blunt!🤣🤣 Ahh, they won’t care.

I can’t figure out how to post here, so I’m replying to your . Ever since updating my Apple Watch, the step and distance tracking has become completely inaccurate.

Every morning, I walk on a walking pad while I work. I do this every single day, for an hour and a half to two hours, and I consistently hit 4–5 miles without fail. This routine has been the same since I bought the walking pad, and my watch has always tracked it correctly — until this latest update. I consistently hit 10,000 steps plus. I’ve been doing this for months now

Because my arms aren’t swinging while I work, I wear my watch on my ankle. This has always given me accurate step and distance counts. After the update, the watch is barely registering anything. Today I walked for 1 hour and 25 minutes, and it didn’t even show one mile. That is nowhere near my actual distance.

This is extremely frustrating because I rely on accurate step counts for my workplace well‑being app. Being under my steps every day — when I know I’m walking the same 4–5 miles I always do — directly affects my reporting and progress.

I need to understand:

• Why the update changed step and distance tracking so drastically
• Whether ankle tracking is now being filtered out
• If there is a fix, rollback option, or calibration method to restore accurate tracking
• How to ensure my steps and mileage are counted correctly while using my walking pad

I also read somewhere that if you shake your arm, then it will give you steps. This is like the old Fitbit days when people used to cheat on their steps by just shaking their arm. I’m just frustrated

I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but I'm suffering from exactly the same issue. Been doing indoor runs for a fairly long time now, and it's always been pretty accurate with the distance and steps. If Apple wants to change what it classes as a distance from a step, then that's up to them. But I know how many steps I've done because I run to a certain BPM. Pre-update that bpm has always been very close. Now if I do a two hour run, I lose about ten thousand steps. Even maniacally shaking my arm does not seem to do the trick. It is super frustrating having to manually add steps to my workout. Especially when a previous OS was doing it fine on its own. What a downgrade.

I am experiencing the same thing and have been using my watch to track treadmill workouts for years. It has always been pretty close to the distance shown on the treadmill screen until this latest update. Now it is off by around half.

Years ago, before Apple introduced the AppleWatch, I used an old fashion Pedometer to measure my walking distance. It was calibrated on a track I had access to so I knew it was accurate. I started walking indoors at a place where I volunteer and that distance (one lap) was 0.4 miles long.

With the Apple Watch, that distance changed ever so slightly to 0.41 miles for the same lap around the building.

With several iOS updates, that distance suddenly changed to 0.34 miles! With iOS 27 it's been stuck at this lower distance.

Apple needs to address this issue as I know this building didn't get smaller overnight!

This new update is awful. For years I have seen consistency with updates and this one is so far off. I too walk inside and over the last few days it all over the board. One day is a 15 min mile, then 14 and today almost 18 minutes a mile which is so far beyond based on the fast speed i walk. I may have to switch to another watch as now i have no idea what im pacing and if its a slower or better day because the first few days are so inconsistent and way beyond all prior data. Apple please fix it!!

I have the series 10. I knew I wasn't losing my mind when this was occurring. It's VERY frustrating to the point I have thought about recalibrating my watch. Ugh. Any tips of tricks from anyone else to help this issue??

And for device context I have an Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch 10. Tested both same scenario.

Same for outdoor too, my regular 11.5km run came in over 1km short 🤷🏼‍♂️

I wear it on my wrist, but know some do wear it around ankle and say they get better accuracy. I swing my arms naturally. It does very accurate sleep also. Hope that helps.

Made the watch tracking useless. No problem ios 26

Same here. I’ve unpaired and set up my series 12 as new, done multiple hard-reboots of my watch and iPhone, reset sync data multiple times, and nothing works.

[Edited by Moderator]

Yes my treadmill today said almost 2 miles when my watch barely made it to 1 mile.

it's not just you! But I read today that in watch OS27.3 there is a "focus on distance and step tracking adjustments" so fingers crossed!!