Peloton App for Apple Watch Skips the iPhone

Members can now start a walk or run right from the Watch, and it tracks the workout the same way it would with a phone nearby.

Peloton members can now start a walk or run right from their wrist. The Peloton app for Apple Watch has added the option to begin an Outdoor Walk or Outdoor Run directly on the Watch, with no iPhone nearby, and it tracks the workout the same way it would if the phone were present.

A Feature Members Have Wanted for Years

Chris Sea, a Patreon-supporting listener of The Clip Out podcast, was the first to spot the option in July 2026. It’s the kind of update members have been asking for since Peloton first added walk and run tracking to the app. Leaving the phone behind for a walk or a run is common, whether it’s a dog walk around the block or a run where carrying a phone is one more thing to manage. Until now, doing that meant losing out on Peloton’s own tracking unless the workout was later reconciled through Apple Health.

How the Peloton App for Apple Watch Update Works

That gap is closed. Starting the workout from the Watch itself captures duration, distance, elevation, heart rate, and calories, and it logs cleanly into the Peloton app’s History tab afterward. Workouts recorded this way are tagged as Watch in the history entry, so members can tell at a glance which sessions were done phone-free versus the ones tracked through the phone.

To try it, open the Peloton app on the Apple Watch and choose Walk or Run. That’s the whole setup. There’s no separate toggle or settings change involved, and no pairing step beyond having the Watch already connected to the Peloton app as usual.

Where the Feature Stops Short

One limit is worth knowing before you head out. This works for a plain, unguided walk or run only. Instructor-led classes still have to be started from the phone. If the plan is to follow along with a coached workout rather than go it alone, the iPhone stays part of the process, at least for now. You can also connect your apple watch your Peloton equipment and that how-to is here.

Battery drain is the one tradeoff members have flagged, though it’s not unique to this feature. Any active use of the Apple Watch, including GPS tracking on a walk or run, pulls the battery down faster than the Watch sitting idle. It’s worth planning around on a longer outing, but it’s not a reason to avoid the feature.

For members who already leave their phone at home on a walk or run, this closes a tracking gap that’s existed since Peloton began supporting outdoor walks and runs in the app. It’s a small addition, but it removes one more reason to carry a phone on a workout that doesn’t need one.

The update fits a pattern The Clip Out has tracked for a while now: Peloton steadily loosening the requirement that a phone or tablet be present to log a workout. The two-way Garmin sync added earlier this year did something similar for members training with a Garmin device. This is the first version of that same idea built specifically around the Apple Watch acting on its own.

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