First Gear vs Apple Workout Buddy: hear when to jog

We coach the next step

Starting running comes with a practical question: when should you jog, and when should you walk? We built First Gear to answer it while you move. Your first session starts with a walk, with a twenty-minute target and no pace to hit.

Our standard range coaching follows your live heart rate and recent trend, then speaks the next jog or walk cue. You can keep walking or stop whenever you need to. Three recent qualifying sessions can offer the next stage, and you choose whether to move up.

Hear the difference on your next walk.

Your first session is free, with no subscription. Put on your Watch, set aside twenty minutes, and follow your First Gear coach.

Now on Apple Watch.

Start your first session freeFor Apple Watch, on the App Store

Needs Apple Watch Series 6 or newer, SE (2nd generation or newer), or Ultra, and an iPhone.

What you get with First Gear

Heart-rate-led jog/walk cues, a beginner program, and coaching that runs on your Watch without your phone or internet. These are the features we built around your first session and the ones that follow.

Start with the coaching you came for

Choose First Gear for a clear way into running: a walk to begin, a voice to guide the changes, and a program you can keep practicing at your own pace. We keep the session at twenty minutes as you work through six stages. Moving on is your choice.

Hear your numbers when you want them. Tap your heart rate on the Watch, or press the Action button on an Ultra, and your First Gear coach says it. Outdoors, we add your average pace and distance, in miles or kilometers to match your region. Indoors, you hear your heart rate alone.

Outdoors, your coach also calls each whole mile or kilometer as you pass it. With your permission to read Activity data in Apple Health, we announce when your Move or Exercise ring closes during a session, indoors or out. These spoken stats and announcements work without headphones.

Workout Buddy announces stats, milestones, and encouragement across more activities, with no extra subscription. It covers cycling, hiking, and strength workouts, speaks Spanish, and works without an Apple Watch. Our coaching focuses on your jogs and walks, with a ready-made beginner program and a next step you can hear.

Your first session is free, with no subscription. Then eligible subscribers get seven days free, followed by $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year in the US. Both coaches and all six stages are included. See plans and trial details.

The table describes our standard range coaching. In talk-test coaching, you choose when to jog. Headphones are optional for jog/walk cues and required for coaching tips. See how our coaching works.