Taking the Apple Watch for a Swim

I decided to try out the Apple Watch to track my swim today. I did an open water swim across the
lake and for today's setup, I took just the watch and left the iPhone at home. For a future swim, I will put the iPhone in my waterproof case and slip it down the back of my surf shirt which should hold it in place and hopefully get a GPS signal.

First off, yes, the Apple Watch is water-resistant. To see an in-depth review and set of tests check out DC Rainmaker;s post The Apple Watch Waterproofing Extravaganza: Swim, High Diving, Test Chamber.

What Worked

• The watch continued to function (as expected).
• I was able to track my workout time and heart rate using the Other option in the Workout app.
• The Watch tracked my heart rate at 6 second increments.

What Could be Improved

• Heart Rate measurements had some wild swings (likely due to reading interference from water). That said, most were consistent and appear to track with my perceived effort. 
• Heart Rate was very high when I first dived in. Either due to my body adjusting or water interference due to a loose fit on my strapp. I tightened the watch strapp after a short distance and the readings became more consistent.
• The workout app kept navigating to [End][Pause] screen. I can only assume this is due to water causing phantom taps due "Activate on Wrist Raise" being activated by swim strokes.

Things to Try Next Time

• Disable "Activate on Wrist Raise" during swim to see if this eliminates the Workout navigating to the [End][Pause] screen.
• Try out iPhone on board (ok, stuffed down back of shirt) to see if I can track the swim on GPS.

Here's a little swimming footage with the Apple Watch as I try out "Activate on Wrist Raise".