Sunlight shows how much time you spent in daylight today against a daily goal you pick, and when you caught it. Over time FitRest also compares how you sleep after days you hit your goal with days you did not, so you can see what daylight does for you.
The Sunlight tile on the Dashboard shows your minutes or hours In Daylight and how far you are toward your goal. You choose the goal yourself. The app notes that research suggests 30 or more minutes of daylight supports healthy sleep, and asks you to pick a target that fits your routine.
Tap the tile to open Sunlight Exposure. You see today's total, the percentage of your goal and how much was Morning light before noon. The Light Timeline shows when you caught daylight during the day, because light before noon has the strongest effect on your body clock.
Your body clock runs on a roughly 24-hour cycle, and daylight is the strongest signal that keeps it on time. Bright light in the morning tells the brain the day has started, which helps you feel alert, and it sets the timing for melatonin to rise again in the evening. That is why people who get outside early often find it easier to fall asleep at night and wake up at a steady time.
Indoor light is far dimmer than daylight, even on a cloudy day, so a day spent inside can leave your clock without a clear signal. Over weeks that can drift your sleep later and leave mornings feeling heavy. Time outdoors is also linked with better mood and usually comes with movement. Tracking it turns a vague good intention into something you can see and build on.
The Sunlight & Your Sleep card puts your own data to the test. It compares the nights after days you hit your sunlight goal with the nights after days you fell short, and tells you the difference in plain words, for example that on days you hit your goal you sleep a certain number of minutes longer that night.
History and Trends cover 7, 14 or 30 days with your Average, Total, Best Day and how often you met your goal, and a colour key from under 15 minutes to more than 2 hours makes good and poor weeks easy to spot. Education cards explain how daylight helps your health and give practical tips for getting more of it.
Turn on the Morning Light Reminder from the Sunlight screen for a gentle nudge to step outside, since morning works best for your body clock. Tapping the reminder opens Sunlight.
Sunlight reads the time in daylight that Apple Watch records to Apple Health, so wear your watch during the day. You can also see Sunlight on the FitRest watch app, as a watch complication, and as Daily and Weekly iPhone widgets.
Apple Watch records time in daylight and saves it to Apple Health. FitRest reads that and shows it against your goal, with a timeline of when it happened.
The app notes that research suggests 30 or more minutes of daylight supports healthy sleep. Morning light before noon has the strongest effect on your body clock.
Daylight, especially in the morning, helps keep your body clock on time, which supports falling asleep and waking at steady times. The Sunlight & Your Sleep card shows whether that holds for you.
Sunlight relies on the time in daylight that Apple Watch saves to Apple Health, so it needs a watch worn during the day.
Your chronotype, schedule consistency and sleep trends from your own nights.
A 0-100 score for each night's sleep, with a label, a comparison with your recent average and the factor that held it back.
38 Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets for scores, heart, steps and logs, including an interactive water quick-add.
Daily scores, live heart rate, quick logging and complications on Apple Watch, arranged from your iPhone.
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FitRest reads the data already in Apple Health, so there is nothing to set up beyond granting access.
iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. Requires iOS 17 or later.