There are two different challenge modes:
- Activity-based challenges: these work based on explicitly tracked activities (or sometimes called exercises or workouts). In order for a result to count, you must start and stop the activity in your app or on your fitness tracker. Typical examples of such challenges are distance or total active time challenges.
Activities are each stored separately and have a start time, type of activity and typically a distance and duration. - Step-based challenges: these work based on your total daily steps. This is typically tracked by your phone or fitness tracker in the background and works throughout the entire day. Whether you're out for a walk or simply doing groceries, every step counts towards the leaderboards.
Steps are collected in Daily Summaries, one for each day we have step data. Steps which were taken as part of another activity (such as a run or walk) will also be included in the daily summary so that this contains all steps of the day.