Fitbits - waste or worth it?

alexp44

I've had a fitbit one since Jan 2013 and I love it. It's still going strong and I still wear it on placement when I'm in a hospital and have to be bare below the elbow.
I've also had a fitbit charge hr since Jan 2015. I'm on my 3rd one of them at the minute due to issues with the strap peeling but I do love it. I love seeing my resting hr go down as I get fitter (and I can tell when I'm stressed due to exams. lol). It's a handy way of checking where I am as the day goes on without always having to sync to my phone.
When I contacted their customer services this time they offered me a replacement again or 30% off a new fitbit so I've gone with a blaze which I'm picking up tomorrow from where I got it delivered to.
Although I've had issues with the charge hr I've had no issues at all with customer services and they've been brilliant each time. The new charge hrs should be better in theory as the issues were with the straps and they've changed the design now.

I'm a competitive person so I love taking part in challenges with my friends and pushing myself to hit targets. It also surprises me at times just how inactive I can be when I've spent a day sat down writing essays and not getting up so I feel guilty and do a bit of exercise on the wii fit. lol

marieamethyst

I've had a Fitbit for over 3 years now. My natural state is to be lazy, so it helps motivate me to get up and move more. A lot of my family and friends have one, so we get to encourage each other to get more steps. Definitely worth it for me!

GottaBurnEmAll

There were issues with the Charge HR which is why they released the Charge2.

I have had a Flex and upgraded to the Charge2. I made it a point to educate myself on how to use both devices and I've found them very useful and motivating.

My activity level has skyrocketed because I'm pretty competitive with myself (with other people, I'm not competitive at all), always wanting to set a new goal to do better than I have done in the past. Having data from Fitbit to do this has been really useful.

I have MFP set up in such a way as to entirely rely on data from Fitbit when I create my daily calorie deficit.

cwolfman13

Depends on whether or not you want/need that data.

priestp1

Any activity tracker is good imho. A few things (I am on my 3rd Fitbit.) -

1. They are sensitive to water and sweat. You will have to clean the charging contacts with alcohol periodically to get a good charge. I now have the Fitbit Flex 2 (you can wear while swimming / lower profile). This is the biggest complaint with Fitbit.

2. The biggest benefit for me is that MFP will sync with Fitbit under Apps. I get a better "estimate" on my activity / calorie deficit. This helps me make better decisions.

3. Finally - the challenges are cool (just another way to stay motivated). Fitbit Challenges can be like MFP groups where you get motivation. I participate in 2-3 challenges per week with different groups (some are runners, where I get crushed ) You can also do individual challenges (Walk the distance of different trails, where Fitbit will alert you to different sites / provide you tips / etc...

I will always have an activity tracker. I am with Fitbit now because of existing friendships. (There is a group on MFP where like individuals let other MFP users know they are on Fitbit - if you want to add them). If you get one, feel free to add me. www.fitbit.com/user/26BMTD

ladyreva78

I love my fitbit. I went from a 1k daily strong average to 8k. Still working on hitting that consistently (got a bit lazy over Christmas...). My next goal is 8.5K and the long term goal is 15K daily.

I'll probably get a second one this summer to track swimming.

I've never had synch issues that weren't fixed by rebooting my phone. And the only reason I replaced my charge hr and upgraded to a charge 2 is kitty damage. Oddly enough the warranty doesn't cover having your tracker bitten apart by an 4-legged furry terror.

mmmmaidservice

This is all very good info. I can see some cons for sure but most are pros. Think I'll try one. I love the idea of challenging myself and I didn't even know about challenge groups! Love it!

atlantafiend

I have the fitbit one. I used to have the flex, but I developed a nasty rash around my wrist because of it. I like it. It keeps me motivated and active.

rdmitch

Bought a Blaze as a reward for losing the first few pounds. If it helps motivate me to walk a bit more ,it will be worth it.
Like it so far, hate the band but ordered a replacement. The jury is still out on the final determination on the Fitbit.

zdyb23456

I bought my charge HR 15 months ago and haven't had any issues with it. I love it. It keeps me motivated to keep moving to get my 10k steps in every day.

I do wish it were a bit smaller, it's pretty bulky on my wrist, the Jawbone was prettier, but a piece of junk.

I'm not sure I care about monitoring my heart rate since I rarely look at my heart rate, so I might downgrade when this one bites the dust.

Stella3838

LOVE my Charge 2. Had it for over two months and wear it all the time. Someone else said this and I agree that I love it's an activity tracker. It gets me up and moving more through the day. I track my water, my workouts, my steps (which for me are fairly accurate), my HR, and even my sleep is fairly accurate as well. I really like the app and seeing all green at the top when I hit all my daily goals. I read all the reviews and had some doubts, but for me, this is one of the best purchases I've made in a while. Oh, and I love the interchangeable bands to switch up my style!

mumblemagic

Not sure where your husband got his reviews from, because they are really popular and get 4.5* reviews on amazon and argos. If you're not the kind of person that likes those kind of stats on yourself then you won't like it, but most people I know have been really satisfied and found them to be really helpful. I have a flex. It's great! I do a lot of walking and it makes it really convenient tracking my activity levels and syncing up with myfitnesspal. I like the sleep tracking as well. It really helps me take care of myself.

ETA: at some point this year I want to upgrade to a Charge HR 2. I'd like the heart rate monitor, watch, and smartwatch capabilities.

kindrabbit

I own my own business which is a housecleaning business (would love a Fitbit that counted stairs). But out of curiosity...how can an employer ban them? That's terrible!
[/quote]

Hi, I also run my own cleaning business! I have a charge Hr and that does count the number of flights of stairs you climb per day. (its doesn't give you more calories if you're carrying a vacuum unfortunately!)

butcher206

The whole entire reason I bought a Charge 2 was because I wasn't gaining any weight, so I wanted more accurate estimates to how many calories I was burning, and it supposedly was able to sync with MyFitnessPal automatically and update your daily calories. it's been nothing but sync'ing issues with myfitnesspal ever since. For some reason on the Fitbit dashboard you can't just see how many calories you've burned from exercise, it just gives you this vague "calories burned" for the whole entire day that includes your BMR; so I'm right back to square one, just kind of guesstimating how many calories I've burned through these vague myfitnesspal exercise entries. I don't know; it's basically a waste. I think MyFitnessPal purposely gives them poor support to push people towards their underarmour wristband

JustMissTracy

I've had mine for over a year, and LOVE it. Everyone is different depending on what they want to get out of it....I have lost the weight, increased my activity level from sedentary to Active....and where I used to only get 4-5 hours of sleep per nite, I now average 7-8. I love seeing the trends, and understanding why and when changes happen allow me to make more changes, and improve on myself daily.

sugaraddict4321

Bluwaves1 wrote: »

...unfortunately the place where I work just banned them...

Why would they ban fitness trackers? They help motivate people to move more, which should mean healthier employees!

I have mostly used the Zip. It's basically an upgraded step counter but it works for me. I keep it in my pocket instead of clipping most of the time, just because the clip case wears out. The battery lasts for about 5 months, which is great because I never need to think about charging.

I did try the bracelet-style flex, but as I use my hands a lot for work and around the house, I felt it really over-estimated burns. I didn't think it was as accurate as the Zip when I compared my weight loss to the numbers it gave. I have a lot of friends that wear the bracelet-styles, and when they talk with their hands, the bracelet is always blinking like mad.

Katie1951

I have had a some model of a Fitbit since 2012. As you can see from my profile pic, I'm addicted. I currently have the Blaze and love all the extra features it offers. It can be addictive. It is also great if you have a group of friends on their site that will challenge you. Also, you can't beat their customer service. I have had them send me an absolutely new one when something has gone wrong with the one I have, no questions asked.

kindrabbit

butcher206 wrote: »

The whole entire reason I bought a Charge 2 was because I wasn't gaining any weight, so I wanted more accurate estimates to how many calories I was burning, and it supposedly was able to sync with MyFitnessPal automatically and update your daily calories. it's been nothing but sync'ing issues with myfitnesspal ever since. For some reason on the Fitbit dashboard you can't just see how many calories you've burned from exercise, it just gives you this vague "calories burned" for the whole entire day that includes your BMR; so I'm right back to square one, just kind of guesstimating how many calories I've burned through these vague myfitnesspal exercise entries. I don't know; it's basically a waste. I think MyFitnessPal purposely gives them poor support to push people towards their underarmour wristband

Calories for the whole day was exactly what I was looking for so it suits me perfectly. I know that if I burn 2000 in a day and eat 1750 I am eating at my desired deficit.

I do also set it to start and stop when I exercise so I can see that, for example, I burn 480 calories in an hour in my circuit class.

lobsterthang999

I have just ordered a charge 2 from very on interest free, I took out the additional 3 years insurance premium after reading the reviews and figured it probably wont last the three years any way and ill probably end up with a free replacement. Have bought similar policies in the past and they are great you always end up with a better model than you first bought. If your having doubts like I was then at least this way you are covered if the product breaks, co-incidentally the insurance covers accidental damage which is what swayed me to purchase it. Im still waiting for it to arrive as only ordered yesterday but its already motivated me and its not here yet!

kindrabbit

Just to let you know, I had my 1st fitbit for over a year before the casing started to fail around the charge port. I emailed fitbit and they replied the same day. They offered me a free replacement or a discount on the latest model. I chose the free replacement which arrived in about 3 days from the initial email. I was really impressed with the customer service.