Fitbit Flex Question

gaxarlis08

Hi all, I just got a fitbit flex (finally!) I've wanted one for a long time. I got it on Saturday so I am not sure quite yet how much I like it. I feel like it is over-estimating my steps. This morning before I even got out of bed my fitbit counted a couple hundred steps! Weird...so after that I read about changing the setting to dominant hand (even though I wear it on my non-dominant hand) to make it less sensitive. So hopefully that helps it to be more accurate or at least stop over-estimating my steps. Also- I was wondering if since I am wearing this, do I still log in my gym work out or not? I generally do the elliptical and I am not sure if fitbit can sense that exercise. I am guessing it will count a treadmill exercise since I would be stepping. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

sheahughes

My Flex counts steps on the elliptical so I would assume yours does as well.

I'm not sure why your Flex had picked up several hundred steps before you had gotten out of bed unless you are a really restless sleeper OR perhaps you went to bed after midnight? It starts counting steps from midnight so if you head to bed late its going to count all of those steps as well.

Otherwise, if it keeps logging steps while you are in bed and inactive, make sure that you input your bedtime and wake up time in the Fitbit phone app or on the website - that should stop those 'steps' from counting towards your daily total.

Keep logging your gym sessions - if you have MFP set up to sync with Fitbit it will automatically import daily steps and will also make the Fitbit take your gym session into account.

Good luck! I love my Flex

gaxarlis08

sheahughes wrote: »

My Flex counts steps on the elliptical so I would assume yours does as well.

I'm not sure why your Flex had picked up several hundred steps before you had gotten out of bed unless you are a really restless sleeper OR perhaps you went to bed after midnight? It starts counting steps from midnight so if you head to bed late its going to count all of those steps as well.

Otherwise, if it keeps logging steps while you are in bed and inactive, make sure that you input your bedtime and wake up time in the Fitbit phone app or on the website - that should stop those 'steps' from counting towards your daily total.

Keep logging your gym sessions - if you have MFP set up to sync with Fitbit it will automatically import daily steps and will also make the Fitbit take your gym session into account.

Good luck! I love my Flex

I was not awake after midnight so I am not sure what happened there. Maybe I moved a lot so hopefully after changing the dominant setting it will help....Also, so you're saying to still log in my workout on the elliptical and MFP will know not to include both so it wont give me all these extra calories to eat? Sorry I am just a tad confused and want to make sure I do this right

sheahughes

As long as you have MFP and Fitbit set to sync with each other, it shouldn't double up the calories.

I haven't had any issues with mine syncing so far.

gaxarlis08

sheahughes wrote: »

As long as you have MFP and Fitbit set to sync with each other, it shouldn't double up the calories.

I haven't had any issues with mine syncing so far.

Awesome, Thanks!

mandimahoney5

If you read the info about step counters and MFP, MFP suggest you enter your exercise for the FitBit on the FitBit site. This is because your estimated calorie burn from FItbit is pulled in to MFP. And then MFP uses that info to more accurately calculate your daily calorie burn.

The reason you need to enter your exercise through Fitbit is because The steps it calculated/logged during your exercise time frame will be replaced with what you would burn doing said exercise for that amount of time.
Then that exercise/Fitbit info is pulled in to MFP giving you exercise calories.

If you enter your exercise into MFP and also sync Fitbit, then the steps calculated when you exercised will be Counted on top of the exercise calories burned. This would then overestimate your calorie burn. So you want all of your exercise and movement logged into one program.

I log my calories and water and wait into my fitness pal, and any exercise into Fitbit. It seams to work well this way.

Samenamenewlook

In Diary Settings, click Enable Negative Adjustments. Using this, I log my exercise on MFP and it adjusts my calories burned if needed, based on total activity for the day. So, if I track 300 calories burned, but based on my overall activity for the day the burn would be less, MFP will subtract calories burned. This prevents double tracking of exercise.

GeeWillickers

Do you adjust your stride on the fitbit site? I had to because I'm taller. As for the steps I'm up and down and only had 140 last night so, maybe keep an eye on it to see if it keeps up.

I primarily walk for cardio and log it here just to keep an eye on accuracy and so far the Flex has been within range. The steps aren't counted in addition to what is here as the sync up is primarily a daily overall amount. The only way it would double things up is if you logged it there plus here which is redundant and unnecessary. Log in one place.

emz247

The advice given with FitBit/MFP use on the MFP site itself is to log everything other than your steps through MFP only.

I do this and have never had a double count with my work out vs steps. You log the start time and duration of your exercise when entering the info either on the website or app so that MFP overrides the calorie burn from the FitBit for that time period. The only thing I use the FitBit app for is to sync my steps so that they can then be pulled over in to MFP. You only run in to trouble with logging of double burn etc if you are logging activities or foods in both places.

hellokathy

Did you set it to sleep mode when you went to bed? Then it won't count any steps, imaginary or not.

tracymayo1

could you possibly be sleep walking?

aeribus

Mine will occasionally record steps during the night, never near the amount that you're getting though. In most cases, it was 10 or less. Even if it is set to sleep mode, it is possible that you will record steps during the night. I've usually just written the phantom steps off to a rough night of sleep where I was tossing and turning and left it at that.

WalkingAlong

A Flex is less accurate than the torso-worn models and 200 steps is like 2 mins. of movement. The device's aim is not to give you a 100% accurate steps count but to show your overall activity levels and trends and motivate you to move more.

Some Fitbits count some ellipticals for some people. Before manually logging anything just see what yours detects for you.

loves86

I still enter my workouts, but that's because I use a heart rate monitor when I workout, and since my fitbit and my MFP are synced, when I enter in workouts on MFP it asks for the time I started, so it doesn't use whatever fitbit calculated during that time (so it doesn't double-up)

radmack

Mine never counts steps in the night unless I get up to use the restroom.

Compared to my husbands fitness mapping ap, my fitbit calculates slightly less miles. I probably need to calibrate for my stride instead of the default set by inputting my height. I just use it as a general measure of how much I have moved for the day and haven't felt the need for it to be totally accurate.

RHachicho

As far as the steps before you even get up are concerned did you perhaps go to sleep after midnight? or did you perhaps go to the loo in the night?

gaxarlis08

RHachicho wrote: »

As far as the steps before you even get up are concerned did you perhaps go to sleep after midnight? or did you perhaps go to the loo in the night?

No, neither. I am not sure what happened. I will keep an eye on it and hopefully it doesn't happen again. Thanks

gaxarlis08

Thanks everyone for your advice! Seems like the best thing to do from what you all said is to log my cardio into MFP.

ahoier

Yes, I'm a fairly new Flex user myself.....and went a couple days, just letting the Flex do it's own thing......but I have started logging my exercise back into MFP....I wear a HRM, and typically take an average of the 3 read outs, MFP, the machine, and my HRM (which are all calibrated to my weight, age, and height every week) and then log that number into MFP.

Biggest thing, is to log your "Start time" of your work out......

Really, I haven't had any problems with the Flex picking up my Elliptical Workout......but my strength training workout is a little different......since I'm not "walking" too much.....it may pick up a couple "steps" during my reps, and that's about it....so to log my strength workout, I notate my start time, then take the average again, of my HRM readout, and the MFP readout (which is usually 100 calories higher......lol)

Strength training is harder to log, since you're exertion varies, especially if you rest a lot between sets......so this is where the HRM has the advantage....in my opinion

gaxarlis08

ahoier wrote: »

Yes, I'm a fairly new Flex user myself.....and went a couple days, just letting the Flex do it's own thing......but I have started logging my exercise back into MFP....I wear a HRM, and typically take an average of the 3 read outs, MFP, the machine, and my HRM (which are all calibrated to my weight, age, and height every week) and then log that number into MFP.

Biggest thing, is to log your "Start time" of your work out......

Really, I haven't had any problems with the Flex picking up my Elliptical Workout......but my strength training workout is a little different......since I'm not "walking" too much.....it may pick up a couple "steps" during my reps, and that's about it....so to log my strength workout, I notate my start time, then take the average again, of my HRM readout, and the MFP readout (which is usually 100 calories higher......lol)

Strength training is harder to log, since you're exertion varies, especially if you rest a lot between sets......so this is where the HRM has the advantage....in my opinion

So i shouldn't log my elliptical exercise separately? My fitbit will monitor it automatically?

WalkingAlong

Some Fitbits count some ellipticals for some people. Before manually logging anything just see what yours detects for you.

0torque0

i follow the low-tech solution - i take it off when i do other work outs and record those in MFP to get a better workout picture. but i think the key is to be consistent in whatever you do. Regarding the accuracy, I think it is a little high but not by much. i counted out 100 steps and my fitbit recorded 104 so that is close enough for me.

sheahughes

When you do a work out, whether you use a HRM, MFP exercises or something else, record what time you started.

Then, when you enter the exercise into MFP, make sure that you enter the time you started and the total time - that will then sync with the Fitbit app and 'cancel out' any steps that the Flex records during that particular time.

Others have also reccommended noting your stride length in Fitbit - its fairly simple; mark a start place on the ground, put the heel of your right foot against the start mark and walk 10 normal steps. Mark a finish mark where the heel of your right foot hits the ground. Divide the total distance walked by ten - that is your stride length. Do it a couple of times to get an average and voila - your stride length.

Also reccommended has been to set MFP to negative logging - this means that if you have a really slow day and the Fitbit doesn't pick up a lot of movement, it will sync with MFP and actually lower the calorie consumption target for the day.

Basically, read the help literature for both MFP & Fitbit, have fun exercising and don't stress too much about the accuracy of the steps counted and have a play around with syncing and the settings in both MPF and Fitbit.

Finally, if you really don't like having Fitbit sync with MFP, you can unlink them and manually enter the steps for the day from your Flex into MFP. This of course means that you won't get things like weight, water consumption, calorie consumption and active minutes transferring from MFP to Fitbit and vice versa.

WalkingAlong

There are easier, more accurate ways to measure stride length. Walk a known distance like a city mile or quarter mile high school track. Divide the distance in feet by your number of steps as counted by your Fitbit. The result is your stride length in feet.

All it effects on the Fitbit is your distance estimate, not your calories, too. So if you don't care about the distance walked estimate, it's probably fine as is.