Tell me about FitBit

ashleykawalek

Do you wear it in the gym? Does it only count calories for walking and running or does it act like a heart rate monitor?

plinyard

Do you wear your fitbit and HRM at the same time during exercise? I haven't been able to figure this out and don't want to double dip

mlb929

I bought a fitbit in January. Was overall disappointed in it, mainly because it's really a motivation tool, and I simply already was exercising and moving my body a lot. I didn't like the way it tracked exercise, it's not accurate for calorie burn in the way it tracks, it's not a HRM. It was fun watching steps, like on my 15 mile runs, just how many steps it was. I lost it one day out on a run in April. It's the FitBit One, which is very small. Mine came out of the sleeve. I really did love the sleep feature as it made me realize just how much my husbands sleep apnea was effecting my sleep patterns. When I lost it - I email them about cancelling my acccount. I'd had previous issues, and didn't really beleive it was accurate based on my numbers I was getting. I'd gotten tired of emailing them with issues and asked to cancel it becuase of a lost fitbit. I was extremely impressed by how they handled it. They offered me a replacement for the lost unit based on it falling out of my holder. They were extremely super to work with to keep me as a happy customer.

I'd be interested in the flex, its a wristband and can be worn in the shower, however, in reading online on their facebook page, it seems like there are clearly unresolved issues with it and people are not as happy as with the one.

Liz_Mfp

Do you wear your fitbit and HRM at the same time during exercise? I haven't been able to figure this out and don't want to double dip

I wear them both at the same time.

ShannonMpls

You might find this article helpful:

http://www.getgrok.com/2013/01/a-comparative-review-28-days-with-the-fitbit-one-jawbone-up-nike-fuelband-and-bodymedia-link/

I love my fitbit and have barely missed a day wearing it since November when I got it. Great customer service too; they replaced it for free after I accidentally sent it through the washer

rassha01

Thought I would throw in that I have a Fitbit Aria scale and it works great with MFP, no need to log weight and BF% manually!!! Also I want to get a flex but I already have a fuelband and can't justify dropping another $100 on a similar gadget = (.

ze_hombre

I had a Zip for a few months and upgraded to the Flex when it came out. So far I really like their service. I have some complaints, but they are minor. As others have posted, a HRM is much better for tracking cardio effort, so don't plan on it being a good judge for estimating TDEE while exercising, but its great for tracking the rest of the day when you aren't wearing your HRM.

BobOki

I have the Fitbit One (the newer one not wrist) and I love it. I had the ultra before it and loved it too. I have the fitbit aria scale and love it.
I accidentally washed AND dried my fitbit and it still works without ANY issue.

I cannot recommend ANY fitbit product more. Great product, syncs autmatically with MFP, WORKS, the web interface and Android app work GREAT. Everything about it is GREAT.

crubinetti

I have had a Fit bit Ultra for a year and just replace it with the Fit Bit One. It is great. Very accurate, easy to use. It syncs with my lap top wirelessly and I have the app on my iPhone 4S so it can sync on the go!

I wear it clipped to the centre of my bra. You can wear it on your belt, or pocket but I think it might pop off and be lost easily there. There is a Flex, which is a bracelet you can wear. I know the Fit Bit uses the information you input when you set it up, your age, sex, height and weight. As you lose it knows. As for how it determines steps and calories burns, well that is the magic I suppose! I know it uses an altimeter for measuring stairs so if you use an escalator it will register, and I notice if I walk hills it registers as stairs! I have done some tests for step accuracy and it is accurate. There have been other topics with links to reviews that are very favourable.

The customer service people have been great to help whenever I have needed it, minor issues with set up but easily remedied with some guidance. My Ultra was replaced free of charge as it was defective, that was a nice perk. I think the company really stands behind it's product.

I have it linked with MyFitnessPal so it knows my activity, and adjusts my calories, you don't have to link them but it is handy.

Enjoy your Fit Bits!

^^^This exactly!! Just don't wear it when using a riding lawn mower or a golf cart. Other than that, VERY ACCURATE!

scrapjen

I've had my Fitbit for over three years and I love it. I started with the Ultra and upgraded to the One. My mom now has one, she's getting one for my dad for Father's Day, and I got on for my 14 year old son (and he beats me in steps on a regular basis).

The One does have a couple features the Zip does not, and to me it is worth it to get the sleep tracking function and the altimeter (stairs).

I love the visual representation of my activity during the day, I can see the spikes for a workout, and see the lulls as well. I'm often motivated to add another "spike" to my graph.

You can "record" an activity - start/stop the timer as you do a workout, then you can get more immediate feedback for just that time (steps, distance, calories burned). I've actually found my walking/elliptical workouts to be pretty close to the calorie burn given to me by my machine, or by manually logging at MFP. I've been pretty comfortable just letting the Fitbit do it's thing and let MFP know my activity burn for the day. I rarely log exercise at MFP (I will for bike or swimming, where the Fitbit doesn't read the activity as they are not step related).

I had NOT been logging food at Fitbit, and was so happy to find MFP (which is so much easier) and I love how it transfers that data back to Fitbit. Now my Activity/Intake graph actually means something.

As I am on MFP, I don't use Fitbit's food plan. I have my Fitbit SET to 1800 calories intake a day. It doesn't change, just decreases as I log food at MFP. Often I can actually go above that after my activity, but I do like to have that limit as just a self-control goal. I don't have the negative calories enabled on MFP as it is confusing ... I just get my basic calorie limit from MFP (I set it at sedentary, even though I am anything but) then as I exercise/move throughout the day, the activity from Fitbit adds calories.

I'd recommend a Fitbit to anyone! Great combo with MFP.

flanary888

GET IT! ANY OF THEM!! FITBIT is great and really pushes me to move more. I have a desk job and make it a goal now to his so many steps at work. The website is great and so is tech support, should you need it. You won't regret it!!

adriana_hackney

I'm considering buying a FitBit as well. Interested in replies. Anyone have a preference of the one vs the flex (or even the cheaper one, the zip I think?)

Choosing a fitbit would be completely based on personal needs. Do you want to track sleep? The zip tracks everything but sleep. Do you wanna track floors? The flex does not track floors climbed at this time. It basically just depends on what features you want.

Lesa_Sass

I friggen love my fitbit. My husband and I purchased them last year as an anniversary present and they are one of the best purchases we ever made. We compete with each other in steps, therefore keeping us motivated.

There are days that I do not realize I have not moved much until I look at it. I then make the effort to take as many steps as I can to reach goal.

I just track steps and miles, husband uses it with edamondo (or what ever) to get lots of data that is important to him. We consider them one of the best investments we have made for our health.

I highly recommend friends on fitbit to compete against. It is a great tool for motivation for me. An as a matter of fact, I see I have only taken 1389 steps today, I am going to strap on my shoes and go for a run.

lmorr7

I love my fitbit one. I sync mine through my computer as I have an iPhone 4 and it only syncs with 4S & higher (and some androids) -- so keep that in mind. It hasn't been a problem for me though. I feel that it is accurate as I eat my fitbit calories back most days and it hasn't hindered my progress. I find it does remind me to be more active. Oh -- I just saw the one on amazon for $85 (usually $99).

Bekahmardis

I have had my FitBit Flex since they came out at the beginning of May. For the past month, I have FINALLY been able to accurately track my activity levels throughout the day and get a better "read" on how many calories I burn. I absolutely love it! I found that I had been inaccurately tallying how much I burned throughout the day - I really thought it was only 1300 calories. Turns out I burn closer to 1475, and I really *am* in a sedentary job!

Once I set it up with my BMR and TDEE and weight goals, I then went into MFP, set my calorie expectations to 1200 and simply let my FitBit tell me how many more calories I can eat for the day. I have been averaging an intake of about 1426 calories per day since May and steadily losing half a pound a week!

The Flex is nice. I put it on my wrist and completely forget about it being there. I have it wirelessly synced to my iPad and when I want a snack, I take a look at MFP to see how many calories I have left - everything is done automagically for me. The battery lasts between 4 and 7 days depending on my actual activity level and how often I check it. It charges in about an hour and a half to two hours, so I simply charge it at night while I'm sitting on my butt in front of the t.v. at the end of the day.

I highly recommend it.

tami101

I've had the zip for three weeks now and I absolutely love it!!!! I highly recommend it! I originally wanted the flex, but after reading mixed reviews on it, I opted for the zip. I don't do a lot of stair climbing and I already know that my sleep pattern is awful, so I don't need the fitbit to tell me. I wear it all the time and have the negative calorie adjustment turned on, because while I am very active at work, I am very sedentary on my off days. I like how it will adjust my calories to keep me in check. It also gets me moving more on my off days, which is a good thing!

Athena53

I actually have both a HRM and fitbit zip. I wear my zip at all times and use my HRM for any cardio workouts. The combined information gives me a more accurate TDEE than I could estimate myself.

Same here. I love the Zip because it's foolproof and a great motivator. Even my 74-year old husband is walking more. I stick it in my sock when using a bike (stationary or otherwise) so it picks up the cycling motion. The HRM is a lot more accurate during workouts and shows me exactly how hard I'm working. It also works in water, which is important because I like swimming.

abettercheryl

I've had the fitbit flex for about a month now and I just absolutely love it. I wear it 24/7 and charge it about once a week when I'm sitting at my desk for a few hours. It doesn't take long to charge at all. I don't even have to take it off when I shower because it is waterproof. So far I just absolutely love it. No one really notices that I'm wearing it on my wrist all the time, it just looks like a watch I think.

I love being able to just sync it with my iphone quickly a few times a day. It will tell me about how active I am each day and calculate calories. It tracks weight, quality of sleep (apparently I'm quite restless), calories burned, steps taken, active minutes through the day, and I can manually add other types of activies like cycling or swimming. And I can see all of that on my iphone app or on the website.

The only drawback to it is that its food database is quite limited so I just link it up with my MFP account and use the MFP app to track my food. Fitbit will make an adjustment to my daily calorie goal based on the level of activity that I have throughout the day.

I highly recommend the flex.

sgtgwn

Does the fitbit work for any other exercise beside walking/jogging? I can't walk very far at a time because of back surgery, but I do a lot of cycling. Does anyone have any suggestions of what kind of tracker I should be using?

Athena53

The Zip is fine for cycling; I put it in my sock.