Fitness Trackers. Are they worth the hype?
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I used to wear a fitbit one. I liked it, but once I got several months of the same data I stopped wearing it. It actually made me a little neurotic checking it all the time.0
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JenniferInCt wrote: »Ive had my Fitbit Charge HR for a couple weeks or so. I was debating even getting one but now i cant imagine not having it! My Iphones health app was decent, but i never realized how off the steps would be. I used to get like 8,000 steps a day and think how the heck do people do 10,000? With my Fitbit, i can see now that i take 12,000-16,000! Such a difference! As far as accuracy, it matches my treadmill EXACTLY in calories and heart rate, slightly off in distance (although we all know the treadmills probably not the most accurate anyways). My step count seems exact when i try to test it. Never gives false steps for driving, shoveling, etc. When i measure my heart rate myself (counting radial pulse), its pretty darn accurate. I enjoy the sleep function, but its really not necessary. Lol but i am obsessed with checking how i slept amd tracking hours.
If you want one, get it! If not, dont. Im the type of person who loves any tool i can add to my diet/exercise lifestyle, as it helps keep me motivated. I assume the calories are probably overrated, so i just never eat more than 1/2 back from fitbits step adjustment, sometimes even none. Its a great motivator!
^^ This.
I love my fitbit. It may not be 100% accurate. But it motivates me to get off my bum, reach my targets and walk further than last time.
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And alot of people who say theirs isnt accurate are sometimes wearing it wrong or the settings are wrong. Im not swearing its accurate, but i was surprised its more accurate than i thought.0
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I have had two UP originals over the last two years, but both wore out and now I'm using Fitbit Charge. I like Fitbit more but they are both good at keeping me motivated to move at my minimum goals of walking. I think both exaggerate the calories burned so I don't pay much attention to those numbers. It is very valuable though for figuring out my walking speed and distance covered which I enter into the MFP exercise tab. I find the MFP calorie burned count very accurate based on my outcomes. Whatever motivates you to keep moving, I say go for it but I highly recommend these high tech pedometers.0
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20yearsyounger wrote: »I found it useful and motivating. I get a generally good idea regarding my sleep patterns which help me decide how hard I work out the next day. The reason I don't use a smart phone is because I don't want it dying on me when I need it most (as they generally use GPS). Also, I don't want to think about my phone getting soaked when it starts raining on a walk/run. I don't have to think about charging my activity tracker. Is it 100% accurate. No. However, it's accurate enough for it to serve my purposes.
That's a good point about the rain. Part of my logic is how much I would expect to use it. With the cold weather, I would rather work out indoors than outdoors. I guess it would be a lot more useful to me when I am outside on the warmer days.0 -
There is no possible way for a fitness tracker to accurately calculate how much work you've done (which is equivalent to how much energy you've expended) over the course of a day (or any time period). As such, I find them to be not worth the expense.0
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kenmiller75 wrote: »I have the fitbit flex and it has motivated me to be more active on a daily basis. There were many nights after I first got it where I'd be up and walking around at 11:30 PM because I was close to getting my 10,000 steps for the day. Having something tracking my daily movement has been a huge motivational tool for me.
Am I concerned with the accuracy of my device? Not really. If the count is off by 100-200 steps because of driving or typing on my computer, it's not a big deal to me. If you're already active and don't care about tracking your steps then it's not going to be a good fit for you. If you're like me when I got mine and less active, then it can be a great motivational tool. In the end you get out of it what you put into it.
I bought my tracker on ebay for half the price of a new one. If you're on the fence about getting one, do your research as there are many devices to choose from, and buy a used one from ebay. That way you're not out a ton of cash if you end up throwing it in a drawer and never using it again.
When I say accuracy, I meant how it may or may not misinterpret activity. I have read that it is a problem with some, but I was curious to see what actual, regular users had to say about it. There are a ton of them and it is a bit daunting.![:\](https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/resources/emoji/confused.png ":\")
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jalarson23 wrote: »20yearsyounger wrote: »I found it useful and motivating. I get a generally good idea regarding my sleep patterns which help me decide how hard I work out the next day. The reason I don't use a smart phone is because I don't want it dying on me when I need it most (as they generally use GPS). Also, I don't want to think about my phone getting soaked when it starts raining on a walk/run. I don't have to think about charging my activity tracker. Is it 100% accurate. No. However, it's accurate enough for it to serve my purposes.
That's a good point about the rain. Part of my logic is how much I would expect to use it. With the cold weather, I would rather work out indoors than outdoors. I guess it would be a lot more useful to me when I am outside on the warmer days.
Warmer days will help. In addition, I will be travelling a lot pretty soon. I have no idea what machines will be available to me. However, I can always get a good approximation of my burn by just walking or running somewhere. I also have a Garmin and if I run for more than 10 minutes, it automatically logs the date, time, and calories burned for me.
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There is no possible way for a fitness tracker to accurately calculate how much work you've done (which is equivalent to how much energy you've expended) over the course of a day (or any time period). As such, I find them to be not worth the expense.
Why not? When it's measuring your HR and activity levels it can be pretty close.
I have a Fitbit Charge HR and I love it. I compared it to my chest HR monitor for both runs and spin class and they were within 5% of each other. Close enough.
It measures my activity level through out the day, if I'm up and moving around more it gives me more calories, if I'm a lazy bum it takes them away.
I don't have a problem with it not accurately counting steps. It does not do it when I am driving, typing or stuff of that nature.
I have also calibrated it to my stride lengths.
It can measure non step based activities fine, it records my spin sessions or bike trainer sessions just fine.
I love it, looking at the HR data especially if I am doing interval work is very interesting. It is also a lot more comfortable then a chest HR monitor.
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Another FitBit One lover here. Unless your mobile is in your pocket at all times it's not going to be as accurate. Sleep function isn't much use. It can't know whether you are asleep or just laying still for 8 hours. From a motivational point of view it's excellent and having it synced here it automatically adjusts your activity level for you so you eat more or less as required. I love mine and have lost 97lbs since I got it (for my 20lbs lost reward). I would definitely replace it with the same model if I needed to as I see it as more reliable and discreet than the wrist worn devices.0
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JenniferInCt wrote: »And alot of people who say theirs isnt accurate are sometimes wearing it wrong or the settings are wrong. Im not swearing its accurate, but i was surprised its more accurate than i thought.
How do they wear it wrong? Is it comfortable to wear or something you just have to get used to? I don't wear a watch anymore. I guess I would have to get used to that aspect again.0 -
I bought a FitBit Charge and I love it. I am on #TeamSedintary. I haven't been moving very much and I have a desk job where I don't get to do a lot of walking because I am needed to answer service calls. When I bought it, I had no idea how many steps I was taking a day, but I knew it wasn't enough, and I knew I wanted to get moving. This has helped me tremendously! I was maybe walking 1200 steps a day - incredible! Now I make the effort to get up and move, and I am getting about 3 - 4,000 just at work. I like the FitBit dashboard that shows me exactly where I am in meeting my goals. This is updated throughout the day, and I can check it at any point during the day to see my progress or lack of.
I wear the tracker on my non-dominant wrist so I don't get counts for certain movements. I've tested it to see and it's not counting typing, driving, cooking - unless I'm taking steps. It tells me flights of steps, calories burned, and even has a caller ID function to tell me who's calling me. That's helpful in the middle of a workout - I don't have to search for my phone, I can just use my Bluetooth to answer the call.
I like the sleep tracker, because I suffer from insomnia, and it shows up every couple of months for about 3 weeks. The data I get from the sleep monitoring is valuable to me. I wear my tracker 24/7 except for showering.
My Charge was def for me, but hey, a fitness tracker may not be your thing. Only you can determine that.0 -
There is no possible way for a fitness tracker to accurately calculate how much work you've done (which is equivalent to how much energy you've expended) over the course of a day (or any time period). As such, I find them to be not worth the expense.
Why not? When it's measuring your HR and activity levels it can be pretty close.
I have a Fitbit Charge HR and I love it. I compared it to my chest HR monitor for both runs and spin class and they were within 5% of each other. Close enough.
It measures my activity level through out the day, if I'm up and moving around more it gives me more calories, if I'm a lazy bum it takes them away.
I don't have a problem with it not accurately counting steps. It does not do it when I am driving, typing or stuff of that nature.
I have also calibrated it to my stride lengths.
It can measure non step based activities fine, it records my spin sessions or bike trainer sessions just fine.
I love it, looking at the HR data especially if I am doing interval work is very interesting. It is also a lot more comfortable then a chest HR monitor.
It's because your heart rate doesn't equate to how much work you're doing. There are only loose correlations between the two. The more your body adapts to something, the lower your heart rate will be when you do it. That's a big part of why they are useless during strength training. First time you squat 225 lbs? Your heartrate will likely be through the roof. After several times of squatting more than 225? Your heart rate won't rise nearly as much. Yet it still took the same amount of energy (Calories) to lift the same amount of weight.
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I have a Bodymedia. Been using it for about 1.75 years.
The part that sets it off from the others is it uses bio impedance to tell stuff, as well as the normal pedometer functions. It has a metal back that has to be touching your skin so it can tell your galvanic skin response, skin temp, and how fast you are getting rid of heat.
My big test for it was walking from the basement to 2nd floor 5 times in a row with nothing in my hands, and 2hrs later doing it again with a laundry basket filled with clothes. It said I burnt more cals the second time.
It also did a good job of telling me I burnt cals on a day I mostly stood still on a ladder, with 2 people bring me stuff, and 2 more taking it away, being part of a chain moving boxes out of an attic...which is better then my phone which told me I was barely active on that day.
Bodymedia got bought out by Jawbone, who are using the tech in the not yet out Up3, plus tossing in a heart rate monitor, while fitting it all into a bracelet.
I don't think any of them are super accurate, but over time it really has helped me get a better idea of what kind of numbers I will see. I figure it is within 10% easily. I don't think of them as cals, more like the weights you see on a gym machine. It is just different levels...so if I see I had a 2653 day that means I did more than on a 2450 day, and less than on a 2878 day.
I pretty much always eat less than the number it gives me, and I seem to be losing weight.
For example, average over the last 28 days burn of 2894, ate 2377, steps 9344, 5:20 sleep, 2:24 moderate activity, 0:03 vigorous activity.
Given I normally go to bed tween 12-1a, and normally wake up before my 6;45 alarm, 5:20 is pretty normal sleep wise for me. Then about every 2 months or so I crash for 10-12 hrs for a night.
Moderate activity is 3-6 METs. Vigorous is above 6 METs.
MET (Metabolic Equivalent): The ratio of the work metabolic rate to the resting metabolic rate. One MET is defined as 1 kcal/kg/hour and is roughly equivalent to the energy cost of sitting quietly. If you want more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metabolic_equivalent
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WaterBunnie wrote: »Another FitBit One lover here. Unless your mobile is in your pocket at all times it's not going to be as accurate. Sleep function isn't much use. It can't know whether you are asleep or just laying still for 8 hours. From a motivational point of view it's excellent and having it synced here it automatically adjusts your activity level for you so you eat more or less as required. I love mine and have lost 97lbs since I got it (for my 20lbs lost reward). I would definitely replace it with the same model if I needed to as I see it as more reliable and discreet than the wrist worn devices.
so it measures it by movement? Figures as much. I don't know what I was expecting. I guess it could be useful for me though to see if I have problems over time with sleep or it shows improvement. I would like to try to make sure I get 8 hours of sleep.0 -
SandyCoils wrote: »I bought a FitBit Charge and I love it. I am on #TeamSedintary. I haven't been moving very much and I have a desk job where I don't get to do a lot of walking because I am needed to answer service calls. When I bought it, I had no idea how many steps I was taking a day, but I knew it wasn't enough, and I knew I wanted to get moving. This has helped me tremendously! I was maybe walking 1200 steps a day - incredible! Now I make the effort to get up and move, and I am getting about 3 - 4,000 just at work. I like the FitBit dashboard that shows me exactly where I am in meeting my goals. This is updated throughout the day, and I can check it at any point during the day to see my progress or lack of.
I wear the tracker on my non-dominant wrist so I don't get counts for certain movements. I've tested it to see and it's not counting typing, driving, cooking - unless I'm taking steps. It tells me flights of steps, calories burned, and even has a caller ID function to tell me who's calling me. That's helpful in the middle of a workout - I don't have to search for my phone, I can just use my Bluetooth to answer the call.
I like the sleep tracker, because I suffer from insomnia, and it shows up every couple of months for about 3 weeks. The data I get from the sleep monitoring is valuable to me. I wear my tracker 24/7 except for showering.
My Charge was def for me, but hey, a fitness tracker may not be your thing. Only you can determine that.
is that a separate bluetooth thing that you use or something included with the FitBit?
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There is no possible way for a fitness tracker to accurately calculate how much work you've done (which is equivalent to how much energy you've expended) over the course of a day (or any time period). As such, I find them to be not worth the expense.
Why not? When it's measuring your HR and activity levels it can be pretty close.
I have a Fitbit Charge HR and I love it. I compared it to my chest HR monitor for both runs and spin class and they were within 5% of each other. Close enough.
It measures my activity level through out the day, if I'm up and moving around more it gives me more calories, if I'm a lazy bum it takes them away.
I don't have a problem with it not accurately counting steps. It does not do it when I am driving, typing or stuff of that nature.
I have also calibrated it to my stride lengths.
It can measure non step based activities fine, it records my spin sessions or bike trainer sessions just fine.
I love it, looking at the HR data especially if I am doing interval work is very interesting. It is also a lot more comfortable then a chest HR monitor.
It's because your heart rate doesn't equate to how much work you're doing. There are only loose correlations between the two. The more your body adapts to something, the lower your heart rate will be when you do it. That's a big part of why they are useless during strength training. First time you squat 225 lbs? Your heartrate will likely be through the roof. After several times of squatting more than 225? Your heart rate won't rise nearly as much. Yet it still took the same amount of energy (Calories) to lift the same amount of weight.
So for strength training it isn't effective?0 -
It's separate, I hate holding my phone so I have had a Bluetooth for years.jalarson23 wrote: »is that a separate bluetooth thing that you use or something included with the FitBit?
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I have a Bodymedia. Been using it for about 1.75 years.
The part that sets it off from the others is it uses bio impedance to tell stuff, as well as the normal pedometer functions. It has a metal back that has to be touching your skin so it can tell your galvanic skin response, skin temp, and how fast you are getting rid of heat.
My big test for it was walking from the basement to 2nd floor 5 times in a row with nothing in my hands, and 2hrs later doing it again with a laundry basket filled with clothes. It said I burnt more cals the second time.
It also did a good job of telling me I burnt cals on a day I mostly stood still on a ladder, with 2 people bring me stuff, and 2 more taking it away, being part of a chain moving boxes out of an attic...which is better then my phone which told me I was barely active on that day.
Bodymedia got bought out by Jawbone, who are using the tech in the not yet out Up3, plus tossing in a heart rate monitor, while fitting it all into a bracelet.
Aesthetically, I really like these. They look really customizable. Too bad that they are having delays. I am weary of first gen tech though too.
I don't think any of them are super accurate, but over time it really has helped me get a better idea of what kind of numbers I will see. I figure it is within 10% easily. I don't think of them as cals, more like the weights you see on a gym machine. It is just different levels...so if I see I had a 2653 day that means I did more than on a 2450 day, and less than on a 2878 day.
I'm getting the impression to not put much stake in the numbers, except how they compare to other entries. What you say seems to support this logic.I pretty much always eat less than the number it gives me, and I seem to be losing weight.
For example, average over the last 28 days burn of 2894, ate 2377, steps 9344, 5:20 sleep, 2:24 moderate activity, 0:03 vigorous activity.
Given I normally go to bed tween 12-1a, and normally wake up before my 6;45 alarm, 5:20 is pretty normal sleep wise for me. Then about every 2 months or so I crash for 10-12 hrs for a night.
Moderate activity is 3-6 METs. Vigorous is above 6 METs.
MET (Metabolic Equivalent): The ratio of the work metabolic rate to the resting metabolic rate. One MET is defined as 1 kcal/kg/hour and is roughly equivalent to the energy cost of sitting quietly. If you want more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metabolic_equivalent
I like how it breaks it down for you. I will have to look into this one a bit more, thanks.
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I have a Vivosmart made by Garmin, What I have noticed, it will change my goal as I become more or less active. Also it seems to measure your gate, So I counted 20 paces and it reported accurately 20 steps. I do Weightlifting, it does not measure any of my weight training as in Bench press, but will measure the steps I am doing in between sets, etc. You can connect it to a heart monitor and use Garmin connect to map your running. I am quite happy with it and so is my wife.
I agree. I use and LOVE my Vivofit! No matter what anyone says, I seem to be losing weight using MFP and my Vivofit together. Basing my gate/pace, my sleep, my calories consumed, etc. I think the two have been a really great way to use the tools. AND, it syncs with MFP like a clock. Worth $100.00 for me.
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