New to FitBit and confused about syncing.

shamburger411

Hey guys! Completely new to the fitbit community. I have the Charge. I'm confused about syncing my fitbit account and MyFitnessPal accounts.

When I workout (mainly Zumba) should I wear my fitbit and let that log the exercise? Or should I take it off and just use the time from start to finish and log it via MFP? I have searched forums on both sites and many posts have had conflicting answers.

Also, food logs. I should only log food on MFP? or should I do it via FitBit..or does it not matter?

TIA, I know it's a lot of questions. haha.

mweckler

If you have the 2 account synced they talk to each other. If you log food in MFP it will show in your Fitbit app. As for the steps I would keep the tracker on to count the steps and still track the Zumba workout in MFP as the calorie difference from steps to full body movement is drastically different. Also if you have an iPhone and sync your steps that way you will have to open the app on your phone and wait for it to sync in order for it to update on the MFP app and webpage.

segacs

If you're wearing a Fitbit, you should normally just wear it and let it track your exercise. The exception would be any exercise that Fitbit can't track well because it's not step-based, such as swimming, which you should manually log. But Zumba, as a dance exercise, will probably be tracked reasonably well by a Fitbit, especially if you have one of the newer models that measures heart rate.

Personally I suggest, for simplicity's sake, logging everything to do with food on MFP and everything to do with exercise on Fitbit. It doesn't really matter all that much, but MFP's food database is far superior.

NancyN795

For answers to these and many other questions, read the FAQ. Here's a handy link: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10098937/faq-syncing-logging-food-exercise-calorie-adjustments-activity-levels-accuracy/p1

Short(ish) answer on exercise: Yes, wear it when you do Zumba. No, do not log Zumba using MFP's calorie estimate! Never, never log Zumba on MFP unless you have an independent way of measuring your calories burned. MFP gives me at least double the calories I actually burn doing Zumba. It is an impossibly high number (my heart rate would have to be over my max heart rate the entire time to get MFP's calorie burn). I got my first Fitbit - a One - a little over 2 years ago (I have had a Charge HR for about a year now). I've been doing Zumba regularly since before I got my One. The One and my Charge HR have both always tracked my workouts quite well (I compared to the burn I got from a chest strap HRM). I do not log any exercise on MFP, I log all exercise, even exercise my Fitbit can't track, on Fitbit because their method of calculating calories burned is thought to be more accurate.

Short answer on Food: MFP's food interface and database are far superior to Fitbit's. So, use MFP for food. MFP's method of computing your calories remaining is more straightforward as well, so use it to decide how much you can eat.

shamburger411

NancyN795 wrote: »

For answers to these and many other questions, read the FAQ. Here's a handy link: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10098937/faq-syncing-logging-food-exercise-calorie-adjustments-activity-levels-accuracy/p1

Short(ish) answer on exercise: Yes, wear it when you do Zumba. No, do not log Zumba using MFP's calorie estimate! Never, never log Zumba on MFP unless you have an independent way of measuring your calories burned. MFP gives me at least double the calories I actually burn doing Zumba. It is an impossibly high number (my heart rate would have to be over my max heart rate the entire time to get MFP's calorie burn). I got my first Fitbit - a One - a little over 2 years ago (I have had a Charge HR for about a year now). I've been doing Zumba regularly since before I got my One. The One and my Charge HR have both always tracked my workouts quite well (I compared to the burn I got from a chest strap HRM). I do not log any exercise on MFP, I log all exercise, even exercise my Fitbit can't track, on Fitbit because their method of calculating calories burned is thought to be more accurate.

Short answer on Food: MFP's food interface and database are far superior to Fitbit's. So, use MFP for food. MFP's method of computing your calories remaining is more straightforward as well, so use it to decide how much you can eat.

Thank you!! I looked at the FAQs but like I said those answered contradict the other answers I have found on other sites. So I wanted a personal experience from someone who could explain it a bit better (as you did).
Thank you again! (: