Fitbits - waste or worth it?

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  • mbboy2065
    mbboy2065 Posts: 4 Member
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    Fitbit blaze owner here. Originally a surge owner. Originally got them to keep track of my calories burnt. Now that I have worn them for a considerable amount of time, I know ABOUT how many calories I burn on certain days, based on what exercises I do. I do take the calories burnt as a rough estimate because I have noticed at times it would say my heart rate while walking was 185 beats per minutes. A few minutes later it would be down to 106.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?
  • 12774
    12774 Posts: 1,416 Member
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    [
    Psychgrrl wrote: »
    Bluwaves1 wrote: »
    I have used one for a month now and it really is good to look back to see how your week was, how much sleep you got, your resting pulse etc. you can see improvement in the numbers. unfortunately the place where I work just banned them so I probably won't use it because the 40 hour gap will make it kind of useless. But I would recommend it to anyone, just make sure you can use them at work first before buying.

    How can your workplace ban them?

    Yes, a hospital can forbid its nurses from wearing a fit bit. Even artificial nails are forbidden Can causes cross-contamination and also injury to patients skin.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    edited July 2017
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    Someone mentioned this in another thread:

    I picked the Flex 2 because I can wear it on my wrist, or carry it in my pocket, or wear it on my bra! My employer disallows "personal electronic devices" (including fitness trackers) because of potential distraction, and that means it's against the rules to wear one at work. So I need one that I can't be *seen* wearing. If I have it on my bra, no way in hell is anyone going to know about it, and I'm also not going to be distracted by checking it all the time. So, I'm not following the letter of the "No PED" rule, but I'm following the spirit of it.

    @Locolady98
  • MsHarryWinston
    MsHarryWinston Posts: 1,027 Member
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?

    I wear it 24/7 unless I'm showering. When I sleep I wear it REALLY loose but don't take it off.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    MsHarryWinston wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?

    I wear it 24/7 unless I'm showering. When I sleep I wear it REALLY loose but don't take it off.

    What i meant was, i thought there was an option to turn the HR monitoring on and off. For example, during normal daily activities you just use the step counter, no hr monitoring, then say you go for a run/purposeful exercise wherein you switch the HR monitor on to record your heart rate during your exercise, then when you're finished exercising you turn off the hr monitoring and revert back to a regular tracker.

    I guess my question pertains to what is the point of recording your Heart rate when you're not exercising.

    Am i being as clear as mud? :lol:

  • MontyMuttland
    MontyMuttland Posts: 68 Member
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    MsHarryWinston wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?

    I wear it 24/7 unless I'm showering. When I sleep I wear it REALLY loose but don't take it off.

    What i meant was, i thought there was an option to turn the HR monitoring on and off. For example, during normal daily activities you just use the step counter, no hr monitoring, then say you go for a run/purposeful exercise wherein you switch the HR monitor on to record your heart rate during your exercise, then when you're finished exercising you turn off the hr monitoring and revert back to a regular tracker.

    I guess my question pertains to what is the point of recording your Heart rate when you're not exercising.

    Am i being as clear as mud? :lol:

    Of the handful of devices I've had so far, the ones with a HR monitor could all be turned on and off at will, however the only good reason to switch it off would be to save power if it's going to be awhile before you get to recharge.
    The reason for keeping the HR on is simple, it allows the device to make a better calculation of your calorie burn throughout the day, regardless of specific exercise activities.
    For example, maybe one day at work you spent an unusual amount of time going up and down stairs running errands, then your device will register a higher calorie burn due to the your heart rate having been higher during that time.
    Another day maybe you spent 6 hours in front of the TV, then your device will register a lower calorie burn because you were being a couch potato!
    Without a HR monitor, your daily calorie burn is calculated as an average for someone of your sex/age/height/weight and given a multiplier based on how active you state you are. It's not really a true reflection of what you're really burning, but most people should be not too far out.
    The activity monitor with HR does a better job since it's actively working out your calorie burn throughout the day.
    In most cases it's possible to get MFP to use the devices' reading for your daily calorie burn.
  • NatJayneL
    NatJayneL Posts: 10 Member
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    I love my smartwatch. The counting steps feature and keep moving apps motivate me. I also like seeing my texts or calls while at work or working out without having to pull out the phone - there's a fitbit with this capability. I would love to get a watch that monitors heart rate to keep track of how hard I'm working and give me that extra push.
    It's not going to change your life, but if you use it consistently and are already motivated, it can help.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
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    MontyMuttland wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    MsHarryWinston wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?

    I wear it 24/7 unless I'm showering. When I sleep I wear it REALLY loose but don't take it off.

    What i meant was, i thought there was an option to turn the HR monitoring on and off. For example, during normal daily activities you just use the step counter, no hr monitoring, then say you go for a run/purposeful exercise wherein you switch the HR monitor on to record your heart rate during your exercise, then when you're finished exercising you turn off the hr monitoring and revert back to a regular tracker.

    I guess my question pertains to what is the point of recording your Heart rate when you're not exercising.

    Am i being as clear as mud? :lol:

    Of the handful of devices I've had so far, the ones with a HR monitor could all be turned on and off at will, however the only good reason to switch it off would be to save power if it's going to be awhile before you get to recharge.
    The reason for keeping the HR on is simple, it allows the device to make a better calculation of your calorie burn throughout the day, regardless of specific exercise activities.
    For example, maybe one day at work you spent an unusual amount of time going up and down stairs running errands, then your device will register a higher calorie burn due to the your heart rate having been higher during that time.
    Another day maybe you spent 6 hours in front of the TV, then your device will register a lower calorie burn because you were being a couch potato!
    Without a HR monitor, your daily calorie burn is calculated as an average for someone of your sex/age/height/weight and given a multiplier based on how active you state you are. It's not really a true reflection of what you're really burning, but most people should be not too far out.
    The activity monitor with HR does a better job since it's actively working out your calorie burn throughout the day.
    In most cases it's possible to get MFP to use the devices' reading for your daily calorie burn.

    Pretty sure the sampling rate on mine increases during an activity. So when I'm wearing it, it may sample the HR every 30 seconds or so, but if I turn on an activity it reads it more often (not sure the exact sampling rate).

    So I leave mine on. I've got a Garmin VAHR.
  • VeronicaA76
    VeronicaA76 Posts: 1,116 Member
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    They are like gym memberships. Helpful, so long as you use it.
  • KonaKat
    KonaKat Posts: 3,411 Member
    edited July 2017
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    I have a FitBit Alta HR. Unlike many of you, I bought it specifically to be able to track my heart rate 24 hours a day via graph or instantly by glancing at my wrist. I have a heart situation that requires heart rate monitoring and this does it well. I can take my blood pressure and the pulse rate on it will be within 2 points of the Fitbit. I can see changes or trends on the app graph. There have been those who after wearing the HR versions discovered they had unusually high heart rates but no symptoms. When checked by a doctor and with use of an EKG, they found they had Atrial Fibrillation or AFib which can result in a 5 times increased risk of stroke.
  • hhebert01
    hhebert01 Posts: 5 Member
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    What about Privacy concerns? How does FitBit and Garmin store your data? Is it default at Public? Any hack/security issues ot vulnerabilities in terms of location or account data breaches?
    Always a concern of mine for "syncable" things.
  • MsHarryWinston
    MsHarryWinston Posts: 1,027 Member
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    MsHarryWinston wrote: »
    Christine_72 wrote: »
    To those of you with HR monitor devices, do you keep the HR monitoring switched on all day, or do you turn it on only when you exercise?

    I wear it 24/7 unless I'm showering. When I sleep I wear it REALLY loose but don't take it off.

    What i meant was, i thought there was an option to turn the HR monitoring on and off. For example, during normal daily activities you just use the step counter, no hr monitoring, then say you go for a run/purposeful exercise wherein you switch the HR monitor on to record your heart rate during your exercise, then when you're finished exercising you turn off the hr monitoring and revert back to a regular tracker.

    I guess my question pertains to what is the point of recording your Heart rate when you're not exercising.

    Am i being as clear as mud? :lol:

    Oh! Gotcha. One reason I wear my monitor all the time is because I'm trying to lower my resting heart rate, it's way too high. So as I do more cardio and my cardio vascular health gets stronger, my resting heart rate will lower = better heart health.
  • InkAndApples
    InkAndApples Posts: 201 Member
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    My Fitbit is definitely worth it for me. I have wildly varying activity levels (anywhere from 20K to under 1000 steps on some days. No really.) so it helps me keep on track as far as making sure I'm not over/under eating. If my lifestyle was more consistent I don't think I'd "need" one, but they're still nice to have.

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