Fitness Trackers worth it or waste of money?

wendypark811

Hello,

I have lost alot of weight and now invested in a Personal Trainer to help me get rid of the extra fat. He gave me a programme but also suggested I invest in an activity tracker to keep a better track on cals burnt ( ones on cardio machines dont give true account) I also do classes tone, pump and cardio ones. He has suggested fitbit charge 2 due to heart rate monitor.

I don't want to spend money on an item like this and find it is not worth it.

Can anyone help please advice needed.
Thanks
Wendy

INeustaedter

My heart rate monitor has been my best training friend for years. It's the only thing I trust in terms of calories burned. It keeps me on target. Who cares how many steps you take per day? You want more calories burned than consumed and you want to be fit. Keep moving and keep yourself honest with HR monitor and eat clean. The weight will soon start to drop off.

pangy1958

I have the fitbit charge 2 and is well worth the money.

MonkeyMel21

Honestly, for me, it's just a fun accessory. It hasn't helped or hindered any weight loss efforts or training goals. I know it's not 100% correct and therefor do not put faith fully in to it. I love that it connects with my phone a notifies me of a message/call so I can keep my ringer off without missing calls. So no, it's not necessary, some trackers are more accurate than others, but they are an accessory to fitness and do have some motivational benefits it's that's your thing.


edit to add: it's definitely worth the money to me, I've worn it everyday since buying it. That said, we have expendable money so it isn't an issue at all. I'm just trying to say that it is definitely not a necessity if you don't have that kind of money to spend, but it can still be worth it if you utilize it.

hesfeld

I love my fitbit just to find out stats, which I know accuracy may not be 100%. It has encouraged me to get up and move when I'd rather be laying on the couch. To me, it was worth the money.

leggup

It's a toy. Calories in are more important than calories out. After comparing data from a few machines/averages online you can figure out the basic numbers anyway. For example, I know I burn about 100 calories per kilometer, give or take. I know that I can give myself about 100 calories for a 1 hr dance class, 150 if I am out of breath the whole time, maybe 50 if it has a lot of down time. I used a heart rate monitor for fun/to see averages for a while, but even that turned into a toy since my heart rate was always in the same ranges for the same activities.

crowleyed72

I have an Apple Watch an I love it. It's calorie count is pretty dead one. I have my set to tell me if I'm inactive for to long, it beeps or vibrates an tells me to move. You can set them up to challenge friends to steps taken, calories burned, stand time.

kali31337

I love my Fitbit HR2. Not only does it keep track of my steps and rough estimate of calories burned, the most helpful thing has been the hourly reminders to move my booty. I sit at a desk all day and without the reminders, I probably could sit here for 4 hours straight. Totally worth the money in my book!

Blubberbuster1

I have the Fitbit Charge 2, I have it for motivation and for me to set a benchmark. I never used to walk, now I'm aiming for 10k steps a day. Any activity is good activity, it just helps me keep motivated.

fit_finesse92

I have an apple watch. I love it. Best $400 ever spent.

MonkeyMel21

kali31337 wrote: »

I love my Fitbit HR2. Not only does it keep track of my steps and rough estimate of calories burned, the most helpful thing has been the hourly reminders to move my booty. I sit at a desk all day and without the reminders, I probably could sit here for 4 hours straight. Totally worth the money in my book!

See, I turn off my reminders because they annoy me, lol. I don't like to be told what to do. I enjoy being active and if someone/thing is telling me that I MUST be active right then, I will rebel just on principal. But those reminders are there for a reason because they do motivate some people!

gramarye

hesfeld wrote: »

I love my fitbit just to find out stats, which I know accuracy may not be 100%. It has encouraged me to get up and move when I'd rather be laying on the couch. To me, it was worth the money.

This. I don't use the Fitbit to calculate my calories anymore*, but rather look at it for data regarding moving. I'm not fundamentally active, and having this small reminder to watch what I'm doing and keep going is really helpful.

(* I trusted it for a year or so, and it seemed more or less accurate for my purposes -- but it psychologically didn't work for me.)

Rocknut53

I've contemplated jumping on that bandwagon, but having lost over 60 pounds through diligent eating and lots of exercise and monitoring my heart rate the good ol' fashioned way, sometimes checking my pulse, sometimes talking to myself to see if I can actually talk while my heart rate is elevated, I personally don't think I need one. Out of curiosity, I occasionally check my steps on my phone if I remember to carry it around and I do use Map My Hike to keep track of distance, elevation and estimates of calories burned so I'm not totally without a "gadget."

rachgh3

i have a flex 2 - it doesnt have the HR monitor. but i use it every day to help me make sure i do movements at work as i have a desk job and i like the sleep tracker too. this one is also waterproof so i can use it swimming which i love. BUT i have found that the calorie adjustment doesnt match other apps i have used such as map my walk for example. i walked 16 mins today for example according to map my walk and burnt 354 calories (allegedly lol) but the fitbit didnt adjust the calories and only recorded 8 mins of 'fitness'

Scotty2HotPie

I got an Apple Watch (Series 1) for Christmas. I was a bit skeptical at first, but I've totally flipped.

I love it. I also like all the other crap it does as well.... I can preview text messages, phone calls, etc if the phone is put away or when I'm driving. Combining the Apple Watch with my bluetooth headphones, I hardly have to touch my phone.

It works well with my fitness apps, like Strong and MapMyRun. The heart rate monitor works well for cardio, but no so well for pulling strength exercises, like deadlift. That's true for any wrist HRM though.

I don't know how much better the Apple Watch 2 is than the 1. But you can get the Series 1 at a very reasonable cost I believe.

The downside is that it needs to be charged most nights. Which I don't mind since I don't like anything on my wrists while sleeping. However, you don't get any data about sleeping patterns like with other fitness trackers. So there's that.

kikicooks

I actually just had a conversation with co-workers this morning about this. I have a FitBit and so does one of them, the other was asking what we thought and if worth it. We both agreed that they are not 100% accurate on calories and steps but that they motivate us so much more so it's worth it to us.

dewd2

If it motivates you, then do it. Otherwise, it has limited use. It can track your steps and give you an idea how many calories you burned from that. Everything else about it comes from the marketing department. Heart rate and calories are not really related, so using the HRM for anything other than a training tool is a waste of time.

NorthCascades

wendypark811 wrote: »

Hello,

I have lost alot of weight and now invested in a Personal Trainer to help me get rid of the extra fat. He gave me a programme but also suggested I invest in an activity tracker to keep a better track on cals burnt ( ones on cardio machines dont give true account) I also do classes tone, pump and cardio ones. He has suggested fitbit charge 2 due to heart rate monitor.

I don't want to spend money on an item like this and find it is not worth it.

Can anyone help please advice needed.
Thanks
Wendy

A fitbit will have no idea how many calories you burn on cardio machines. Is it worth 100 of your dollars to still not know that?

kt_kat_88

I love my charge 2. It motivates me to push myself during cardio to increase my HR

7lenny7

It all depends on how, and if, you use it. There's now way we can answer that question for you.

bizgirl26

I find them a waste of money but if it helps then go for it. I use the TDEE method and figure our my deficit and don't worry about exercise calories . It has helped me lose more than 50 pounds.

lorrpb

I like to count steps & floors to help me keep active. I've never thought that a HRM is worth it to me. I scale back the mfp calorie burns and it's close enough. I don't depend hours on cardio machines or doing intense activities, so it might be different for someone who does.

inertiastrength

I adore my fitbit. I am a really visual data junkie so this motivates me to do random things like walk the work parking lot on my break or walk to McDonald's to get my coffee in the morning. Things that while I COULD do without it are so much more enjoyable with the reminders and app lol Totally worth it for me, I'm more active when I know it's tracking heheh.

HermanLily

I wouldn't be where I am at without being motivated, based on the information they provide.

Rob_in_MI

I had one but no longer use it. Since my phone is always with me, I put a step app on it. Accuracy wise, the app and the Fitbit were usually within 200 steps over the course of an average day(9000). The count is a nice barometer of how much you move, but calories are still king.

happysherri

I had the FitBit flex before any of the heart rate monitor trackers came out. It was fun to see my sleep percentage and how many steps and calories burned. However, I am not a big "step" person. Meaning I eat 80/20 healthy and go to the gym with a combo of strength training and some cardio. I have not worn it for almost a year because I don't care about steps and it truly didn't motivate me.

I would rather spend the money on something else.

*Oh, and obviously - the calories burned were not accurate, because it's hard to gage strength training and it wouldn't always register my jump training properly. (again no heart rate monitor in mine)

wendypark811

Cals burnt is the main reason he has suggested I purchase one. I have managed to lose over 1 1/2 st without it. That why I was unsure and still am.

hacked0ff

Some people love them and some don't. I started out with a fitbit flex and now use a garmin sports watch. Why? Because I like keeping track of my activities. I like being reminded to get up and move. I work from home sitting behind a computer all day. My gadget takes care of things so I don't have to think about them. I could do a lot of that with my phone, but I would have to keep my phone close to me all day. And if I'm out riding my bike, I'd rather not run down my battery running some app.

My gadget works for me because:
I like being able to compare a bike ride I did two months ago to one from yesterday.
How does my heart rate and time for a certain run compare now to one from last month.
It reminds me to move.
It motivates me to improve.
I don't like being tied to my phone.
and many other things.

These reasons may not work for you or anyone else.



Buy one from a place with a liberal return policy and see if it works for you. Thats the only you will know for sure.

inertiastrength

wendypark811 wrote: »

Cals burnt is the main reason he has suggested I purchase one. I have managed to lose over 1 1/2 st without it. That why I was unsure and still am.

I found the calories burned were bang on for me. I only lift 3x/week low volume so I don't really "count" those calories. My main concern is being active in a way that's going to create a meaningful deficit which for me was moving around a little here and there vs being a desk jockey and going on a sofa on my downtime.

dewd2

wendypark811 wrote: »

Cals burnt is the main reason he has suggested I purchase one. I have managed to lose over 1 1/2 st without it. That why I was unsure and still am.

Ask him how it works to count calories. And be sure to ask if the HRM is part of it. If you get nothing but bro-science back you may want to find a more competent trainer.

wendypark811

Thanks for all the advice appriciate it.

He suggested it because I do mix of classes and I also use the cardio machines, lift weights etc, he wants me to compare days which day burns the most and why, 2 out of 6 days he wants low cal burn the rest high. Also for me I'am one of them kind of people who pushes herself to much sometimes. For example he put treadmill speed 7-10 for 20mins each time I went on the speed went up, so now I run at spped 10 for 20mins he gone speed 7-10 for 30mins knowing I will achieve that.

I also want to know what is going on my weight has not moved for a while and my stubborn tum refuses to move even a millimeter even with all my work and low carb, low fat high protein diet. Annoying

Thanks again
Wendy