Fitbit or Vivofit??

winterpaws
winterpaws Posts: 6
in Health and Weight Loss
I am struggling to decide which of these to purchase. I want to use it to assist in a true calculation of my TDEE.

The vivofit was my first choice as I have a Garmin610 watch. But I have read a lot that you cannot wear both the watch and the HRM or the data is out. Can anyone comment on this?

i'm also not happy that the Vivotfit does sync with MFP. I also don't think my tanita scales will work with the new connect dashboard? Is that correct?

With the fitbit softwater, can you override data if you are wearing a heart rate monitor and can see that you have burnt more calories?

I ride horses so all of these wrist bands struggle to cope with that as an activity.

I did (do) have a bodymedia fit armband and it was fantastic, but so uncomfortable!

Replies

  • britgarn
    britgarn Posts: 6
    I wish I could give you a straight answer. I've been using my Fitbit One since mid-October and I love it. I love everything about it EXCEPT that it is not water-proof or even water resistant to any great extent (I have to take it off to shower, etc.). Because of that - and the fact that we LIVE on the lake in the summer - I purchased a Vivofit along with the Garmin heart monitor. Then a few weeks later came across an amazing deal for a Jawbone UP24. I wanted to wear all three for a while to compare and contrast . . and have been doing so for a little over a week.

    I LOVE the VivoFit and the Fitbit. The Jawbone UP24 isn't impressing me, at all. The problem I'm running into is it that the Fitbit has aspects I won't/can't do without . . . such as the integration with MyFitnessPal . . . and the Vivofit has aspects the Garmin cannot touch.

    Unfortunately, I want to tell you to buy both. I know that I am going to continue to wear both for quite some time simply because neither company can give me all the information I want in one device . . but the two together allow me to know everything I want to know.

    (I also wore the BodyMedia armband for well over a year . . . and never saw the results I'm seeing with the Fitbit and now with the Fitbit + Vivofit).

    Feel free to message me with any questions.
  • easjer
    easjer Posts: 219 Member
    I can't comment on anything than the fitbit, unfortunately. I CAN say that I LOVE my fitbit flex and it was one of the best investments I've made. The flex is water resistant, but for that, you trade altimeter and ability to see actual step/calorie count (I get a flashing light that indicates my progress towards my daily goal - whatever single goal I want to view that day, though you can sync and check your progress).

    I've found TDEE to line up with online TDEE calculators, so I feel like it's pretty accurate. Definitely motivates me.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    I have a Fitbit One and love it, but don't think its an accurate method of calculating calories burned. It doesn't have a heart rate monitor so can't tell intensity. If I walk 4.0 on the treadmill for an hour at 0 vs. 5 incline, it doesn't know the difference.

    With that said, any activity tracker is a good way to determine a baseline for yourself and from there keep you moving onward, upward. I'm not nearly as lazy as I used to be - except for a few very rare occasions I make sure to get my steps in.

    You can input activity, and it will override as you say. For example if you do XYZ from 1-2pm, you can log it thru the website (maybe app on phones also, not sure) and it will replace the old data with what you enter. It syncs with MFP, rather well.

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