Fitbit? Pedometer? Runkeeper? Nike+? HELP

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  • LeilaFace
    LeilaFace Posts: 412 Member
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    Okay so what I'm kind of leaning towards now is:

    1. Fitbit + HRM (Kinda expensive to do)
    2. Heart Rate Monitor
    3. Nike Fuel
    4. Body Bugg

    Any other comments on those?

    Thank you all for all the help it's so hard to track calories burned. I really appreciate the fast response and all the help.
  • RussetBrunnette
    RussetBrunnette Posts: 107 Member
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    I have a Suunto M4 HRM and love it, accurate and suggests workouts for you based on your fitness level
  • ratherbeskiing
    ratherbeskiing Posts: 847 Member
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    I use the Polar HRM AND Nike +. I use the HRM for the HR and the Nike + for the distance and to keep my pace. I like them both. ::bigsmile:
  • KristenStone
    KristenStone Posts: 106 Member
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    I have had my Fitbit for two weeks and I find it to be pretty accurate in the steps I take. I love it and would highly recommend it. It is not a HRM but it does track calories burned and it automatically adjusts to your MFP-so awesome! I personally rarely eat my excercise calories back so I'm not too worried about that-but it definitely gives me that extra boost to keep moving and I challenge myself to do 10K steps daily! (Probably would normally do 4-5K) :)

    Good luck with your choice!! :)
  • DyannAlvarez
    DyannAlvarez Posts: 162 Member
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    I would recommend a heart rate monitor for calorie burn. I use the Runkeeper on my phone and love it. It's great for distance and letting you know how you're doing as far as time and distance. However the calories burned are always off from my HRM. I go by my HRM for accuracy on calorie burn. The 2 together are perfect for me.
  • leahalissa
    leahalissa Posts: 88 Member
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    I've had a fitbit for a while now. I love it because it keeps me in competition with myself.

    HOWEVER, like said before, it's not a HRM. It in no way gives an accurate reflection of calories burned. It has a estimate based on your age, steps, BMR, etc. Still, a fun device to use :)
  • LeilaFace
    LeilaFace Posts: 412 Member
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    So should I just get an HRM? Lots of people have been suggesting Polar brand. I guess I'll look into them. While The Fitbit and Fuel and Bodybugg seem awesome it seems a good old HRM will help the most with tracking calories and that's what I really need because I do so much outdoors stuff I have no clue what I'm burning and I hate guessing and making stuff up.
  • SaraTN
    SaraTN Posts: 536 Member
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    I highly recommend the Bodybugg -- as it gives a full picture of your burn throughout the day. On one hand it is helpful in terms of motivation when you look at how many calories you have burned it can push you to go for that extra walk after dinner or if you have met your goal, I like to push for another 100 calories.

    I don't use their food tracking mainly because I started here and had so many items saved in my food diary and I did a lot of input for my recipes etc. I also like the pedometer on it -- I find it to be far more accurate than any of the others I have used in the past.

    It is a little more expensive. But worth every dime if you ask me... I actually bought one for my boyfriend for Valentine's day because he liked seeing my numbers and calorie burns as motivation for me... so why not him too?!
  • pamelad77
    pamelad77 Posts: 292 Member
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    I'm thinking of waiting and getting the Nike+ fuelband.
    I love the idea of the fitbit but there have been issues with people driving and it logging the movements as steps. As I'm a uck driver this would cause some major accuracy problems. I sent an email to fitbit regarding this and they replied saying it is a known technical issue and they are working on it.
  • pamelad77
    pamelad77 Posts: 292 Member
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    That would be truck driver, not uck driver lol
  • stephanielynne
    stephanielynne Posts: 8
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    I've heard that the body bugg is amazing! I'm thinking that's what I'm going with :)
  • pamelad77
    pamelad77 Posts: 292 Member
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    I've heard that the body bugg is amazing! I'm thinking that's what I'm going with :)

    The monthly fee puts me off that
  • getsveltEagain
    getsveltEagain Posts: 1,063 Member
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    I use a bodybugg (also a bodymedia) that I can wear 24/7 minus water time (ie shower). This has proven to be very accurate since I get the full picture of what I am burning in a 24 hour period. It uses two metal plates that are touching your tricep to sense the tempature, wetness, and a few other chemicals to tell just how hard you are working out. I suggest you look into it :wink:

    According to the website Bodybugg.com "The armband has been shown to be over 90% accurate when determining calorie burn through the entire day. More specifically, a recent independent study tested the armband in real-life situations. Participants engaged in "free living" activities, including brisk walking, running, bicycling, sedentary activities, home activities, home repair, occupational activities, strength training, and ball games. The study compared the armband to a $40,000 "portable oxygen analyzer", the gold standard for measuring calories. Results showed:

    Total Calories for free living activities: mean error <10%.
    Total Minutes of exercise: mean error <5%.

    Source: British Journal of Sports Medicine. July 2010. Berntsen et al."


    I have never heard of that one. THANK YOU FOR THE SUGGESTION.

    Your very welcome... The bodybugg does count overall calories, steps taken, and "active" time. It will allow you through setup decide what goals you want for each of those catagories. With the display or model that links to your phone, you are constantly up to date with all your goals (except calories in but that is what MFP is for!?)
  • getsveltEagain
    getsveltEagain Posts: 1,063 Member
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    I've had a fitbit for a while now. I love it because it keeps me in competition with myself.

    HOWEVER, like said before, it's not a HRM. It in no way gives an accurate reflection of calories burned. It has a estimate based on your age, steps, BMR, etc. Still, a fun device to use :)

    my thoughts exactly.....

    I also think that a HRM is good but unless you want to wear it 24/7 you are not getting the full picture. I think that with the monthly fee the bugg is still worth it!!!
  • lmarshel
    lmarshel Posts: 674 Member
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    I use a Polar Bluetooth HRM. It's just a chest strap with transmitter that you use with an app on your phone. Did some research on the apps and found that Sportstracker Live is one that uses your actual heart rate to measure calorie burn. Some of the others will track your heart rate but only use weight, speed and distance to show calorie burn. The Sportstracker Live app will also track your distance, pace, speed and a variety of other factors during your workout. It will also give you a cool little Google map of where you traveled on your workout.

    I LOVE my HRM. And turns out my calorie burn is higher than MFP calculations. :)
  • mstemen
    mstemen Posts: 111 Member
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    On my phone I use Cardio Trainier that you can sync up with a Polar Bluetooth HRM (I don't have the HRM but I like that it has this capability) It uses GPS to track your distance and time and you can choose your exercise eg. walking, jogging, biking, or gym equipment like treadmill or elliptical.
  • lmarshel
    lmarshel Posts: 674 Member
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    On my phone I use Cardio Trainier that you can sync up with a Polar Bluetooth HRM (I don't have the HRM but I like that it has this capability) It uses GPS to track your distance and time and you can choose your exercise eg. walking, jogging, biking, or gym equipment like treadmill or elliptical.

    Cardio Trainer is a cool app, especially considering that it is free. I used it religiously until I bought my Polar Bluetooth HRM. They don't use heart rate to determine calorie burn, even with the Polar monitor synced.
  • LeilaFace
    LeilaFace Posts: 412 Member
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    I use a Polar Bluetooth HRM. It's just a chest strap with transmitter that you use with an app on your phone. Did some research on the apps and found that Sportstracker Live is one that uses your actual heart rate to measure calorie burn. Some of the others will track your heart rate but only use weight, speed and distance to show calorie burn. The Sportstracker Live app will also track your distance, pace, speed and a variety of other factors during your workout. It will also give you a cool little Google map of where you traveled on your workout.

    I LOVE my HRM. And turns out my calorie burn is higher than MFP calculations. :)

    This sounds great! unfortunately i don't have a smart phone i have an iTouch but where I run/hike there's no signal (even for my phone). Is this the device you use?
    http://www.amazon.com/Polar-Wearlink-Transmitter-With-Bluetooth/dp/B004HM0H14/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1329339971&sr=8-2

    If so, how do I make it link without a signal or am I bluetooth "special?" Do I need the internet for it to work on my iTouch basically (After I download Sportstracker)?

    I feel really dumb asking that question. Technology and i don't get along.
  • snlperdue93
    snlperdue93 Posts: 210 Member
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    I use a bodybugg (also a bodymedia) that I can wear 24/7 minus water time (ie shower). This has proven to be very accurate since I get the full picture of what I am burning in a 24 hour period. It uses two metal plates that are touching your tricep to sense the tempature, wetness, and a few other chemicals to tell just how hard you are working out. I suggest you look into it :wink:

    According to the website Bodybugg.com "The armband has been shown to be over 90% accurate when determining calorie burn through the entire day. More specifically, a recent independent study tested the armband in real-life situations. Participants engaged in "free living" activities, including brisk walking, running, bicycling, sedentary activities, home activities, home repair, occupational activities, strength training, and ball games. The study compared the armband to a $40,000 "portable oxygen analyzer", the gold standard for measuring calories. Results showed:

    Total Calories for free living activities: mean error <10%.
    Total Minutes of exercise: mean error <5%.

    Source: British Journal of Sports Medicine. July 2010. Berntsen et al."

    I have been looking at the body bug vs the slim coach and then today I found out that Jillian Micheal's has the Body Media on her site. I want to find something that will track my all day calorie burn vs just a workout burn. One question since you have one...Can you see just what you burned during workout, and then see what you burned the whole day, or is it a whole day only thing?
  • LeilaFace
    LeilaFace Posts: 412 Member
    Options
    I use a bodybugg (also a bodymedia) that I can wear 24/7 minus water time (ie shower). This has proven to be very accurate since I get the full picture of what I am burning in a 24 hour period. It uses two metal plates that are touching your tricep to sense the tempature, wetness, and a few other chemicals to tell just how hard you are working out. I suggest you look into it :wink:

    According to the website Bodybugg.com "The armband has been shown to be over 90% accurate when determining calorie burn through the entire day. More specifically, a recent independent study tested the armband in real-life situations. Participants engaged in "free living" activities, including brisk walking, running, bicycling, sedentary activities, home activities, home repair, occupational activities, strength training, and ball games. The study compared the armband to a $40,000 "portable oxygen analyzer", the gold standard for measuring calories. Results showed:

    Total Calories for free living activities: mean error <10%.
    Total Minutes of exercise: mean error <5%.

    Source: British Journal of Sports Medicine. July 2010. Berntsen et al."

    I have been looking at the body bug vs the slim coach and then today I found out that Jillian Micheal's has the Body Media on her site. I want to find something that will track my all day calorie burn vs just a workout burn. One question since you have one...Can you see just what you burned during workout, and then see what you burned the whole day, or is it a whole day only thing?


    YESSSS!!! Good question! Is there any way to isolate a workout calories burned or is it all or nothing?

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