Bodymedia LINK - WoW! What a motivator! - My review
johnguitarman
Posts: 56 Member
Well I got my BodyMedia LINK two days ago and this little thing is incredible! Before getting it I was using MFP and getting 1900 cals a day. The BMF gives me 2300 a day. After using the BM for two days I already dropped about 2lbs! It pushed me very hard and helped get me on track. I've been on MFP for about 8 weeks now and with the BMF I am more motivated than ever.
Basically you input your stats and pick how much weight you want to lose, what your goals are and the BodyMedia spits out everything for you. It gives you your calories you want to hit for the day based on your BMI and TDEE, It monitors your calories in real time as you burn them, you can import your MFP food diary into it so you dont have to manually enter in your food. It calculates your percentages of everything you've eaten for the day, gives you awesome charts and graphs to show your progress. has a fitness coach to give you valuable tips as you go, helps to keep you on track to make sure you are getting your fitness goals in for the day and alot more! .I cant say enough about it.
There are 2 versions, the COre and the LINK. The LINK is what I have and it allows you to sync up to your phone so you can watch your results in realtime and if you want to transfer your stats to your computer you just hit upload. Works amazingly well and I haven't had any issues with it not syncing up.
You will have to subscribe for a membership to the BodyMedia website so you can have your own 'dashboard' where you get to monitor and view all of your stats. There are different payment plans, monthly, yearly and two years. I chose one year for $59 bucks. Not bad considering that would have been a few trips to mcdonalds before!
I have already started pushing myself harder to make sure I hit the goals that my BMF set for me and the results are already showing. Oh and its so awesome to be able to eat more than the 1900 cals that MFP allotted me. I'm not the least bit hungry.
In closing I love this thing and I highly recommend it, especially for those who want something that will motivate them and be a great tool in helping to aid in your individual fitness goals. Of course it is a tool and you still have to make sure you put in the effort with your diet and exercise routine to get the maximum benefit.
Basically you input your stats and pick how much weight you want to lose, what your goals are and the BodyMedia spits out everything for you. It gives you your calories you want to hit for the day based on your BMI and TDEE, It monitors your calories in real time as you burn them, you can import your MFP food diary into it so you dont have to manually enter in your food. It calculates your percentages of everything you've eaten for the day, gives you awesome charts and graphs to show your progress. has a fitness coach to give you valuable tips as you go, helps to keep you on track to make sure you are getting your fitness goals in for the day and alot more! .I cant say enough about it.
There are 2 versions, the COre and the LINK. The LINK is what I have and it allows you to sync up to your phone so you can watch your results in realtime and if you want to transfer your stats to your computer you just hit upload. Works amazingly well and I haven't had any issues with it not syncing up.
You will have to subscribe for a membership to the BodyMedia website so you can have your own 'dashboard' where you get to monitor and view all of your stats. There are different payment plans, monthly, yearly and two years. I chose one year for $59 bucks. Not bad considering that would have been a few trips to mcdonalds before!
I have already started pushing myself harder to make sure I hit the goals that my BMF set for me and the results are already showing. Oh and its so awesome to be able to eat more than the 1900 cals that MFP allotted me.
I'm not the least bit hungry.In closing I love this thing and I highly recommend it, especially for those who want something that will motivate them and be a great tool in helping to aid in your individual fitness goals. Of course it is a tool and you still have to make sure you put in the effort with your diet and exercise routine to get the maximum benefit.
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Replies
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Holy mackerel, I just got my Bodymedia LINK yesterday, and it is totally amazing! Everything that johnguitarman said is correct. The amount of data available is just mind-boggling! I'm using it with MFP and they work perfectly together.
I have had no problem using the software on my Windows 8 pc and my older HTC EVO 4G phone (which isn't officially supported). I emailed a simple question to Bodymedia via the website and got a personal answer (not an auto-reply) within 12 hours. Amazing customer support, so far.
Costco had the armband plus 12 months of membership for $99. I highly recommend this product for anyone who needs a little motivation. I bought mine as a little reward for my hard work!0 -
I got one a couple of years ago to help with some post op weight gain and ahve become addicted to the numbers. I also find it motivating whenI check my display device and see a low calorie burn--gotta get up and move!
And when I had foot surgery a little while ago, it helped me to not gain any weight even though I was in bed with my foot elevated 24/7 for 3 weeks. I could match my eating to my calorie burn exactly.0 -
Everything I've read on MFP about these things has made me want one, but I can't afford it.. the fact that you have to pay to see your info also turns me off of it. Does sound like a good device if you have the money for it.0
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I "had" always been "anti-" Bodymedia. Why? Paying a lot of money for a device and then having to pay a monthly subscription? No way! I had a Fitbit and liked it, but I never understood the "numbers" that were imported. (I still don't, even after reading posts about how it is supposed to work.) Anyhow, I decided to do some research into the Bodymedia LINK and figured what the heck! I first bought a used one on eBay for $60-ish and then saw a NEW one on eBay for $90-ish and a six month subscription, so I bought that one too. I charged the new one up and put it on. At first, I was confused because it automatically gave me a 2000 calorie burn. ?? (I was looking for things to NOT like about this.) Then I told myself to give it some time to let the device "read" me.
It's been a week now, and I *love* it! Seeing the numbers "live" on my Samsung Galaxy Reverb really motivates me to MOVE. I'm kind of lucky because at work, we have three buildings connected together by a winding hallway (kind of reminds me of a Stephen King movie because just when you think you are getting close to where you want to go, you turn a corner and it's just the same long hallway). It's a little more than 1/4 of a mile from one end to the other end. (3-1/2 trips and you've walked a mile.) I'll look at my phone and see that I've only walked 2000 steps. Hmmm... do I have to go to the bathroom? Can I make it from this end of the building to the other end to use THAT bathroom? (Thankfully there's also a set of bathrooms halfway, just in case.) I suppose that's probably not a HEALTHY challenge. LOL It's amazing how losing weight helps a person move. Last year, I would be out of breath by the halfway bathrooms - gasping. Now? I can easily make the short round trip jaunt and barely be breathing differently.
Anyhow, I agree that this device is a great motivator. I like seeing that check mark letting me know I've hit my target for calories burned and/or steps taken.
BTW, I wore my Fitbit one day along with the Bodymedia and the numbers were almost identical as far as steps and calories burned.0 -
My only trepidation is having to subscribe to a service just to use the device. My goals are not things that Bodymedia will quantify anyway.0
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Is there something the Bodymedia LINK does that the fitbit doesn't? I am trying to figure out what would make it worth the money. Also, how close are the numbers from approximating exercise calories earned on MFP to those on the Bodymedia? Thanks.0
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The only reason I chose Fitbit over Bodymedia is the required subscription for the latter.0
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The BM FIT links with your MFP for exercises, you really don't have to log calories burned if you use it. But you also just log your intake through MFP not through the FIT.
I got mine from Costco. It came with a 12 month free subscription. I just checked online and they don't seem to carry them anymore.
Honestly, it is a little pricey, but I love mine. I can dial in my 1000 calorie deficit easily every day based on my projected burn. Plus it shows me moderate activity vs. vigorous activity as well as extremely accurate sleep patterns.
The monthly subscription is lame I agree... but it's the same as paying for Netflix or 2 cups of coffee so really... it shouldn't be a reason not to get one. There are several other options out there but the FIT LINK had the best reviews.
Also JAWBONE just acquired BodyMedia so they will probably be coming out with some new hybrid model of the FIT LINK and the JAWBONE Up bracelet.0 -
Me too. I love my FitBit! I'm now getting mileage credit for all the time I put on my feet as a teacher. I am averaging 2 miles of walking every day M through F!! I've already earned my 50 miles badge, and I haven't had it for long.
I have the Fitbit One, because I wanted to monitor my sleep. I'm fascinated that I am waking up at night more than I realize, and always at nearly the exact same time. I'm the kind of person who wants to know WHY that time -- must be the light sleep phase.
Anyways, I love my FitBit One, and the info it gives me.0 -
Is there something the Bodymedia LINK does that the fitbit doesn't? I am trying to figure out what would make it worth the money. Also, how close are the numbers from approximating exercise calories earned on MFP to those on the Bodymedia? Thanks.
Bodymedia is a heart rate monitor. Fitbit is not - it's more like a glorified pedometer.0 -
I'm going to wait for an accurate heart rate monitor with useful features that doesn't require a subscription. It's bound to happen when some marketing team considers what they have to offer that Bodymedia doesn't.0
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Is there something the Bodymedia LINK does that the fitbit doesn't? I am trying to figure out what would make it worth the money. Also, how close are the numbers from approximating exercise calories earned on MFP to those on the Bodymedia? Thanks.
Bodymedia is a heart rate monitor. Fitbit is not - it's more like a glorified pedometer.
Bodymedia doesn't measure heart rate, although you can upload data from certain Garmin devices using the Garmin Communicator Plugin (although I don't know if it does anything with that data).0 -
Is there something the Bodymedia LINK does that the fitbit doesn't? I am trying to figure out what would make it worth the money. Also, how close are the numbers from approximating exercise calories earned on MFP to those on the Bodymedia? Thanks.
Bodymedia is a heart rate monitor. Fitbit is not - it's more like a glorified pedometer.
Bodymedia doesn't measure heart rate, although you can upload data from certain Garmin devices using the Garmin Communicator Plugin (although I don't know if it does anything with that data).
In that case, there's no reason for me to get a bodymedia instead of a fitbit.0 -
bodymedia is fantastic. it really reads your body's calorie expenditure, since it sits on your skin. the fitbit is a more of a fancy pedometer. both work, but its all abt the bodymedia for accuracy tailored to YOUR BODY.0
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bodymedia is fantastic. it really reads your body's calorie expenditure, since it sits on your skin. the fitbit is a more of a fancy pedometer. both work, but its all abt the bodymedia for accuracy tailored to YOUR BODY.
How does it do that better than the Fitbit? If it isn't an HRM, what makes it more specific?0 -
BodyMedia - totally cool tool. I've had mine for about 5 weeks and just being able to view the stats is a great motivator. Of course I love anything techy.0
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Been using Body media since Jan 2013. Dropped 77lbs. Keeps me motivated0
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Gotta tag this thread. I am very interested in these devices.0
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How does it do that better than the Fitbit? If it isn't an HRM, what makes it more specific?
It measures galvic skin response, skin temperature, and heat flux (in addition to the measurements taken by the accelerometer).
Edit: I love my BodyMedia Link. 0 -
Seems like a person's heart rate would be an important consideration for it to consider too. I wonder why they didn't design it to also monitor heart rate.0
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Ok so I had ordered the body media but returned it because I realized that it doesn't show it as you are working out so I ordered a polar ft7. That way I could see my calories as I am working out. So question. Should I use the polar for working out and the body media for the rest of the day?0
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Ok so I had ordered the body media but returned it because I realized that it doesn't show it as you are working out so I ordered a polar ft7. That way I could see my calories as I am working out. So question. Should I use the polar for working out and the body media for the rest of the day?
My BodyMedia Link shows me calories burned as I'm working out: providing I use the workout feature on it. When actually doing a workout I keep my armband on, but I also use my Garmin HRM.0 -
Seems like a person's heart rate would be an important consideration for it to consider too. I wonder why they didn't design it to also monitor heart rate.
I expect a chest band would be required for the most accurate readings, and I imagine that having a band wrapped around one's chest all day is pretty uncomfortable. My Garmin's chest-strap is almost unbearable after two hours.0 -
Thanks for taking the time to share your review - I'm going to buy one.0
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The BodyMedia CORE 2 coming out in August will have an optional heart rate monitor attachment.
I'm getting it. I've had the LINK since June of '12 and I would never do without it, and the CORE 2 is also waterproof so you don't have to take it off when showering and doing things where it'll get wet. Score!0 -
bump0
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Bumping for more info!0
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Great to see so many of you also have the Bodymedia fit Link and Core. I absolutely love it! It really is so inspiring to see your progress in real time(If you have the LiNK) and watch as your steps are taken and your calories burn in realtime taking off those pounds.
I have mine set up so it has me taking 10,000 steps a day. Thats 5 miles and about 500 calories burned right there a day. My plan is to do that 6 days a week getting in 30 miles a week! I have never ran anywhere close to that a week. Of course you dont have to run to get those steps. You could walk, do aerobics, Hiit training, zumba, hip hop abs, biggest loser dvds, Tae bo etc. Whatever floats your boat! Again its very motivating and gives you a visual cue to keep you motivated and reaching for your goals.
I was also initially turned off by subscribing but the way I look at is this. For $59 bucks for a year I have invested in my physical health and that will benefit me in the long run in more ways to count. This tool will help me to achieve my fitness goals, build a strong healthy heart, lose weight, get in shape, learn to overcome bad eating habits, feel better about my self, increase my stamina, my energy and so much more. I used to blow $59 bucks on about 3 days of fast food, junk food at the store etc and not think twice about it. Why should I think paying such a small price for something I am going to get so much out of stop me from bettering my health? Again it is just a tool. You have to put in the work and effort to meet your goals but this thing will be there to provide the plan, take the guesswork out of how many calories you should get in a day, provide motivation and visual feedback so you can achieve whatever goals you set for yourself.
Its really worth it in my opinion.0 -
Meh...forget it.
I'd rather my FitBit any day. I don't like the idea of having to pay a fortune for something & then pay to be able to look at what it's doing.0 -
Wait I just looked at it.
It measures your sweat amount & lets you know via that how active you are? I sweat in my sleep..... hardly active yet it would count that as active? What a joke that is. What about in summer? You can sweat doing nothing, it's going to think you are being very active.
Also detects how hard you are working? Really? I walk HEAPS. IF I walk slower, my arms still do the same movement, perhaps even a little more if I'm trying to stop my hands from swelling up by putting them up in the air, or even less when they are on the top of my head..... yet it will assume I'm working more or less even though I'm not...... then how's it going to count my steps if my hands are on my head? The band is on my arm that's no longer moving hahaa.
Wow, no wonder I love my Fitbit just that little more now. It does all that this one claims it can do & actually works better at doing it.0
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