Heart Rate Monitor or Fitbit?

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PoliticalRN
PoliticalRN Posts: 112 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I want to buy a good tool that I can use to monitor my calories burned regardless of the activity I'm doing. I have a very good Pedometer that tells me fat and calories burned, distance walked and what part of the walk was cardio but it doesn't recognize when I ascend stairs or climb hills and won't calculate if I'm strength training. Okay, the tool doesn't have to do all that but I need everything minus the strength training calorie burned. Any experience out there? Thanks in advance!

Replies

  • t2kburl
    t2kburl Posts: 123 Member
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    I have the Fitbit and I love it for all the reasons you mentioned.
  • caraiselite
    caraiselite Posts: 2,631 Member
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    i have both. fitbit for daily stuff and hrm for workouts.
  • mlashay
    mlashay Posts: 166 Member
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    i have both. fitbit for daily stuff and hrm for workouts.

    ^This. I use my FitBit for daily use and to keep active even when I don't have a good workout in.
    And HRM for run, strength training and rigorous activity.
  • ExplorinLauren
    ExplorinLauren Posts: 991 Member
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    HRM. If you already have a pedometer ... than you pretty much already have a FitBit... bc its just a fancy pedometer lol... Yes it calculates stairs... *as in flights of stairs* but sometimes it doesn't read that. (Sometimes I walk up 6 flights of stairs by noon, but it is only counting 3-4 of them... Not always, but sometimes it works this way) I like having a Fitbit dont get me wrong... But if you want something more accurate, and already have a pedometer.. I say go with the HRM.
  • awdamm
    awdamm Posts: 375 Member
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    i have both. fitbit for daily stuff and hrm for workouts.

    ^This. I use my FitBit for daily use and to keep active even when I don't have a good workout in.
    And HRM for run, strength training and rigorous activity.

    what these cats said! i have both and use both! fitbit wear it all day long have it synced to add automatically and if i use my HRM i track that myself
  • fbuschur
    fbuschur Posts: 57
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    I have both. I almost never use my HRM. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE my fitbit. It gives me a better overall picture of my day. I can go running, but if I spend the rest of the day sitting around, what's the point? With FitBit, I can see the real picture. It isn't perfect but I feel like the calorie adjustment it gives me is fairly accurate, the mileage is off if I run but I use GPS to track that on NikePlus so I don't mind too much.

    Also - they seem pricey for what it is, but their customer support is great. My first one quit on me and they sent a replacement super fast and were really nice about it.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
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    My Fitbit broke on day 2 and, yes, they sent a replacement ASAP, but they're terrible quality. So many stories of them breaking. I'd just get a HRM and log workouts with it. MFP is pretty accurate with the rest as long as you're honest about your lifestyle (not everyone is sedentary).
  • mdj1501
    mdj1501 Posts: 392 Member
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    I have the Fitbit and I love it for all the reasons you mentioned.

    ^^^DITTO
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
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    i have both. fitbit for daily stuff and hrm for workouts.

    Yup. I do this too. I think using both gives me the best idea of calories burned.
  • Lisha_R
    Lisha_R Posts: 92 Member
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    I got my polar HRM for workouts (cardio, weight training and classes). Now I am getting a fitbit to encourage me to keep my activity up during the day. I read it encourages you to increase your activity. That is not a bad thing. Anything is better than what I was doing before deciding to loose weight.
  • Chipmunk222
    Chipmunk222 Posts: 240 Member
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    I have both, if I run the fitbit is not accurate on steps which makes me wonder if it's accurate for walking steps, I don't use it for calories, that's why I have a heart rate monitor, but they are both useful in their own way. I do believe the fitbit keeps me accountable for my 10000 steps a day. I don't see how the fitbit can be as accurate as a heart rate monitor since it doesn't use your heart rate to figure calories burned, if it was able to measure heart rate they would use it as a selling point and it would display this on the screen. Also, the fitbit isn't waterproof and my Polar Ft 7 is, as long as you don't push buttons while underwater.
  • hvpooly
    hvpooly Posts: 39
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    I love my fitbit and the fact that it syncs with MFP. It allows me to see how active I am in a day and set goals to make myself more active. It also allowed me to see just how little I moved to begin with. I'm definitely burning more calories since I got my fitbit. I do plan on getting a HRM in the future though, mainly to help more with workouts since I don't trust the burn estimates the MFP gives me.
  • PoliticalRN
    PoliticalRN Posts: 112 Member
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    Thanks everybody for your input. I finally made my decision to order the Polar FT7 HRM. I came to this decision based on the fact that I currently have a very good pedometer that does everything that Fitbit does except detecting stairs. I will let you all know how I like my Polar. I haven't totally ruled out the Fitbit but I have to pace my purchases! :wink:
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    i have both. fitbit for daily stuff and hrm for workouts.

    This ^^^^ They are used for different things.
  • kimmieyr1
    kimmieyr1 Posts: 189
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    HRM. If you already have a pedometer ... than you pretty much already have a FitBit... bc its just a fancy pedometer lol... Yes it calculates stairs... *as in flights of stairs* but sometimes it doesn't read that. (Sometimes I walk up 6 flights of stairs by noon, but it is only counting 3-4 of them... Not always, but sometimes it works this way) I like having a Fitbit dont get me wrong... But if you want something more accurate, and already have a pedometer.. I say go with the HRM.

    i agree with this. Fitbit is a over rated pedometer. I do like it and wear it daily but it does what a pedometer does. Also what others are saying on quality is true. Mine broke day one. They replaced it but I wonder how long this one will last. I will get an HRM when I can afford one.
  • PoliticalRN
    PoliticalRN Posts: 112 Member
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    I received my Polar FT7 HRM yesterday and I couldn't wait to use it today since I got it late in the evening after I already worked out and showered. Otherwise I would have worked out again! So, I did my Tae Bo T3 and it showed me how long I was in the zone, how much calorie I burned, how much fat burned, average HR and highest HR. I will tell you one thing for sure. The data base with the information on how much you burn given certain activities is waaaay over stated. :embarassed: Now I know why I wasn't losing as much weight as I though I would be. I've been crediting myself more calories burned that I actually was!!!!:explode: Now that I have my HRM I will be able to accurately log my exercises! For those who workout and totally trust the data bases, I would recommend you to take another look. Thanks everyone for your input on this thread!:smile:
  • HardmanP
    HardmanP Posts: 44 Member
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    I have had my polar FT7 for a few weeks now, and I LOVE mine.. I see you love yours already.. I don't know what I would do with out it..
  • danimal5867
    danimal5867 Posts: 390
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    Nothing beats a good HRM. I only use mine for cardio workouts, but in my opinion, there's just no replacing it for knowing my calorie burn. I do a lot of running and walking as well as using cardio machines at my gym. I always wear my monitor for these activities. I also do some resistance training, but nothing is going to give a truly accurate calorie number for weight lifting so I no longer log it.
  • FireRox21
    FireRox21 Posts: 424 Member
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    I received my Polar FT7 HRM yesterday and I couldn't wait to use it today since I got it late in the evening after I already worked out and showered. Otherwise I would have worked out again! So, I did my Tae Bo T3 and it showed me how long I was in the zone, how much calorie I burned, how much fat burned, average HR and highest HR. I will tell you one thing for sure. The data base with the information on how much you burn given certain activities is waaaay over stated. :embarassed: Now I know why I wasn't losing as much weight as I though I would be. I've been crediting myself more calories burned that I actually was!!!!:explode: Now that I have my HRM I will be able to accurately log my exercises! For those who workout and totally trust the data bases, I would recommend you to take another look. Thanks everyone for your input on this thread!:smile:

    This is why I never work out without my HRM. The MFP database tells me that I burn over 1000 calories for certain workouts when I really have only burned closer to 500!!!

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