fitbit vs heart rate monitor

I love my fitbit because I can get a realistic estimate of how many calories I'm burning in a non-workout capacity. I would feel ridiculous logging 20 min of walking or so on a work day because that's how much I estimated I would spend up and about. Especially when it would tell me I burned some ridiculous amount when I felt I haven't. That said, I bought a HRM but I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to use it. I like my fitbit also because it gives me a fairly modest estimate of calories burned, and I'd always rather overlog food and underlog exercise than the opposite!

I have a Polar FT7 and LOVE it. Was shocked at my actual calories burned vs. the estimates on the machines and the apps I use. Much easier to keep track of calories.

That said, I want to get a fitbit soon, because I want to see what I'm burning at rest, and how active I am when I'm not 'working out'. And the fitbit plus has a sleep cycle thingy on it too, I think.

So really, I don't think they 'compare' easily. They are for two separate things.

I'm not sure what you mean by burning at rest. The FitBit will not give you that info. It basically converts your activity level (based on steps/ rate) into calories burned using weight... if you are not active or resting, there is no data.

I have both; the Fitbit One, which I've had for two months, and a Polar FT7, which I have adored for the almost two years I've had it. Both of them are well worth the money.

I wear the Fitbit all the time, except when showering. Mine has a sleep tracker on it, but after a couple weeks I stopped using that feature. In fact, I wish I had saved the extra money and just got a Fitbit Zip, it's $30 cheaper and does everything the One does, other than tracking sleep and flights of stairs (the stair feature is wildly inaccurate, at least mine is, and it doesn't factor into calories burned or anything, so it's just for your own information).

I really like the Fitbit because it lets me know how many calories I am burning on any given day based on how active I am. I work a pretty active job, so on those days it gives me extra calories to eat, and on days when I am lazy and sit around all day, it takes calories away! This is in contrast to an HRM, which you cannot wear all day and expect to see a realistic estimation of your calories burned. Heart-rate monitors are meant to be used during an exercise session, when you will be elevating your heart-rate for a period of time.

I wear my Fitbit all the time, it syncs automatically with MFP and my iPhone, which is nice. I use my HRM when I work out, and I enter that into MFP and it syncs up with the Fitbit. You can also enter your food on the Fitbit website, but I prefer MFP for that.

Bottom line, both of them are very useful tools, I highly recommend. If you absolutely have to choose, I would go with the HRM.

I have a Polar FT7 and LOVE it. Was shocked at my actual calories burned vs. the estimates on the machines and the apps I use. Much easier to keep track of calories.

That said, I want to get a fitbit soon, because I want to see what I'm burning at rest, and how active I am when I'm not 'working out'. And the fitbit plus has a sleep cycle thingy on it too, I think.

So really, I don't think they 'compare' easily. They are for two separate things.

I'm not sure what you mean by burning at rest. The FitBit will not give you that info. It basically converts your activity level (based on steps/ rate) into calories burned using weight... if you are not active or resting, there is no data.

The Fitbit does give you data when you are at rest. As you know, your body is constantly burning calories just by operating. So if you are sitting around all day, the Fitbit knows you are at rest and calculates your calories accordingly. It resets every night at midnight, and in the morning it will tell you that you've already burned several hundred calories. This is part of the reason why it's more accurate than a general estimation of how many calories you burn every day.

I have a Polar FT7 and LOVE it. Was shocked at my actual calories burned vs. the estimates on the machines and the apps I use. Much easier to keep track of calories.

That said, I want to get a fitbit soon, because I want to see what I'm burning at rest, and how active I am when I'm not 'working out'. And the fitbit plus has a sleep cycle thingy on it too, I think.

So really, I don't think they 'compare' easily. They are for two separate things.

I'm not sure what you mean by burning at rest. The FitBit will not give you that info. It basically converts your activity level (based on steps/ rate) into calories burned using weight... if you are not active or resting, there is no data.

The Fitbit does give you data when you are at rest. As you know, your body is constantly burning calories just by operating. So if you are sitting around all day, the Fitbit knows you are at rest and calculates your calories accordingly. It resets every night at midnight, and in the morning it will tell you that you've already burned several hundred calories. This is part of the reason why it's more accurate than a general estimation of how many calories you burn every day.

^^^^this! ^^^^

I use an FT60 to manage my workouts and love the way it helps me manage my workouts.

I used to use a fitbit, but had a hard time getting accurate readings. It kept thinking my bus rides to work were walking, and left me with very exaggerated step counts, floors climbed and calories burned. I actually gained some weight using it, by thinking I was burning more calories that I actually was. There is no way to "pause" it, so for me it just didn't work out..