Fit Bit?? A good tool??

stestut
stestut Posts: 42
in Health and Weight Loss
Do you use fit bit? Which product do you use? Is it accurate? Is it something you can't live without?? It's pretty pricey so I'd love to get some input before deciding.

Thanks so much for your good, bad and ugly...

Sandi
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Replies

  • Amy106Days
    Amy106Days Posts: 172 Member
    Bump, I keep seeing people mention them but would like more info
  • rekite2000
    rekite2000 Posts: 218 Member
    I really like mine. I just bought it last week ( fit bit one). Definitly motivates me to walk more and I tend to go up and down my stairs a lot more. I like the information it gives me. It appears to be accurate. It is neat to see the sleep info too. Will I always wear it, I think so, but I tend to get bored with things!
  • mrscruz625
    mrscruz625 Posts: 59 Member
    I have the fitbit one. I love it. It encourages me to get up and move more. A few friends have them too and we have friendly compitions with each other. I walk around the house to get my steps up, park further away when going to the stores and walk up and down the stairs more. I bought mine on home shopping club where they have flex pay. (not a credit card) so I paid 25 bucks a month for 4 months.
    It synchs with MFP. Shows you the calories you are burning all day. Shows you how well you sleep at night..I haven't found one negative thing about it!! LOVE the fit bit!!
  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
    I've been using mine for about 6 months and I love it. I don't know if it's accurate and I know it's not necessary, but it's very fun and motivating.
  • L8dyJ
    L8dyJ Posts: 103 Member
    I have a FitBit One and I loooove it! It is so motivating and it keeps you on track. It forces you to challenge yourself to meet your goals. It also sends you weekly reports on your progress. Great
  • ckbabs
    ckbabs Posts: 3 Member
    I would love to know if you have any recommendations on which one is best and how exactly they work. Tricky to upload data?
  • c2hrist3a
    c2hrist3a Posts: 67 Member
    I just got my fitbit one this week too and I love it.

    It's not hard to use, no tricks to download the program, you plug in the little usb thing (I'm a tech idiot) and it auto detects everything, auto imports your information.

    It's a good tool. I don't like how it interfaces with MyFitnessPal, so I use myfitnesspal for the calorie consumption end of it and my fitbit for the calorie expediture end of my process.
  • stestut
    stestut Posts: 42
    I have the fitbit one. I love it. It encourages me to get up and move more. A few friends have them too and we have friendly compitions with each other. I walk around the house to get my steps up, park further away when going to the stores and walk up and down the stairs more. I bought mine on home shopping club where they have flex pay. (not a credit card) so I paid 25 bucks a month for 4 months.
    It synchs with MFP. Shows you the calories you are burning all day. Shows you how well you sleep at night..I haven't found one negative thing about it!! LOVE the fit bit!!

    Great!! Thank you for the info!!!
  • Sigmatam
    Sigmatam Posts: 5
    I have the fitbit ultra (older version) and I love it. It motivates me to get up and walk more even at work. The downside, I don't consistently use it.
  • peepsqueek
    peepsqueek Posts: 54 Member
    I have the Fitbit one and love it :) I have had it since January and never leave home without it. I do not use the food database that fitbit provides because I find MFP is much more accurate and a wider range of foods. I find this little tool keeps me motivated and its a fun and friendly competition with others on the fitbit site :)
  • dlyeates
    dlyeates Posts: 875 Member
    I have a Body Media arm band and love it. It tracks steps, exercise, calories burned, and sleep. I also like how it can't be left on a pair of pants and thrown in the wash (I had a friend do that to 2 of hers). I don't even realize I'm wearing it now it's so much a part of me. I take it off to go swimming or take a shower and that's it!!
  • clemsontiger78
    clemsontiger78 Posts: 19 Member
    I love mine! I had a fitbit ultra since September and loved to track how much I have walked over times. I washed mine....x3 and it finally stopped working (The first two times I threw it in a bag of rice and it worked again) When I emailed fitbit for a solution the third time, they offered to sell me a new fitbit one at less than half price, even though I was the boneheaded idiot that washed it. Their customer service is top notch and I really missed not having one while it shipped. It came yesterday and I am a happy woman again.
  • ohmygod45
    ohmygod45 Posts: 21 Member
    Hi, I have had my fit bit ultra since February, it is like having a personal trainer! I actually went to work and forgot it today! I was beside myself. Would highly recommend getting one!
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
    So the Fit Bit tracks steps and stairs? Or does it track overall activity?
  • mnms0802
    mnms0802 Posts: 4
    I have also been looking into the FitBit= so glad to see others give their opinion on them! I was also looking at the Weight Watchers "Active Link" but for me, the big turn off on that is that they want you to pay a $5.00 per month subscription to use it. I think that paying for it to begin with should be enough, and then if I stop the monthly subscription, it is of no use to me. So I think I will go with the FitBit. I have heard great reviews on them!! Thanks :)
  • determined_erin
    determined_erin Posts: 571 Member
    I love BodyMedia. It's similar to FitBit, but you wear it on your arm. It is more accurate with scientific measurements, versus the FitBit using Wii controller technology.

    The BodyMedia armband tracks steps, calories burned, calories consumed (can sync with MyFitnessPal), moderate vs vigorous activity, amount of sleep vs just laying in bed, weight loss progress, etc. Here is a demo of the statistics you would get: http://www.bodymedia.com/Products/Learn-More/How-it-works .

    The first week I got BodyMedia, I lost 7 lbs. It really, really opened my eyes to what I needed to do better and motivated me to exercise. I use MyFitnessPal for tracking food and BodyMedia for tracking exercise and sleep.
  • walkee
    walkee Posts: 29 Member
    FitBitter in the house!! I really enjoy my fitbit. I started out with fitbit ultra until it died... I mourned :cry: over it a couple of weeks then decided to purchase Fitbit One :smile: . It's addicting to press forward to reach your goal or EXCEED it! I give it a thumbs up for purchase.
  • stestut
    stestut Posts: 42
    I love mine! I had a fitbit ultra since September and loved to track how much I have walked over times. I washed mine....x3 and it finally stopped working (The first two times I threw it in a bag of rice and it worked again) When I emailed fitbit for a solution the third time, they offered to sell me a new fitbit one at less than half price, even though I was the boneheaded idiot that washed it. Their customer service is top notch and I really missed not having one while it shipped. It came yesterday and I am a happy woman again.

    Great Info!! Thank you!!
  • stestut
    stestut Posts: 42
    You all are awesome!! Thanks for all the info!!! It sounds like I need to grab one then start a little friendly competition between us all! :happy:

    Looking forward to reading more replies and learning more about it.

    Thank you!!!
  • Gordo1981
    Gordo1981 Posts: 59 Member
    I got a fitbit last month. I wear it, I like that I can leave my MFP on sedentary when making goals, then each evening when the fitbit syncs up I usually get a credit for the walking that I do during the day. This allows me to have a little evening treat.

    It is a tool, don't buy one because they are nifty gadgets. It can be a way to tack some energy expendatures in your life. It will not capture everything. I am not sure everyone who gets one will wear it in a years time, or if they do how motivating it will be, but I am enjoying mine for right now.
  • mzteebell
    mzteebell Posts: 44 Member
    I've had the Ultra and now the One. My fitbit is like my phone, can't leave home without it.
  • fadedimage
    fadedimage Posts: 22 Member
    Personally, hated it. I had the FitBit One and when comparing it to the BodyMedia LINK, the BodyMedia was much more accurate.

    For example, when riding the bike for one hour at the gym, I burned approximately 350 calories. BodyMedia LINK said 399 calories and FitBit said 96 calories. There's obviously a huge discrepancy.

    The same can be said of tracking sleep. The FitBit said I received only 4 hours of dedicated sleep whereas the BodyMedia LINK said I got around 6 hours (which is more accurate) of dedicated sleep (i.e. actually sleeping, not moving around, laying down, etc). I got rid of the FitBit One for this reason -- it wasn't accurate enough for me.

    Someone else mentioned FitBit counting stairs. While that's true, it doesn't differentiate between climbing stairs (in which you will burn more calories) as opposed to going down stairs (in which you would burn less). The BodyMedia knows a little better since it's actually taking data on your body itself through the sensor rather than just clipped to your belt/pants.
  • AlyssaJoJo
    AlyssaJoJo Posts: 449 Member
    I love love love mine. It's just something to keep you going through out your day! After having mine for a little bit my SO loved it so much he went and bought one. And a month later my bestie also bought one. I'd suggest it to anyone and everyone
  • WaxMama
    WaxMama Posts: 369 Member
    I was holding out for the FitBit Flex, but they never gave a release date. I got tired of waiting so I picked up the Jawbone Up fitness band and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it! I wear it all the time, even in the shower. It tracks activity and sleep and it has a silent alarm that wakes you by vibrating. I would highly recommend it!
  • aszwarc
    aszwarc Posts: 200 Member
    So the Fit Bit tracks steps and stairs? Or does it track overall activity?
    It tracks steps and stairs. For overall activity, you'll need something like the BodyMedia.


    I have a FitBit Zip, which doesn't have the stair or sleep tracking capability, so it's essentially a pedometer. But I like that I can see an accurate step count (my old mechanical pedometer was a piece of garbage), get some data tracking online, and sync it to a couple of sites I use that reward for steps/activity.
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    Do you use fit bit? Which product do you use? Is it accurate? Is it something you can't live without?? It's pretty pricey so I'd love to get some input before deciding.

    Thanks so much for your good, bad and ugly...

    Sandi

    Hi Sandi,

    I LOVE my Fitbit and can't imagine living without it. I never thought of it as "pricy" -- I guess that something I use all day and all night every day that gives me reams of data about my sleep and activity via a free website with robust charts/graphs and allows me to know precisely how many calories I am burning seems pretty reasonable at $99. That's just 27 cents a day for a year.

    Also, I see the difference that it makes in my behavior. Since Dec. 2012, I can see that my activity levels have steadily increased each month. I take the stairs at work now rather than the elevator. I walk more. I climb more stairs. I get more sleep. Just like SEEING my calories via MFP has allowed me to control them, so SEEING my activity via Fitbit has allowed me to optimize it.

    Now, I'm not saying that Fitbit is better than the competitors. I've only used Fitbit. Fitbit only tracks non-workout activity. But I think that the BodyMedia FIT tracks non-workout activity and sleep PLUS workout activity too. So with the Fitbit, you need a separate heart rate monitor like a Polar to track your workouts, but I believe that the BodyMedia Fit combines both. But I'm not sure if it gives the same data and charts as Fitbit.

    Whichever you choose, I highly recommend a tracker. Both Fitbit and BodyMedia Fit sync with MFP. I love how my Fitbit dials my diary calorie goal up and down based on my activity. And the sleep tracking is important. Sleep has a huge impact on weight gain and weight loss.

    ~~Betty
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
    So the Fit Bit tracks steps and stairs? Or does it track overall activity?
    It tracks steps and stairs. For overall activity, you'll need something like the BodyMedia.


    I have a FitBit Zip, which doesn't have the stair or sleep tracking capability, so it's essentially a pedometer. But I like that I can see an accurate step count (my old mechanical pedometer was a piece of garbage), get some data tracking online, and sync it to a couple of sites I use that reward for steps/activity.

    Thanks for the reply.
  • Bettyeditor
    Bettyeditor Posts: 327 Member
    I would love to know if you have any recommendations on which one is best and how exactly they work. Tricky to upload data?

    I have a Fitbit One and it talks back and forth all day with MFP and my data is uploaded automagically. Easy as pie! Here's how it works: If you have a compatible device like an iPhone 5/4S or iPad, etc. then it sync via bluetooth with your Fitbit. If not, you can get a dongle (small USB plug). I got a couple dongles for work and home. Whenever I'm within 20-40 feet of a computer with a dongle, it syncs automatically.

    I also have the Fitbit ARIA, which is a digital scale that also calculated bodyfat %. This is so important so that when the scale doesn't move, I can see if I am gaining muscle. Also, I can make sure that as I lose, I'm losing fat not muscle. So important to monitor bodyfat %! Also, Fitbit uses my BF% to calculate my BMR so that the calorie burn it displays for me is extra-accurate.

    Best part about the Aria: I step on it and it automatically sends my data via Wi-Fi to my computer. So all I do is wear my Fitbit and step on the scale once a week. Fitbit automatically recalculates my BMR every time it gets new weight/BF% data. Fitbit exchanges data automatically all day long with MFP so that my burn is accurate and my diary calorie goal is based on my activity levels. Even when I log a workout in MFP, because I enter the start time and duration of the workout, Fitbit can get that data and calorie burn from MFP and adjust it's data to replace that period of time in its data with the workout calories. All my devices work together to support my health/fitness goals and it all happens so automatically! It's an amazing system!
  • STrooper
    STrooper Posts: 659 Member
    I have had mine for 10 months (the older, discontinued ultra). Is it accurate? Yes, it does a remarkable job of counting steps and I like the equivalent floors function of the altimter (which only accumulates increases in increments of 10 feet when you are moving. I have not had any difficulty with "extra steps" from riding in a car or on the bus.

    Like any pedometer, you've got to set your stride distance.

    It can get a little confused by moving quickly up and down steps and it assumes that you are "running" and will apply the running stride to those quicker steps. Zip doesn't track stair flights.

    Fitbit and MFP calculate calorie allowance differently but end up in the same place at the end of the day. I use MFP for food logging and allow Fitbit to correct back calorie addition due to energy expenditure. And if you name the food listing the same in both Fitbit and MFP, what you enter in MFP (as the summation of a meal or snack) ends up over in Fitbit so that it can use the data as well.

    You are welcome to see my data at: http://www.fitbit.com/user/23BVQ9

    The sleep function is approximate based upon body movement and the algorithm it uses to figure time awake/asleep. It isn't available on the Zip.

    The unit automatically updates every 15 minutes when it gets within about 15 feet of the base station. The new ultra allows you to buy multiple dongles so that you can update at home and office. If you have the newer i-Phones w/ Bluetooth 4 and some Android phones (also with a compliant version of BT4), the new version will sync directly through the phone.

    The "zip" and "one" are water resistant. the old ultra isn't really very water tolerant. But you shouldn't wash them (quite a common problem).

    I may eventually replace my ultra with a one, but I've been very happy with mine. Note the combination of accuate tracking and food intake took off the last 20 pounds.
  • purple_power61
    purple_power61 Posts: 59 Member
    How is it different from the average pedometer?

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