Is having a fitbit or something similar worth it?

Thanks for asking this as I have been wondering too. I see different types are mentioned. Is there one that is better then the other? Can you see your progress on the wristband or do you just go by the lights. I saw a reference to a Jawbone - that one seems to track food too. Wondering if anyone has any experience with that one?

The Fitbit One has a digital display; you can customize it to show any or all of:
- steps taken
- miles traveled
- calories burned
- flights of stairs ascended
- progress toward an "active score" goal

The Fitbit Flex just shows the progress toward the active score goal, in 20% increments, and doesn't track flights of stairs.

I wore a Jawbone UP band for a month or so before I got my Fitbit. I got the Fitbit because the UP band broke. I think I flexed it too much trying to make it snug on my wrist. Whatever the reason, I didn't want to throw more money away on something that failed so quickly on me, so I switched.

The UP band does not "track food." The app that comes with the UP band allows you to enter foods in a daily diary -- no different from the Fitbit app or MFP, except the UP app allows you to take and store photos of your food, a feature I don't really grok. The UP band can be configured to signal you when you've reached your step goal, but aside from that it doesn't give any feedback until you plug it into the headphone jack of your smartphone/device to sync. That's right -- no Bluetooth syncing, and an iOS or Android device is required. The form factor is a bit odd too; it snags on pretty much anything long-sleeved and it will probably get overflexed at some point because of the way you put it on and take it off. And it's 30% more expensive than either the Fitbit One or the Fitbit Flex.

The UP band app is nice -- it's useful, attractive, friendly, and informative. Its sleep tracking interface is the nicest I've seen. In fact, its sleep-related feature set is quite good. MFP is better for food tracking unless you just really like taking pictures of your food.

Bottom line, FWIW -- When my UP band broke, I bought a Fitbit One. When I lost my Fitbit One... I bought another Fitbit One.

I love mine. I like the fact you can download the Fitbit app to your phone, and it will periodically update on its own when you have bluetooth enabled, keeping your calorie burn and step counter as up to date as possible. It offers weekly reports and a helpful "dashboard" to keep tabs on your steps, calories burned, distance traveled and how many minutes you've spent active that day. BUY IT! You wont be sorry!

Honestly, I've gone back and forth with getting a HRM for years, and most recently a fitbit....

Im probably the odd man out, but I don't really see a practical application for these gadgets unless you have a medical need to monitor your HR..

Sure, its neat to have access to the information that HRM and fitbits provide, but at the end of the day neither one will really do anything to help you achieve fitness or weight loss goals, and in a year, or two years time your new gadget will either be broken or sitting in a drawer unused.

Id rather hang onto my money and use it for something else, such as a piece of exercise equipment or something..

I like my FitBit One, I don't love it. The data is interesting but I won't attribute a single pound lost to having it. I'll keep on using it but I wouldn't replace it if I lost it.

Though it monitors sleep, I halfway suspect I'm actually losing sleep from the distraction of wearing the device. I notice if I wake up in the middle of the night, I fidget with it some.

I've been toying with the idea of getting a fitbit or something similar to replace my pedometer. Does anyone here use one? Do you think it is worth the cost?

I started with the zip and graduated to the One. I love it. I have a dongle on my computer at work and home so it updates all day. I can keep track of how much I walk and it motivates me to do more. I paid the extra $50 for the Fitbit premium website to get the trainer. It basically ups your activity level every week to get you moving more, doing more and feeling better.

I have a FitBit, and have been using it since last Christmas-ish. I wear it 24 hours a day (except when showering!) It motivates me to move more, and helps me adjust on days when, for whatever reason, I'm less active.

For those with FitBit's - just FYI they have AMAZING customer service. I flushed my first One down the toilet about a week after getting it (it came out of the holder and fell in as it was flushing!) and they replaced it FREE OF CHARGE. I have also washed it in the washing machine at least twice, and it still worked afterwards.

LOL