Is FitBit Worth It?

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hannahk328
hannahk328 Posts: 8
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello all,

I've recently come back to the site and am looking to lose 50 pounds (I'm 5'4" and 180 and want to be around 130). I was contemplating investing the money into a FitBit or something similar, and I was wondering if it really is worth the money. I figure I have a substantial amount to lose, so I'm on the fence if it's really something that will make my weight loss and fitness journey easier to manage.

So those of you have one of these fitness trackers, I would love your thoughts on how they've helped you!

Replies

  • mhuser
    mhuser Posts: 1 Member
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    I love to see the numbers of steps each day and it does motivate ME to get up to 10000 but you still have to do the work (or steps) yourself. Nobody else will do it (or can do it) for YOU!
  • shelltherunner
    shelltherunner Posts: 33 Member
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    It depends on how you use it. The Fitbit does not make you loose weight but it can be a powerful tool in your arsenal. I bought mine on New Years and I challenge myself to walk 10K steps. It helps keep me motivated to move more. I feel it gives me a more realistic view how how much or little I move. I have the Flex which also can monitor you sleep. Some people don't care about this but how much sleep you get and the quality of the sleep you get influence weight loss. For that reason, I find it a useful tool to monitor my sleep patterns.

    I also synced my fitbit to my fitness pal and enabled negative adjustments. This also helps to motivate me to move. When I see that I have calories taken away from my target, I get up an move so I can have them back!
  • Alissakae
    Alissakae Posts: 317 Member
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    Everybody is different - but I get a lot of motivation from my FitBit. I just have the Zip, which is really small and discreet to wear. I enjoy meeting my goals and the encouraging little messages and graphics on my phone and the website. Since getting the FitBit I have increased my daily activity and it seems to have helped me bust a long plateau. Good luck!
  • hannah_ryann
    hannah_ryann Posts: 259 Member
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    As a proud owner of the fitbit flex since Christmas of 2013, I say yes. I had lost about 40 pounds in 11 months previously, and I was pretty close to my goal weight of 50 pounds lost. Since I started using my fitbit, I've lost an additional 9 pounds over the course of 3 months and I'm now 1 pound away from my goal weight. Fitbit is great for the non-exercise minutes in my life, which, let's be honest, accounts for about 95% of my daily activity. It's motivated me to move more throughout the day. I now take walks on my breaks from work and walk around my apartment while I chat on the phone to my mom, sis, boyfriend, whomever. The minutes add up and it's amazing how much just being aware can help you increase your movement throughout the day. I'm a firm believer in the fitbit, or any pedometer for that matter. It just so happens that fitbit has a great user interface and syncs with MFP. <3 All the best.
  • JohnInBrooklyn
    JohnInBrooklyn Posts: 10 Member
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    I had a motivational issue - had to lose weight, but between being busy at work and at home with the kids, couldn't find the time to work out.

    Fitbit is only part of the puzzle, but IMO it's a huge part. It's not going to spur on a ton of weight loss by itself, but it'll be helpful for behavior modification. Their dashboard is helpful to get a quick read on how active you are during the day (general activities, if not your workouts). I recently found MyFitnessPal, and the two are a match made in heaven. I check in with the Fitbit several times a day to make sure I'm moving around enough (I have a desk job, and it has definitely made me more aware of when I need to get up and take a few steps). I plug in all my food to myfp, and the sync between the two sites gives me a good read on how well I'm doing on the day.

    On days when I have off and I know I'll probably end up eating less carefully, I know to up my activity levels to at least partially offset the damage.

    Last thing about Fitbit - the company really is remarkable when it comes to customer service. I lost my first one and bought a second. When the second was lost (tip: don't use their belt clip!), I wrote to ask if there was any way if they could track down the device. Because they saw that the sync had stopped, they offered to send me a replacement for free. Less than three days later, I had my replacement in hand. I was impressed enough to add an Aria to the mix. Granted, the scale is a bit pricey and only offers a quick time savings over a normal bodyfat scale (it reports your data to your account at fitbit.com), together I can get a quick glimpse on how I'm doing every day.

    I liked the Fitbit so much I put down some money on a new, similar motion device called Moov, which is still in pre-order phase. I'm loving these things in conjunction with a smartphone, for being able to tell me exactly how lazy I've been and to get off my a**.
  • redwoodkestrel
    redwoodkestrel Posts: 339 Member
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    I love my Fitbit Zip. When I first got it 2 months ago, I was making 2000-3000 steps a day as my usual routine. Seeing that number on the Fitbit motivated me to get up and walk more - I've now logged 30+ days over 10,000 steps - usually closer to 12-15K.

    It's really motivational, plus I love all the great graphs they give you to track your progress. And it syncs with MFP, making it easy to create a full diet/exercise profile.
  • pteryndactyl
    pteryndactyl Posts: 303 Member
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    When I first got my FitBit One, I found it very motivating. I challenged myself to get at least 10,000 steps per day and often I would try to "beat" the previous day's steps. It also helps me keep track of when I have some reallllllly lazy days and only get 2,000-3,000 steps, so I know to make an effort to walk/exercise in the days after.

    However, after a few months it was easier to ~ignore~ my challenge of getting 10,000 steps, etc. but I would also like to blame that on 0* weather leaving me (without a gym membership) walking laps in WalMart to get my steps in. That can get tiring after a while. That's not really the FitBit's fault but I will say that its motivation factor can decrease.

    With all that being said, when I lost mine last week (fell out of my kayak and my FitBit decided to go for a swim!) I bought another one immediately. So...I'd say it's still worth it.
  • PrettyPearl88
    PrettyPearl88 Posts: 368 Member
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    Hello all,

    I've recently come back to the site and am looking to lose 50 pounds (I'm 5'4" and 180 and want to be around 130). I was contemplating investing the money into a FitBit or something similar, and I was wondering if it really is worth the money. I figure I have a substantial amount to lose, so I'm on the fence if it's really something that will make my weight loss and fitness journey easier to manage.

    So those of you have one of these fitness trackers, I would love your thoughts on how they've helped you!

    Hey girl! I'm also 5'4" and when I started, I was 180 with a goal of 120-130. I'm now 125, so trust me when I say that you can do this too!

    I got a Fitbit One for Christmas in 2012. At that time, I had already lost most of the weight and was around 140. That was a little over a year ago and since then, my Fitbit has motivated me to lose 15 more pounds! I really wish I had gotten a Fitbit from the very beginning because not only is it a great motivation to move more, but it also helped me worry and fret less. I no longer have to worry "Am I really doing this right?" or "Am I starting to gain weight again?" or "Should I cut down more and eat only 1000 calories per day?" Because I can actually SEE my progress now. I can see my steps, stairs, and calorie counts each day, along with how much I'm eating, over the last several months on nice little charts. (My Fitbit One also tracks my sleep, which has been helpful for me because I have trouble sleeping well.) I feel like I'm in control of my weight and my health for the first time in my life, instead it controlling me. I know what to do to lose weight (eat less and move more) and I can easily keep track of my movement and activity now!

    My Fitbit has helped me live out a healthy life and build healthy habits! Yes, it's expensive. (The Fitbit One is $100, but the Fitbit Zip is more moderately priced at $60, I think.) But in my opinion, IT'S WORTH IT! You can always ask for it as a birthday/holiday gift if you don't want to pay for it yourself. But I DEFINITELY RECOMMEND IT!
  • JourneyingJessica
    JourneyingJessica Posts: 261 Member
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    I love my fitbit but exercise is only part of it. 80% of weight loss is calorie counting and eating at a deficit.
  • mike_ny
    mike_ny Posts: 351 Member
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    It's worth every penny to me. Devices that keep track of your movement and calorie burn are great for automatically keeping track and updating the info. They may not be totally accurate, but they allow you to set a baseline for your activity level and aim to increase it daily and weekly. Counting food intake is hard enough. Letting the fitbit count your steps and basal metabolism calories means you only have to estimate and log additional workouts.

    I accidentally ran mine through the wash and ruined it about a month in. I ordered another one with priority shipping because I was making real progress and getting real results from it and as much as I hated to shell out another hundred bucks, I figured many people spend a lot more than that on a regular basis for weight loss efforts.

    I doubt I would have been able to lose the weight I did and get to my target range without it helping me to keep active every day and to dynamically adjust my calorie intake based on the activity level for each day. When your activity lags it's a choice to either eat less or get more active to keep on track.

    In the end, though, it's only a tool. You have to want to put in the effort and make it happen. The tools just make measuring your steps and activity easier.
  • katekross
    katekross Posts: 463 Member
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    Bump for later :)
  • codycsweet
    codycsweet Posts: 1,019 Member
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    YES I got mine June 2013 and it motivates me to move more I was only doing 2-3k on the weekends before and maybe 5-6k on the weekdays now I get 12k. I love love love mine and won't go anywhere without my zip v
  • airangel59
    airangel59 Posts: 1,887 Member
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    YMMV but I'm a couch (recliner) potato and I got my Flex on July 4th weekend...pretty much started walking and haven't stopped yet. Got the Force in Nov (yes I know there is a voluntary recall on it) and I strive to hit at least 10K steps daily...walking between 3-5 miles a day (also tracked via RunKeeper).

    I got my Fitbit when I was very close to hitting the 100 lbs lost mark...thought walking would help get the rest of the weight off, lol. Combination of course of moving more and eating less got me to goal range this weekend. I love the Fitbit and find it very motivational, as I work from home (computer desk job) and have to really force self to move, seeing the #s change on my wrist does it for me.

    I also enjoy the perks connecting it to other websites for cash, prizes, discounts etc.
  • codycsweet
    codycsweet Posts: 1,019 Member
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    It's worth every penny to me. Devices that keep track of your movement and calorie burn are great for automatically keeping track and updating the info. They may not be totally accurate, but they allow you to set a baseline for your activity level and aim to increase it daily and weekly. Counting food intake is hard enough. Letting the fitbit count your steps and basal metabolism calories means you only have to estimate and log additional workouts.

    I accidentally ran mine through the wash and ruined it about a month in. I ordered another one with priority shipping because I was making real progress and getting real results from it and as much as I hated to shell out another hundred bucks, I figured many people spend a lot more than that on a regular basis for weight loss efforts.

    I doubt I would have been able to lose the weight I did and get to my target range without it helping me to keep active every day and to dynamically adjust my calorie intake based on the activity level for each day. When your activity lags it's a choice to either eat less or get more active to keep on track.

    In the end, though, it's only a tool. You have to want to put in the effort and make it happen. The tools just make measuring your steps and activity easier.

    FYI. If anything happens to ur Fitbit whether u lose t, wash it, etc contact customer service they may replace it for you. They did for me I lost my tracker when I was out running errands and they sent me a new one.
    Edit keep ur receipt.
  • andiechick
    andiechick Posts: 916 Member
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    I just got my Fitbit Flex in January and love it as it helps to motivate me. I am on my feet a lot already throughout the day and was surprised at how easy I can reach 10000 steps however I have a few friends on the community side of it and there's a bit of healthy competition to see who can be top. This pushes me on the days when I can't do any additional exercise. I'm also interested in the sleep pattern side of it and its encouraging me to go to bed earlier knowing I can check my quality of sleep.

    Anyone on the community can add me - //www.fitbit.com/user/2CG7HB :drinker:

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