Is the Fitbit worth the money?

I have a fitbit, though it was a gift. I love the fact that it tracks my calorie burn all day, tracks what is referred to as "active minutes", sleep, etc etc. It's great for me, because it made me realize that there are days that I hardly move at all. I have a desk job and I have to push myself every day to get to 10,000 steps.

I wouldn't suggest it as a way to get started. I started and lost 10 lbs without it before it was given to me. It pushes my activity level over what it would normally be, but doesn't deter me from eating unhealthy, which is really my biggest battle.

At the end of the day, it's up to you. If you are driven by some competition and think it'll help you, then get it.

In a word, yes.

I have a FitBit One, and my favorite thing about it is that it gives me an accurate estimate of my TDEE (total number of calories burned in a day). If you sync your FitBit with MFP and make sure your info matches on both websites, you should use MFP ONLY for logging food. MFP's food database is much more comprehensive than FitBit's. Use the FitBit dashboard for an accurate estimate of how many calories you can eat that day.

MFP is quick to cut people down to 1200 calories, but lots of folks find that to be non-sustainable and quite miserable. If FitBit tells you that you've burned 1700 calories that day, you could eat 1500 and still lose, even though you'd be over your MFP recommended amount of 1200. Does that make sense? FitBit just gives you more detailed and accurate information about your calorie burns.

Personally, I don't know what I'd do without mine. I love it.

I have used the FB One for almost a year now and its been the best $100 I have spent losing weight ever. It has helped me figure out what my daily burn is which tells me how much I can eat eat day.

There is a FB user forum on here that you can join. Lots of great info. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/1307-fitbit-users

Also, FB is a great tool for step based activiteis but not so much for weight lifting or other activities that are not step based. I use a heart rate monitor for all of my exercise cals and the FB for the rest of the day. The more I move (usually more than 4000 steps) the more cals it gives me so I get to eat more. Love that!

When the FB and MFP are synced up they work great together.. I mostly only use MFP and rarely look at the FB app/website. This is because I can enter my fitness and food on MFP and it gets sent over to FB so I just use MFP. Some still use both though.

I think that you cant go wrong with the FB if you use it.

I got the Flex band over July 4th weekend...started walking daily in July (have not stopped). Sold the Flex and bought the Force in November as I wanted to see the numbers at a glance (I find they motivate me to get off my lazy behind) as well as the watch feature and I wanted the band version as I know me and I know I'd forget to attach the Zip or One etc and for sure I'd wash it.

When I got the Flex I was very close to dropping 100 lbs so for me yes, it was worth the money as it motivated me to move more and I'm not really a competitive type person but hated to see my Fitbit buddies get more steps than I did, lol

I also signed up with other sites that give me goodies for using the Fitbit (everymove, achievemint, walgreens, projectweightloss etc).

YMMV but me for, it was so worth it.

It's not nagging in any way at all! I love my FitBit One. It doesn't make any noise and it is tiny. It fits in my bra and comes with a very comfortable, thin, flat-against-the-skin wrist strap for sleep (because it also tracks your sleep if you want it to but I wanna know what I burn during sleep). If you are someone who is good at noticing your habits and enjoy having things illustrated for you, I say go for it! I've hooked mine up to MFP and the combination of the two gives me a pretty good picture of what I'm eating and how it affects my personal daily goals. And having it track my moving activity helps me focus. I've actually enjoyed hitting the gym just to see the results on the screen, the scale, the tape measure and the mirror. It's not for every one. But it was really the thing that made my journey real. I was so in the dark previously that I didn't pay attention. Not any more. And if I ever stop wearing it, I've learned what my daily calorie and exercise goals look like so I know that I will be able to pay attention with out the help.

I've only had mine for a week but I can tell that the fitbit is what's going to trim the final 8 lbs from my body. **Especially** if you're a numbers person, the fitbit is just....fun! As long as you've accurately inputted all your info, you'll get tons of data to play with.

The only downside is that MFP / Fitbit integration is a bit wonky. It can take a few days to figure out how to use both in a way that works for you.

That said, if you do get one, add me! https://www.fitbit.com/user/2GW9XM

PS to clarify: the fitbit doesn't nag you. In fact, it's the opposite: it rewards you with cute, unobtrusive buzzes and flashes of light throughout the day as you meet your goals.

I had the fitbit one and then bought the flex. Having a daily goal has helped motivate me to walk a lot. Also having friends and family to compete with drives me.

I bought myself a FitBit One with a voucher I had from a fun-run I'd entered. It's small, subtle and unobtrusive. No-one knows I've it on and I wear it throughout my day.

I've only been using it for the last 2.5 weeks, but I absolutely love it! I live in a third floor walk-up, with laundry room on the ground floor, so when I have to do my washing or carry up groceries, it's multiple trips, and I've been curious about how many stairs I do! :happy: I'm a numbers and data person, so I really, really like seeing all the stats, like stairs as I said above. Plus I work in a school, so I wanted someway to actually figure out my activity level. Am I sedentary or lightly active (like MFP suggests)?

The advantage I see to having a FitBit as opposed to a HRM is that as Fitbit is an all day tracker, it will track all those incidental activities that 'just happen'. For instance, those times when you bust out into a dance because there's a funky song on the radio, or when you jog in place as you wash the dishes (Universe knows where I picked up that habit from!) or so on. FitBit acknowledges that I've been more active, and keeps track of that for those 5-6 minutes.

I absolutely think the FitBit is worth it, and I'm really glad I saved my voucher to get it. If you are a numbers and data person, I think there is almost no shortage of things to keep you motivated and active.

I had the force but returned it due to recall. Now I have got the One. Superb motivational tool! Highly recommended! I also use the Polar RCX5 with HRM to track my calorie expenditure during workouts. It gives me a much better idea about my calories in versus out.
Stef.

I think it could be a good tool to help you estimate your daily burn. I personally don't use it. I have the "moves" free app on my phone to count steps for me and I don't have trouble sleeping. For me buying one is not justified based on my needs. Until something comes out that automatically counts the calories I eat, I'm good. For you, it may be worth the money! Many people seem to like it and feel motivated by it. Do you know anyone in real life who uses it? Best way to judge would be to take a closer look at it, see how it works and what it does. Try it on to see how it feels etc..

Bought the flex yesterday XD

I love mine, it's really helped me to understand how many calories I burn a day, and in turn how much I can eat & still lose.

Thank you All for the great info.on the Fitbit. I am going to go buy one today

You have to log other exercises, which you can do on the fitbit website. As far as estimating calories accurately, I don't know. It seemed to match rather closely with estimates I found on other website. Fitbit also has a phone app to sync with your bluetooth phone, but it's not as in depth as their website. It will give you the basic info on your steps, calories burned, sleep activity, etc, but you get a lot more detail on their website.

YES YES YES. it is worth it. I got mine June 2013 and I never realized how little I was moving 2-3 k on weekends and maybe 5k at work now I'm aware of how much I move. I am a numbers person so I'm trying to better the previous days steps or the week before. I have the zip and have lost it but customer service replaced it for me make sure you keep your receipt. In the time I didn't have my zip I felt so lost

I love mine and never regretted the purchase.