Treadmill and Fitbit Charge

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Ryoku
Ryoku Posts: 35 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Does anyone have any experience using their fitbit charge on a treadmill? Is it going to count the steps or just the number of times I swing my arms? Do you find it accurate?

I've done a lot of searching for an answer before posting but can only find out info for the flex.

Any feedback would be appreciated!
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Replies

  • mandyarnie
    mandyarnie Posts: 2 Member
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    It tracks the swing of your arm that is why Im waiting for the charge HR (heart rate) I had the force fitbit. You can always log in the about of time exercise and calories burned into fitbit. If you can try not to hold onto the treadmill swing your arms normal like running outside. you burn more calories this way and it will be tracked. BYW I LOVE my fitbit and they are a awesome company that stand by the product. refunding me a full refund since my force came unglued a little and it is being recalled.
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    MFP has a Fitbit Users group: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users

    Since the Charge is brand-new, you won't find a whole lot of reviews for it yet. It's going to take some trial & error to make it work for you.

    I love my Flex, which is also worn on the wrist. I get "steps" in the shower, but I've maintained my loss for six months. Which means my Fitbit burn is 100% accurate.
  • Azexas
    Azexas Posts: 4,334 Member
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    I had just upgraded to the charge but I haven't had a chance to use it yet. When I used the flex on the treadmill and stairmaster it would pick up steps pretty accurately.
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    Ryoku wrote: »
    Does anyone have any experience using their fitbit charge on a treadmill? Is it going to count the steps or just the number of times I swing my arms? Do you find it accurate?

    I've done a lot of searching for an answer before posting but can only find out info for the flex.

    Any feedback would be appreciated!
    It should do fine. It uses the same technology as a Flex. If you hold the bars, it might not do fine. If you stand still and swing your arms, it might not do fine.

  • grundylady
    grundylady Posts: 19 Member
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    I used my charge on my treadmill today. I think it did well. I really did not hold on with my left hand much. Be for I started My charge read .37 miles. After, the treadmill said I walked 1.0something miles and my charge read as 1.34 miles So, pretty close, I'd say.
  • sheldonklein
    sheldonklein Posts: 854 Member
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    grundylady wrote: »
    I used my charge on my treadmill today. I think it did well. I really did not hold on with my left hand much. Be for I started My charge read .37 miles. After, the treadmill said I walked 1.0something miles and my charge read as 1.34 miles So, pretty close, I'd say.

    A 33% variance isn't close
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    You can calibrate your Fitbit: http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/How-do-I-measure-and-adjust-my-stride-length
  • WalkingAlong
    WalkingAlong Posts: 4,926 Member
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    sheldonklein wrote: »
    grundylady wrote: »
    I used my charge on my treadmill today. I think it did well. I really did not hold on with my left hand much. Be for I started My charge read .37 miles. After, the treadmill said I walked 1.0something miles and my charge read as 1.34 miles So, pretty close, I'd say.

    A 33% variance isn't close
    A mile on her treadmill equated to .97 miles on her Charge (1.34-.37). So 3% difference.

    The best way to test a Fitbit is to note the steps total then walk 100 steps you count out and see how many it advanced. Distance takes into account your stride length setting and/or any error in the treadmill's distance estimate.

  • sweetadelinas
    sweetadelinas Posts: 3 Member
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    I have the Charge HR and use it on a treadmill every day. It does count your steps, but I find it misses some...not a substantial amount, though.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    WalkingAlong wrote: »
    A mile on her treadmill equated to .97 miles on her Charge (1.34-.37). So 3% difference.

    I had to read it a couple of times to interpret what was said, as it did initia\lly read like a huge error.

    Compounding calibration errors on the dreadmill with read error on the device then they seem pretty close.

    But the best bet remains to go outside, do a measured mile walk and then calibrate.
  • gshifrin
    gshifrin Posts: 53 Member
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    Try putting it in your pocket.
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    gshifrin wrote: »
    Try putting it in your pocket.

    The Charge algorithm is designed for the device to be worn on the wrist. I once left my Fitbit Flex in my bag by accident. It tracked my steps—but way less accurately.
  • Ryoku
    Ryoku Posts: 35 Member
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    Thanks for the info guys. I used it last night and it seemed to work pretty well. Luckily I've been working on not holding on to the treadmill for a while so was able to do my whole workout without holding on.
  • littlehome1
    littlehome1 Posts: 9 Member
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    I have the fit bit charge l love it so far its pretty accurate for the most part but i only just got it for Xmas.
  • jimmykahn
    jimmykahn Posts: 1 Member
    edited April 2015
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    I just did some experimenting with my FitBit Charge while on the treadmill and I can say, definitively, that it does not track the swing of your arms. I had tried several times to count off the steps in my head and then look at my FitBit to see if it was accurate or not. I was finding that, in fact, it was not accurate at all. So I opened the FitBit app on my phone and watched it as I stepped. If I swung in my arms, as a normal person does, it counted far fewer steps than I was taking while, if I left my arms still at my sides, it seemed to count each step. I have the sensitivity set to "dominant hand" as that is the hand that I wear it on. I'm going to try and set it to the more sensitive setting and see if that makes a difference. Who knows? It might just be me.
  • mlopinski546
    mlopinski546 Posts: 1 Member
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    Is there a way to override the distance walked after charge hr tracked treadmill walk of 3.1miles at 2.35 miles?
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    mlopinski546 wrote: »
    Is there a way to override the distance walked after charge hr tracked treadmill walk of 3.1miles at 2.35 miles?

    You need to calibrate your stride length:
    http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/How-do-I-measure-and-adjust-my-stride-length
  • bcruz313
    bcruz313 Posts: 56 Member
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    sweetadelinas wrote: »
    I have the Charge HR and use it on a treadmill every day. It does count your steps, but I find it misses some...not a substantial amount, though.

    I'd have to agree. Before getting my Charge HR I had a Flex. While doing cardio on a machine or walking thru the grocery store for that matter, I'd just loop it thru my shoe and that worked well. That was at the suggestion of Fitbit customer service. Should work for Charge also.
  • editorgrrl
    editorgrrl Posts: 7,060 Member
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    The heart rate sensors in Charge HR only work when it's worn on your wrist. If you put it on your shoe (or in your pocket) you must turn off the HR. Otherwise, you'll get an inaccurate HR & burn.
  • LiveLoveRunFar
    LiveLoveRunFar Posts: 176 Member
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    I have a charge HR, it's pretty accurate on steps. I'm more interested in the calorie burn though than steps.

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