Fitbit Alta and tracking steps and just weight loss general?

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SleepyEquus
SleepyEquus Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello everyone, I am new to the Fitbit world and well semi new to myfitnesspal. I am posting this as I need a little help and some questions answered and well idk if I am in the right area. I am wondering if anyone else has the Fitbit Alta and if they are seeing accurate results with weight loss and tracking? I ask because I just purchased mine and well when connected to the app itself, I noticed when I moved my arm up and down away from my phone...it marked it as a step :/. Also am having difficulty with it syncing with MFP, won't bring over my exercise or steps taken. I have tried a charge HR as well and sadly my wrist broke out in a rash and itched...so no go. I am looking for something semi accurate and not super bulky to track my workouts and fitness. I do have a Mio go and well I hate how hard it is to sync and just try to be social with it as MFP doesn't sync with it. So I use that for more intense workouts like swimming laps and taking long jogs or hiking or just throw on my HRM strap and use my watch. As you can tell I am all about having something track something ha ha. I have tried jawbone up and really love there app, but after the jawbone up3 did a belly up and HRM has no word in site for that releasing I gave up and returned it. I've tried the blaze with Fitbit as well and same issue as Charge HR :( rash and itching. So what have you used that has helped you track semi accurate and loose the weight!?

Replies

  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
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    My opinion: wrist trackers will pick up some arm movement as false steps. I have the Fitbit One, and it attaches my pocket/waist/bra so does not count arm movement. But I do notice it does not start tracking until I've taken a few steps. The Alta may have a similar feature? Where it needs a little bit of activity to get it going - if so, then it would not register just any random arm movement.

    If you think its counting extra steps: then don't eat all the calorie adjustment. Leave 100-150 'on the table' to account for the false steps.

    The One gave me an idea of how active I was - or in my case was not. It also gave me a way to monitor my own progress. Regardless of extra steps, you can use your average to challenge yourself. Such as if this week you average 7500 'steps' then set a goal next week to hit 8k per day. It will mean you moving more to hit it - and each week reassess your activity goals.

    Personally my One is fairly accurate I believe. But I don't know that the Alta has been out long enough for many to have data on it.
  • mabearof6
    mabearof6 Posts: 684 Member
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    I had someobe explain to me that a fitbit is an activity tracker so it's not unusual for it pick up movements that aren't steps. I actually wear mine on my ankle for this reason though. Otherwise I was gaining steps while I was driving.
  • caitlyn30
    caitlyn30 Posts: 207 Member
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    Make sure you have it set right whether you are left handed or right on the Fitbit site
  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    I have a Garmin Vivfit 2. I am very happy with it and it doesn't log arm movements as steps. The only issue I ever encounter is grocery shopping steps are not logged if you rest your hands on the shopping cart. My Vivofit 2 has been hugely instrumental in helping me lose weight. I am down 48 pounds and truly believe it has made a big difference. It was quite reasonable priced and it is water proof, it logs my sleep and usually syncs with Myfitnesspal. Garmin Connect software is less than stellar but I still feel it was worth every penny.
  • melissa6771
    melissa6771 Posts: 894 Member
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    I have the jawbone up3, I love it! Four of my friends have gotten it too. What didn't you like about it? I find mine fairly accurate as far as steps, sleep, etc. I did just see the garmin vivosmart hr is going on a one day sale at Sam's this weekend.
  • Tara4boys
    Tara4boys Posts: 515 Member
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    No tracker is 100%. I have the Alta. It occasionally picks up arm movements but not enough for me to worry about it. It doesn't track them when I'm in shower and getting ready in morning and when I'm charging it. It all balances out. I just look at the bigger picture.

    I wear mine on my non dominate wrist but tell Alta that it is my dominate hand. It will record less arm movements if it thinks that it is your dominate hand.
  • jtcedinburgh
    jtcedinburgh Posts: 117 Member
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    I find that the Fitbit Charge HR I use does occasionally get a bit confused. Today, it over-recorded the number of flights of stairs I apparently took (by a factor of 2) but this is the worst mistake it has made in the 3 months I've had it. I did forget to remove it whilst hammering in a post one weekend, and it categorised that work as 'elliptical' and gave me major calorie kudos, though! I have found that the HR occasionally under-records steps, and definitely under-calculates distance by around 10%. All of this based on a bit of experimentation and doubling up with GPS (Strava) when doing walks/runs...
  • jtcedinburgh
    jtcedinburgh Posts: 117 Member
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    Oh yeah, and MFP app synchronisation is flaky. I know it's MFP and not the Fitbit app (as I can verify that the data's in the cloud based on the Fitbit website). However, 99% of the time it eventually figures it out...
  • MudRunChica
    MudRunChica Posts: 24 Member
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    Tara4boys wrote: »
    I wear mine on my non dominate wrist but tell Alta that it is my dominate hand. It will record less arm movements if it thinks that it is your dominate hand.

    I think this is key. I've had a One, Flex, Charge HR, and now a Blaze. I love Fitbit! I've always worn it on my non-dominant wrist and had it set to dominant just in case. I'd say they've all been fairly accurate this way.
  • HardyGirl4Ever
    HardyGirl4Ever Posts: 1,017 Member
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    When you had the Charge HR, did you consistently clean it with the products and methods they suggest in the instructions? That is supposed to prevent the rashes from happening.
    I have the Charge HR right now. I have been considering getting the Alta, but now I'm a little worried if it will count more steps than I actually take. The Charge HR has me climbing 16 flights of stairs when I haven't done any.
    Apparently MFP is having problems with the syncing of fitbit info right now. I saw many posts about it and wrote to them yesterday. They told me it was something they are working on fixing and said that it should be fixed soon, then thanked me for my patience.
  • SleepyEquus
    SleepyEquus Posts: 6 Member
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    Thanks for the replies! I've had this for a few days now and I must admit I really like it :). It's very sleek looking and half the time I forget I am wearing it, because it's so comfy. Also love the little fireworks display it does on the screen when you hit 10,000 steps :). It's very motivating and encouraging to keep me up and doing something. At this point in my journey, I believe this little treasure is worth the price!
  • jtcedinburgh
    jtcedinburgh Posts: 117 Member
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    HardyGirl4Ever wrote: »
    When you had the Charge HR, did you consistently clean it with the products and methods they suggest in the instructions?
    If I've been sweating (say, after a run) I take the HR off, wet a facecloth, wring it out until it's just damp, and wipe the HR down. I then dry it using a dry part of the facecloth. Seems to work for me, and I've had no problems. Though I have nipped my skin a few times due to the lousy plastic strap...

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