Do you use a wearable pedometer?

I just have a fit bit zip - it links to computer or smart phone and to here. easy, simple and just right for me

The key question is, what are you hoping to gain from it?

I'd also ask whether you have friends/ family that use them?

FitBit have huge brand recognition, and a lot of market penetration. The technology is adequate, if a bit mediocre, and they have a high failure rate but very good customer service that has traditionally replaced defect units without issue. The social platform is good.

Garmin make a limited range of low end fitness trackers as most of their market are active sportspersons. The technology is better but the social platform much more limited. If you're into challenges then these are probably less attractive.

Polar make decent technology but interoperability is questionable.

If you have friends/ family and you want to interact, then find out what they have and follow the herd.

Personally, unless you run or cycle, don't worry about devices with built in Heart Rate. It's meaningless for most people, most of the time.

I have a free app downloaded to my phone so when I go for a walk it's a pedometer. Not sure if its less accurate than a pedometer but it's free!

rcrough wrote: »

MeanderingMammal wrote: »

The key question is, what are you hoping to gain from it?

I'd also ask whether you have friends/ family that use them?

FitBit have huge brand recognition, and a lot of market penetration. The technology is adequate, if a bit mediocre, and they have a high failure rate but very good customer service that has traditionally replaced defect units without issue. The social platform is good.

Garmin make a limited range of low end fitness trackers as most of their market are active sportspersons. The technology is better but the social platform much more limited. If you're into challenges then these are probably less attractive.

Polar make decent technology but interoperability is questionable.

If you have friends/ family and you want to interact, then find out what they have and follow the herd.

Personally, unless you run or cycle, don't worry about devices with built in Heart Rate. It's meaningless for most people, most of the time.

The high failure rate is concerning. I did have a fitbit when they first came out and the strap broke almost immediately.

Fitbit has somewhat addressed that failure issue - all their wrist trackers, except the Surge, now have straps that can be swapped out. You can get replacements through the Fitbit website or elsewhere, like Amazon and Ebay. So, rather than having to spend $100+ on a new tracker if the strap breaks after a year, you can spend much less on a band/strap and get more life out of the Fitbit.

I had a Flex and recently upgraded to the Blaze because I wanted notifications for everything, not just calls and texts. I likely would have gone with the Charge 2 otherwise since I prefer the horizontal display. The alta looks nice, but I don't think I would like the vertical display as much!

~Lyssa

Nadine_A_Saad wrote: »

The best feature you wanna look for are steps, calories, and heart rate. You want these so you can track your heart rate during your work out and after.

Steps - all activity trackers will give you steps. Most will translate that to distance. Look for one that allows you to tweak for your stride distance. Trackers use average (for your height) stride lengths for your distance.

Calories - this is a guesstimate based on your height, weight, age, gender and activity level. Other important factors that can mess with this guesstimate are wrist vs. clip on; heart rate monitor (see below) or not. This is not a factor for most types of exercise.

Heart rate monitor (HRM) - this is useful if you are measuring steady state cardio (not walking, not strength training, not yoga, not circuit training, etc). This is going to be more accurate if the unit comes with a separate chest trap for heart rate. Wrist only jobs aren't that accurate.

I have a FitBit One - it works well for me because my cardio is step based. I do wish it had a nagging feature. I like that it clips onto my bra because it won't count steps when I'm driving, but it will count steps when I'm holding onto a shopping cart. If I were a swimmer or a cyclist this model would be a poor choice.

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users

I've had several clip Fitbits that I really liked and now use an Apple Watch. I don't have any experience with the watch band Fitbits but I have a friend who loves her Surge.

If you are looking for something with advanced features, durable, water proof, and has all day heart rate monitoring, you can check out the Garmin vivoactive HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/538374

If you want something even more advanced, you can check out the Garmin fenix3 HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/545480

fitbits are great devices too, but not as durable, and none of them are water proof.

Within the next 2 or 3 months there will be many new devices coming out to check out, so you may want to wait and see what they are. I am hoping fitbit comes out with a more advanced device that is water proof and has a good GPS with GLONASS.

I have a garmin. Originally, i wanted a fitbit because it was the most recognizable brand but through talking to the staff at best buy, Garmin fit my needs. I have the Garmin vivosmart hr and love it. It syncs with myfitnesspal, connects with phone, gives my messages, tracks progress, sleep and most importantly - is waterproof! Yes i can swim, shower, snorkel. Price is lower too.
Good luck on your search and hope this has been helpful.

WalkingDeadFrank wrote: »

bcalvanese wrote: »

If you are looking for something with advanced features, durable, water proof, and has all day heart rate monitoring, you can check out the Garmin vivoactive HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/538374

If you want something even more advanced, you can check out the Garmin fenix3 HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/545480

fitbits are great devices too, but not as durable, and none of them are water proof.

Within the next 2 or 3 months there will be many new devices coming out to check out, so you may want to wait and see what they are. I am hoping fitbit comes out with a more advanced device that is water proof and has a good GPS with GLONASS.

Agreed...Garmin Vivoactive Hr is a great fitness watch.

It has gps, waterproof, active HR throughout the day including the option to use a chest strap during your activities if you want better accuracy. Only watch with that feature in the same price range is a polar but they do not have an active HR and I'm not sure if has a gps either.

I had a Fitbit 2 and Blaze and took them back.

I have the fenix3 HR. Probably their most advanced sports watch, but I wanted something that can grow with me as I get more advanced with my fitness.

I also have a Suunto Ambit3 Peak, and a Polar V800.

I have a fitbit i wear pretty much 24/7. I have both the fitbit blaze, and a fitbit 1. I also have a polar m400 that i sometimes wear.

mimiyoyo1 wrote: »

bcalvanese wrote: »

If you are looking for something with advanced features, durable, water proof, and has all day heart rate monitoring, you can check out the Garmin vivoactive HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/538374

If you want something even more advanced, you can check out the Garmin fenix3 HR.

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/545480

fitbits are great devices too, but not as durable, and none of them are water proof.

Within the next 2 or 3 months there will be many new devices coming out to check out, so you may want to wait and see what they are. I am hoping fitbit comes out with a more advanced device that is water proof and has a good GPS with GLONASS.

Agree. I have the Vivoactive HR and love it. It has a native GPS, so you don't have to rely on your phone for that. It's great for outdoor activities. I use it for running, hiking, and mountain biking. Long battery life. You can customize it by downloading apps and widgets. It's a high quality device and syncs up well with MFP.

Agreed...IMO it's the best watch for its price.

I have a Samsung Gear Fit 2 and really like it. Two things set it apart from most others in the same arena: One is that you can download songs to it (like 4 G memory built in, plus it has Spotify embedded if you use that app); the other is that it has a built-in GPS. Both of those mean I don't need to have my phone with me to listen to music while on a machine or track/map my walks/bike rides.

The biggest drawback is that the associated app (S-Health) does NOT synch with MFP. Hopefully, it will soon, but at this point it does not. I think there are workarounds, but so far I really don't care. I actually like the S-Health app, and I'm not tracking my food as diligently as I was when I was in losing mode (now I'm in maintenance).

I REALLY like this Gear Fit 2. You get an HR monitor (not that big of a deal to me though), texts/phone/other notifications (you choose which), with short automatic replies you can send from your watch; music, GPS, health "nudges" when you're inactive; sleep monitor (which I didn't think I'd care about, but now love!); and pretty much everything else the others have.