Peoples opinions on buying Fitbit or not????
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I have a Garmin and I love it. I was able to get mine at Best Buy on sale for around 70 dollars. The downside is it does not track everything that you do unless your arm is moving. When I do My Shape on the x-box360 it does not work to track, but you can add it manual at the website and this is what I do.
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WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »I started MFP almost 4 years ago and didn't have a FitBit at the time, I was largely sedentary then. I was logging calories and using MFP estimates for exercise burned when I did any, and was losing weight. After about 6 months I got a FitBit Flex and was pleasantly surprised to learn that through my efforts to become more active I was averaging 10k steps/day and having the confidence of syncing the two tools together made me more comfortable eating back the exercise adjustments. I used that to lose the remainder of my weight and am now successfully maintaining fairly effortlessly because I trust the numbers and know that the total calories burned on my FitBit is what I need to not exceed. It has also demonstrated that it's possible to be a petite female over 40 with a relatively high TDEE (2200 for me) and that you don't have to be destined to eating 1200 cals to lose weight.
I upgraded to the ChargeHR about 6 months ago and like it really well even though I don't heavily rely on the HR measurements. The challenges are fun but not something I really rely on. For me the biggest selling point of these is a reasonably accurate estimate of your TDEE, for me that is much more reliable than what I got from various calculators.
Could you tell me how it works out an accurate tdee please. I am thinking of getting one for this reason but trying to understand how it works
I don't know the science or math behind it if that's what you are asking. You enter your stats (height/weight/gender/age) and then as you wear it all day and it measures your steps (and some measure heart rate) it estimates a total calories burned which is comparable to a TDEE. I trust a device that I'm wearing that knows with some reasonable precision, what my movement is like, compared to a static website estimating it from averages.
For me the FitBit number has been accurate enough that I was able to lose weight on the schedule I wanted and am now maintaining My weight for consecutive years eating up to the calories it says I burn.
Hope that helps.
Sorry to bug you again, I have just been looking at these online and I want one that has a face on it that you tap to see calories burned etc. But not all the Fitbit have a face and some just have a light that shows up. Which one do you have ? And if you don't have the one with a tappable face do you have to log onto your iPhone/computer to see all of this information.
No problem. I have the Charge HR which does have the display on the face. Previously I had the Flex which did not. Regardless of whether it has the display on your wrist, the dashboard accessed from the phone or computer is where you would go to see the averages over time like total cals burned.
There is also a FitBit users group here on MFP and I think there are probably threads with reviews of the different models of you want some additional testimonials.
Where would I find the Fitbit user group? Also does the Fitbit sync with the MFP? Last question I promice1 -
thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »I started MFP almost 4 years ago and didn't have a FitBit at the time, I was largely sedentary then. I was logging calories and using MFP estimates for exercise burned when I did any, and was losing weight. After about 6 months I got a FitBit Flex and was pleasantly surprised to learn that through my efforts to become more active I was averaging 10k steps/day and having the confidence of syncing the two tools together made me more comfortable eating back the exercise adjustments. I used that to lose the remainder of my weight and am now successfully maintaining fairly effortlessly because I trust the numbers and know that the total calories burned on my FitBit is what I need to not exceed. It has also demonstrated that it's possible to be a petite female over 40 with a relatively high TDEE (2200 for me) and that you don't have to be destined to eating 1200 cals to lose weight.
I upgraded to the ChargeHR about 6 months ago and like it really well even though I don't heavily rely on the HR measurements. The challenges are fun but not something I really rely on. For me the biggest selling point of these is a reasonably accurate estimate of your TDEE, for me that is much more reliable than what I got from various calculators.
Could you tell me how it works out an accurate tdee please. I am thinking of getting one for this reason but trying to understand how it works
I don't know the science or math behind it if that's what you are asking. You enter your stats (height/weight/gender/age) and then as you wear it all day and it measures your steps (and some measure heart rate) it estimates a total calories burned which is comparable to a TDEE. I trust a device that I'm wearing that knows with some reasonable precision, what my movement is like, compared to a static website estimating it from averages.
For me the FitBit number has been accurate enough that I was able to lose weight on the schedule I wanted and am now maintaining My weight for consecutive years eating up to the calories it says I burn.
Hope that helps.
Sorry to bug you again, I have just been looking at these online and I want one that has a face on it that you tap to see calories burned etc. But not all the Fitbit have a face and some just have a light that shows up. Which one do you have ? And if you don't have the one with a tappable face do you have to log onto your iPhone/computer to see all of this information.
No problem. I have the Charge HR which does have the display on the face. Previously I had the Flex which did not. Regardless of whether it has the display on your wrist, the dashboard accessed from the phone or computer is where you would go to see the averages over time like total cals burned.
There is also a FitBit users group here on MFP and I think there are probably threads with reviews of the different models of you want some additional testimonials.
Where would I find the Fitbit user group? Also does the Fitbit sync with the MFP? Last question I promice
Sorry I'm on my phone so I can't post a link, someone might be able to share one. If you go into the forum main page there should be something called Groups, and FitBit Users is probably one of the top ones (has a FitBit logo).
Yes it syncs with MFP and works quite well.2 -
JoyMaillet wrote: »I have never met someone who owns a fit bit who is more fit than they would be if they did not own one. So unless you just like the way they look as an accessory or a cool bracelet save your money
I have only heard a handful of stories of people who didnt love their fitbit o_O Who the hell are you hanging around with. People who dont love their fitbit seem to be the ones who wasted money on their fitbit right off start of a diet they didnt bother to stick to.
Anyway i love mine. It makes me move SO much more.6 -
I was not sure if I would utilize a Fitbit or not. So I searched and found one on a resale site for $25.00. I absolutely love it! I will be upgrading soon to a current version. I wanted to be sure before I was out a lot of money. It is a great tracking tool on how much I move. I thought I was more active than I really was. The tracker helped me to realize, I needed to get up and move more often. Great tool to have in my opinion.1
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There was a study published late last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association out of the University of Pittsburgh. It took 470 people ages 18-35 and put a fitness tracker on 1/2 of them (this wasn't a modern tracker - it went on the upper arm). The other half (control group) got diet and exercise info, like the study group, but no tracker. Results - the control group lost 13 lbs by end of study compared to 7.7 lb average from study group. They are not sure why this is - lots of ideas. Expect more studies. Take away - use the tracker, but only as part of your strategy. Don't get too wrapped up in it. Diet and portion size is more important. Good luck.1
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Hortonhearswhos wrote: »There was a study published late last year in the Journal of the American Medical Association out of the University of Pittsburgh. It took 470 people ages 18-35 and put a fitness tracker on 1/2 of them (this wasn't a modern tracker - it went on the upper arm). The other half (control group) got diet and exercise info, like the study group, but no tracker. Results - the control group lost 13 lbs by end of study compared to 7.7 lb average from study group. They are not sure why this is - lots of ideas. Expect more studies. Take away - use the tracker, but only as part of your strategy. Don't get too wrapped up in it. Diet and portion size is more important. Good luck.
I question if you've read the thread.
None of us think the tracker is the be all and end all and is going to make us magically lose weight.
All of us are well aware of the fact that creating a calorie deficit is what enables weight loss.
Reasons listed in the thread for liking fitness trackers have been motivation to move more and determining TDEE so that users know the appropriate amount of calories to eat to achieve their goals.
I haven't seen anyone say they relied on their tracker to make them lose weight.
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I have the Charge 2, which does in fact measure Heart Rate - It's the HR just updated. I've never had an issue with steps being tracked without moving (it wouldn't even register walking in place unless I actively bounced from foot to foot). It's a kitschy gadget and honestly I'm just a competitive freak who loves seeing the little circles turn green at the end of the day because nobody else is going to give me a pat on the back for my hard work. The little reminders to move each hour help a lot, even if it's just to walk to the bathroom at work since I'm mostly deskbound. I used to have the Flex but I wanted an HRM and something with a clock on the face because I cant wear my watch and fitbit at the same time.4
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I've had one for a year now and I love it. The challenges really marinate me to get up and move. The sleep minor portion of it is nice as well since I do have trouble sleeping it lets me know how restless I was. And it is a lot more accurate than using my phone to calculate steps. Fitbit users can feel free to add me.1
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I've had one for a year now and I love it. The challenges really marinate me to get up and move. The sleep minor portion of it is nice as well since I do have trouble sleeping it lets me know how restless I was. And it is a lot more accurate than using my phone to calculate steps. Fitbit users can feel free to add me.
I wish my fitbit marinaded me! hah2 -
JaydedMiss wrote: »JoyMaillet wrote: »I have never met someone who owns a fit bit who is more fit than they would be if they did not own one. So unless you just like the way they look as an accessory or a cool bracelet save your money
I have only heard a handful of stories of people who didnt love their fitbit o_O Who the hell are you hanging around with. People who dont love their fitbit seem to be the ones who wasted money on their fitbit right off start of a diet they didnt bother to stick to.
Anyway i love mine. It makes me move SO much more.
Not everyone who doesn't swoon over Fitbit is a diet failure. I think they are overhyped and inaccurate.1 -
Youse people got some fancy schmancy technocrisy. My fitbit counts steps (and supposedly calories and distance) and that's pretty much it. It's basically an expensive pedometer that doesn't accidentally reset itself and fall in the toilet when it comes unclipped. Actually, that's what I was looking for when I bought it several years ago - a reliable, durable pedometer. I clip it to my waistband or bra strap so no one knows about it. I like it. It provides information that I can use in whatever way I see fit.1
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I have the FitBit Charge HR, and I adore it! The challenges keep me moving throughout the day and the heart rate monitor keeps better track of the calories I burn during weight training/other non-step based activities.1
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I had a FitBit Zip and changing the battery got too expensive, then I purchased a FitBit One and it stopped accurately counting my steps after a couple years. Currently I wear a Polar M400; it's more accurate, can be paired with a HRM (and other stuff), and has a GPS for tracking where you went during your workouts.1
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thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »thielke2015 wrote: »WinoGelato wrote: »I started MFP almost 4 years ago and didn't have a FitBit at the time, I was largely sedentary then. I was logging calories and using MFP estimates for exercise burned when I did any, and was losing weight. After about 6 months I got a FitBit Flex and was pleasantly surprised to learn that through my efforts to become more active I was averaging 10k steps/day and having the confidence of syncing the two tools together made me more comfortable eating back the exercise adjustments. I used that to lose the remainder of my weight and am now successfully maintaining fairly effortlessly because I trust the numbers and know that the total calories burned on my FitBit is what I need to not exceed. It has also demonstrated that it's possible to be a petite female over 40 with a relatively high TDEE (2200 for me) and that you don't have to be destined to eating 1200 cals to lose weight.
I upgraded to the ChargeHR about 6 months ago and like it really well even though I don't heavily rely on the HR measurements. The challenges are fun but not something I really rely on. For me the biggest selling point of these is a reasonably accurate estimate of your TDEE, for me that is much more reliable than what I got from various calculators.
Could you tell me how it works out an accurate tdee please. I am thinking of getting one for this reason but trying to understand how it works
I don't know the science or math behind it if that's what you are asking. You enter your stats (height/weight/gender/age) and then as you wear it all day and it measures your steps (and some measure heart rate) it estimates a total calories burned which is comparable to a TDEE. I trust a device that I'm wearing that knows with some reasonable precision, what my movement is like, compared to a static website estimating it from averages.
For me the FitBit number has been accurate enough that I was able to lose weight on the schedule I wanted and am now maintaining My weight for consecutive years eating up to the calories it says I burn.
Hope that helps.
Sorry to bug you again, I have just been looking at these online and I want one that has a face on it that you tap to see calories burned etc. But not all the Fitbit have a face and some just have a light that shows up. Which one do you have ? And if you don't have the one with a tappable face do you have to log onto your iPhone/computer to see all of this information.
No problem. I have the Charge HR which does have the display on the face. Previously I had the Flex which did not. Regardless of whether it has the display on your wrist, the dashboard accessed from the phone or computer is where you would go to see the averages over time like total cals burned.
There is also a FitBit users group here on MFP and I think there are probably threads with reviews of the different models of you want some additional testimonials.
Where would I find the Fitbit user group? Also does the Fitbit sync with the MFP? Last question I promice
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1290-fitbit-users
Theres the group, yes fitbit syncs with MFP, once you set it up right.2 -
I have the Charge HR, with the Charge HR2 on its way.
Overall I like it, mostly for activity and sleep tracking. If you know people with a fitbit that also helps as you can do challenges which can be motivating. It all really depends on what motivates you - if you are a competitive person who likes to track progress and enjoys a good spreadsheet, it can help. That said, it isn't the holy grail of fitness gadgets nor is it as useful as a basic food scale.
My only complaint is the Charge HR seems to fall apart after a while. I've had mine 9 months and the band is peeling away above the display face and has developed an air bubble on the rubber below the display. My wife's Charge HR has been replaced twice because the button fell out. Supposedly the new Charge HR 2 is built better which is why I ordered it.1 -
fellowtraveler87 wrote: »I have the Charge HR, with the Charge HR2 on its way.
Overall I like it, mostly for activity and sleep tracking. If you know people with a fitbit that also helps as you can do challenges which can be motivating. It all really depends on what motivates you - if you are a competitive person who likes to track progress and enjoys a good spreadsheet, it can help. That said, it isn't the holy grail of fitness gadgets nor is it as useful as a basic food scale.
My only complaint is the Charge HR seems to fall apart after a while. I've had mine 9 months and the band is peeling away above the display face and has developed an air bubble on the rubber below the display. My wife's Charge HR has been replaced twice because the button fell out. Supposedly the new Charge HR 2 is built better which is why I ordered it.
I'd contact fitbit, there should be at least a years warranty. I must have totally lucked out or something, I wear my fitbit charge hr 24/7 and through my sweat, horse sweat, rain and gunk working with a horse in hot, humid Florida, for well over a year now. I do use only water to wipe it down with afterwards though, no chemicals. And not one problem with my band. I wonder if skin pH has anything to do with it.1 -
LOL, silly I know, but putting the Gamin vivosmart HR on my wrist got me serious. I love that it's waterproof so I don't take it off except to charge and clean it. I like the accuracy. Then I found the Gamin community (Gamin Connect) and found lots of friends and support there. We do challenges every week and joke around a lot--and keep each other very accountable with messages that go straight to the watch.1
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I had a One for all of 2016 and until I started wearing it, I never realized how sedentary I was. It certainly made me more aware about making sure I hit 12,000 steps daily, and I loved that I could download lots of information and make pretty graphs.
Sadly I managed to lose it on New Year's Eve (my pants didn't have pockets, so I clipped it to my waistband and it must have fallen off). Luckily I have a spare Flex which I'm currently using, but I have to say I much prefer the One.1 -
CaptBligh001 wrote: »The problem is intensity. if you don't break a sweat and your heart rate doesn't rise much above resting rate then you aren't really accomplishing much more than stretching your muscles and wearing out your joints.
I guess it depends what you're trying to accomplish. I'm about to go for a slow, leisurely walk on my lunch break. That will:
(1) Burn some calories
(2) Get me out in the sun
(3) Take me by the store, I need to pick up some laundry detergent
(4) Get me away from my desk for a short while
(5) NOT improve my cardiovascular fitness2
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