Well Heck. Just when I thought I was happy with this thing.
LadyLilion
Posts: 276 Member
Today I took my usual 1 mile walk at lunch. I turned it on manually, because I know it doesn't auto-detect anything worth a darn. I KNOW it was in WALK. It took a while to get it to read a mile...it should have by the time I was back (It's a marked trail I walk every day) but finally after pacing a bit, it did and I stopped it, saw my "Finish". Took a while to show up after my sync. In fact, I had to try several times. Finally I put my walk in manually, not happy at all that it was not giving me my map. Imagine my surprise when it DEDUCTED steps! I sync and check again (about 5 x at this point.) and my walk showed as an elliptical. Okay, MAYBE I had it on elliptical instead of walk - I don't think so...but once I erased my manually added walk, the steps came back, but then it only showed 68 calories burned. Fine...sync ONE MORE TIME. Now, it has the right miles like it would for a walk, approximately - should be a tiny bit higher (but when I do elliptical at home for 20 minutes it only shows fractions of a mile). It showed the right step count for a walk (again, at home on elliptical the step count is like 700 steps for 20 minutes). It showed the right time elapsed.
BUT, it shows that for the entire 23 minutes of my walk my heart rate was 150+ BPM! I'd have DIED - my resting heart rate is like 53. This was a stroll. I didn't even work up a sweat. NO WAY was it even 150 ONCE! So my calories are completely wrong - now they're more than 460. I'd have rather had it the 68!
I called support. They had me turn it off and on again and gave me a case number. Really? That's it? Can't fix the problem...just keep an eye on it and if it happens again, call them again. I'm getting awfully tired of problems with this device. I've only had it since March 5.
BUT, it shows that for the entire 23 minutes of my walk my heart rate was 150+ BPM! I'd have DIED - my resting heart rate is like 53. This was a stroll. I didn't even work up a sweat. NO WAY was it even 150 ONCE! So my calories are completely wrong - now they're more than 460. I'd have rather had it the 68!
I called support. They had me turn it off and on again and gave me a case number. Really? That's it? Can't fix the problem...just keep an eye on it and if it happens again, call them again. I'm getting awfully tired of problems with this device. I've only had it since March 5.
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So you know - when you manually input a walk or run, Fitbit's site is assuming your distance is accurate, so it takes that divided by your stride length setting and figures out steps.
Right or wrong.
Those steps now become unusable for challenges or such - because that's how people used to cheat.
Also, when you use the Fitbit app GPS option to track a route and make a workout, it again assumes the GPS is more accurate distance than what is calculated from your steps.
So it again will calculate steps based on that distance.
In both cases, that manually added workout replaces the steps in your daily count, distance too of course, and calories.
So that would be considered a Workout Record, replacing what figures are there. Not an Activity Record, merely showing what the figures are.0 -
So you know - when you manually input a walk or run, Fitbit's site is assuming your distance is accurate, so it takes that divided by your stride length setting and figures out steps.
Right or wrong.
Those steps now become unusable for challenges or such - because that's how people used to cheat.
Also, when you use the Fitbit app GPS option to track a route and make a workout, it again assumes the GPS is more accurate distance than what is calculated from your steps.
So it again will calculate steps based on that distance.
In both cases, that manually added workout replaces the steps in your daily count, distance too of course, and calories.
So that would be considered a Workout Record, replacing what figures are there. Not an Activity Record, merely showing what the figures are.
Not sure what any of that had to do with what I said. But maybe that's me.
I didn't originally manually enter a workout. I turned it on manually to record the workout...but it acted like it hadn't, so THEN I entered the workout manually only to delete it when it finally showed up (as an elliptical). When I say it deducted steps, I mean it deducted TWO THOUSAND steps! Not just a few based on the distance and stride length.
But the biggest problem was it then said my HR was 150+ for the entire walk!
FWIW, Saturday I took an unplanned hike and it and my husband's fitbit both recorded exactly the same starting and ending times when it auto detected the walk. I think it was fairly accurate then. The whole thing is just hit or miss, which is the annoying part.
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It was merely to keep that effect in the back of your mind as to what happens when you manually enter a walk or run.
Why the steps would adjust.
And that a Fitbit app GPS logged workout is the same as a manually entered workout with the same effect.1 -
a Fitbit app GPS logged workout is the same as a manually entered workout with the same effect.
Wouldn't it be fairly accurate though? Wouldn't a fitbit GPS logged workout showing say, a mile in 19 minutes, wouldn't it then have the stride length fairly accurate?
I tried manually setting my stride length, but I must have done the math wrong somehow. My stride length was some crazy number, so I figured the automatic was good enough.
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The automatic stride length is supposed to fine tune itself over time based on you GPS reading combined with the steps recorded on the Charge 2 and the Blaze.
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I've not seen the supposed improvement to the stride length setting on the GPS enabled devices.
Just did quick search on their site - nothing turned up. Would you have a link.
Because that indeed MIGHT be smart.
Except to set your GPS exercise pace stride-length for walking to be used all day long when well below that pace - would be stupid.
Inflated calorie burn - many already do that to themselves.
@LadyLilion - GPS doesn't know incline and decline - when your steps are shorter. So if your walk is flat - yes that could be accurate.
And if the GPS is accurate enough (you'd never know except for map overlay if it really was, less corners the better), then yes, taking that distance given, but with the original Fitbit steps seen - would allow you to do good math on stride length.
But as mentioned above, your daily calorie burn outside of exercise is based on steps, estimated distance, and time.
If you have your stride length set to exercise pace, then it's potentially wrong for the other 14 hrs or whatever of the day you may be walking, and the Fitbit can only make so much of an adjustment before accuracy is compromised.
So you don't want your stride length correct for exercise pace walking - but average daily pace, from grocery store shuffle to serious walk pace.0 -
I've not seen the supposed improvement to the stride length setting on the GPS enabled devices.
Just did quick search on their site - nothing turned up. Would you have a link.
Because that indeed MIGHT be smart.
https://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/1135
it's the first paragraph there about Blaze and Charge 2
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Oh good - it's very specific - runs only, running stride length.
They realize the problem doing that with walking stride length.1
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