Fitbit charge HR accuracy

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taypop5
taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
edited June 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey
I have a fit bit charge HR. I use it for horse riding as it keeps track of my hr and time. However It also tracks steps- which arn't actually my steps but the horses. I ignore the steps and just go by hr and Cals burned. Do you suppose the Calories burned are accurate as they go by your HR or do the steps actually matter for Fitbit when calculating calories​ burned?? Trying to sort out how accurate my Fitbit is for daily calorie burn. TIA

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  • SusanMFindlay
    SusanMFindlay Posts: 1,804 Member
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    I would manually log the horseback riding. (It's an option for activity type; I just checked.) You can do this right in the FitBit app. Make sure you have accurate start and finish times. Then it'll overwrite the "steps" and resulting calorie burn it counted/calculated with a more appropriate estimate of your activity during that time.

    Or take off the FitBit when you're horseback riding so that it doesn't confuse your steps with the horse's. If you do this, you can still manually log the activity as described above.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Thanks. I figured out how to do this.... however my heart rate shows much higher when I'm riding... Like I sweat when I ride. So when I manually log it my avg HR for the hour is 99 but apparently with monitor it's actually avg 119 , getting up to as high as 160 at parts. So I'm thinking it should be more accurate to just wear it and ignore steps? Further input to that?
  • Muana1005
    Muana1005 Posts: 172 Member
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    I wouldn't count the calorie burn you get with horse riding. I personally wouldn't log it as exercise either. You should take the fitbit off when riding the horse
  • cttrgirl1997
    cttrgirl1997 Posts: 6 Member
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    I'd trust the Fitbit calorie burn. If you are riding at a trot or lope/canter, you are burning at least as many calories as you would if you had your own feet on the ground walking around. Trotting or loping is a great full body workout.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Thanks for input. It's definitely a great workout ... I am often out of breath, sore and red faced. I've been riding my entire life competitively and work hard... exhausted after some rides. Just wasn't sure about the accuracy of the watch due to the step thing. Thanks
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
    edited June 2017
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    taypop5 wrote: »
    Hey
    I have a fit bit charge HR. I use it for horse riding as it keeps track of my hr and time. However It also tracks steps- which arn't actually my steps but the horses. I ignore the steps and just go by hr and Cals burned. Do you suppose the Calories burned are accurate as they go by your HR or do the steps actually matter for Fitbit when calculating calories​ burned?? Trying to sort out how accurate my Fitbit is for daily calorie burn. TIA

    I would log the horse back riding. Fitbit is not going to be accurate when it thinks you are walking or running and you are actually doing a different activity. I believe the Fitbits are fairly accurate when used as intended. But if you inadvertently rely on it when it has inaccurate data, there is little hope that it will have a realistic calorie burn.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Ok so for anyone who is following - I've been able to dig out my polar f11 heart rate monitor + watch. It DOES NOT count steps. Tomorrow I'll match the two devices and see how they do against one another. I ran 10k this morning and they were different by about 30 Cals total in the end.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
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    taypop5 wrote: »
    Ok so for anyone who is following - I've been able to dig out my polar f11 heart rate monitor + watch. It DOES NOT count steps. Tomorrow I'll match the two devices and see how they do against one another. I ran 10k this morning and they were different by about 30 Cals total in the end.

    I am not sure if horseback riding would be considered cardio? If not, then heart rate is not going to give an accurate calorie burn. Heart rate is useful in estimating burn for steady state cardio, where you have multiple major muscle groups working for an extended period of time.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
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    I rode a horse once... my abs hurt for days. I'd compromise and take the bumps and "fake steps" as calories burned
  • Heatherpuggy2018
    Heatherpuggy2018 Posts: 42 Member
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    Muana1005 wrote: »
    I wouldn't count the calorie burn you get with horse riding. I personally wouldn't log it as exercise either. You should take the fitbit off when riding the horse

    I horse ride and work out (HIIT/spinning/circuit training & personal trainer sessions) - I can assure you that the horse riding (schooling/dressage etc) Can be the hardest and most vigorous workout I get out of all the things I do.

    OP - I have an HR 2 and keep it on all the time and manually enter the options for riding ... that option is fine for hacks (trail riding) however I have a separate bespoke exercise I have set-up on MFP for manual input if I have had a particularly hard schooling session/ride.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Heatherpuggy2018 wrote: »
    Muana1005 wrote: »
    I wouldn't count the calorie burn you get with horse riding. I personally wouldn't log it as exercise either. You should take the fitbit off when riding the horse

    I horse ride and work out (HIIT/spinning/circuit training & personal trainer sessions) - I can assure you that the horse riding (schooling/dressage etc) Can be the hardest and most vigorous workout I get out of all the things I do.

    OP - I have an HR 2 and keep it on all the time and manually enter the options for riding ... that option is fine for hacks (trail riding) however I have a separate bespoke exercise I have set-up on MFP for manual input if I have had a particularly hard schooling session/ride.

    Thanks! I school dressage 5/6 days a week on a 17hh big mover. Some days I get off so red in the face, sweating and out of breathe. I know it's great exercise - to those who think otherwise! No plodding around here
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    taypop5 wrote: »
    Ok so for anyone who is following - I've been able to dig out my polar f11 heart rate monitor + watch. It DOES NOT count steps. Tomorrow I'll match the two devices and see how they do against one another. I ran 10k this morning and they were different by about 30 Cals total in the end.

    I'm curious to see what numbers you get from the chest strap v your fitbit.

    My heart rate would go through the roof just sitting still on top of a horse lol They petrify me, I've had too many scary accidents on and around them :weary:
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    taypop5 wrote: »
    Ok so for anyone who is following - I've been able to dig out my polar f11 heart rate monitor + watch. It DOES NOT count steps. Tomorrow I'll match the two devices and see how they do against one another. I ran 10k this morning and they were different by about 30 Cals total in the end.

    I'm curious to see what numbers you get from the chest strap v your fitbit.

    My heart rate would go through the roof just sitting still on top of a horse lol They petrify me, I've had too many scary accidents on and around them :weary:

    Lol!I had a good laugh at that. I'll keep everyone posted though it's looking like I might not be able to do it till Friday . But stay tuned!
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    Don't get me wrong, i love horses.. Just not riding, or being trapped in small stall with one. They smell the fear, i just know it :lol:

    Will definitely stay tuned.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
    edited June 2017
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    Update: the calorie burn between the polar watch and Fitbit were off by about 30 calories with the Fitbit being the higher of the two. Total burn was about 450 by Fitbit and 420 or so by polar watch for an hour.
  • Heatherpuggy2018
    Heatherpuggy2018 Posts: 42 Member
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    taypop5 wrote: »
    Update: the calorie burn between the polar watch and Fitbit were off by about 30 calories with the Fitbit being the higher of the two. Total burn was about 450 by Fitbit and 420 or so by polar watch for an hour.

    Thank you for the update. It's reassuring that they are not too far off totals. Personally, I have found my HR 2 to be really accurate when I have taken heart rate readings before, during and after exercise - so, I am really pleased with it. Your results also show that riding can give you a decent work out. I can burn anything from 350 to 750 calories an hour, depending on what I am doing.
  • taypop5
    taypop5 Posts: 41 Member
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    Heatherpuggy2018 wrote: »
    taypop5 wrote: »
    Update: the calorie burn between the polar watch and Fitbit were off by about 30 calories with the Fitbit being the higher of the two. Total burn was about 450 by Fitbit and 420 or so by polar watch for an hour.

    Thank you for the update. It's reassuring that they are not too far off totals. Personally, I have found my HR 2 to be really accurate when I have taken heart rate readings before, during and after exercise - so, I am really pleased with it. Your results also show that riding can give you a decent work out. I can burn anything from 350 to 750 calories an hour, depending on what I am doing.

    Absolutely! I've had rides burning 600 Cals.. . awesome to know my favorite thing can keep me in shape
  • Mouse_Potato
    Mouse_Potato Posts: 1,503 Member
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    I have a Fitbit Charge HR as well. I wear it when I ride and have found the manual entries to be quite comparable to what the Fitbit says I have burned. As others have pointed out, this is not exactly a passive form of transportation!

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