Fitbit. Worth it or not?

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  • sophienewton692
    sophienewton692 Posts: 1 Member
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    Best thing i ever did, i have a surge and blaze.

    I find the blaze better as it has a better battery life than my surge. My blaze doesnt track my walks for some reason even though the gps option is on but it does track runs which makes no sense to me, also tracks heart rate and steps

    My surge has a rubbish battery life, it nearly dies after walking for 2 hours so i don't use it that often, it does track walks though but whether i actually track or not it still drains the battery but it also tracks heart rate and steps but either way it depends on your goals
  • lcoulter23
    lcoulter23 Posts: 568 Member
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    I have the charge 2. I love it. It keeps me motivated to keep moving and tracks my sleep and other activities besides just walking.
  • GOT_Obsessed
    GOT_Obsessed Posts: 817 Member
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    I don't understand why tracking sleep is important. To me it's pretty obvious if I have had a good or bad sleep.
    People keep telling me I would love a Fitbit but nothing here that I have read seems like one is a fit for me personally.

    But everyone is different with different goals and needs. To the OP let us know what you decide.
  • Bry_Fitness70
    Bry_Fitness70 Posts: 2,480 Member
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    GOT_Obsessed wrote: »
    I don't understand why tracking sleep is important. To me it's pretty obvious if I have had a good or bad sleep.
    People keep telling me I would love a Fitbit but nothing here that I have read seems like one is a fit for me personally.

    But everyone is different with different goals and needs. To the OP let us know what you decide.

    I think the value is having the tracker capture the number of sleep hours and the time spent in "deep" sleep and light sleep. I have noticed trends where I'm getting too little sleep and I have made corrections, where it wasn't quite as obvious when I didn't have the data summarized in front of me. The way I feel may not be a good indicator, as exercise, diet, and stress can contribute to exhaustion as well as a lack of sleep.
  • cs2thecox
    cs2thecox Posts: 533 Member
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    Same - I *think* I'm being good with my sleep, but sometimes that just means I go upstairs at a sensible time, not that I actually go to sleep. I can faff around for ages but kid myself that I got an early night because I switched the TV off/put my pyjamas on/whatever at a sensible time.
    It makes me more accountable to myself.
  • lilithsrose
    lilithsrose Posts: 752 Member
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    I have the basic Flex 2. To me, the purchase was worth it. I'm someone that likes to see charts and data. And since I'm able to set reminders to get up and move every hour (I have mine set for 7am-6pm), it helps because I have a partial desk job. The Flex 2 is waterproof also, which is nice.
  • jfan175
    jfan175 Posts: 812 Member
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    If anything, a fitness tracker keeps you honest. They're fun to play with and work with the software to set goals, see progress, etc. I have a Garmin Vivoactive HR.
  • fishgutzy
    fishgutzy Posts: 2,807 Member
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    For me. No. But i did shell out the bucks for a Fenix 5x. I need something that tracks swimming distance. I swim 4 miles every morning. None of the fitbits do this. The FB watches are too small and fragile.
    I can read the Fenix without my glasses. And it has topo maps for hiking too. This feature is important for ambulance win a habit of leaving the marked trails. Not that i do that.
    I couldn't care less about step tracking.
    You are either going to move or not.
    I've watched people pace back and forth in a hallway, taking tiny steps jyst to get their step count up. They clearly don't understand the concept of moving.
  • jamespatten3576
    jamespatten3576 Posts: 71 Member
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    Had a charge, it kept falling apart after a couple of months every time. Fitbit was generally good about replacing it, but it just wasn't worth the hassle. Switched to a Samsung Gearfit 2 and am much happier.
  • Tania_181
    Tania_181 Posts: 100 Member
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    I have a Fitbit charge 2 and love it. I find it very useful for accurately tracking my calorie expenditure, especially for counting those exercise calories that I get to eat back!
  • aleikita
    aleikita Posts: 215 Member
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    My Fitbit blaze is my bff!
  • bebeisfit
    bebeisfit Posts: 951 Member
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    I don't have one. But just started using a pedometer app Free. And some days it does motivate me to move more..

    Try that first
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    edited December 2017
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    The sleep tracking is completely bogus. It measures arm movements, not the sleep function of your brain. If you have sleep issues, you know it , and should be seen by a physician who specializes in that area.

    I find the step tracking very motivational and helps me keep moving on a daily basis, because otherwise I am quite sedentary and it's easy to think I've been more active than I have been. Steps and floors are the main features I use on my FB One. I like seeing the trends on the dashboard too.
  • ew_david
    ew_david Posts: 3,473 Member
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    I had (2) Fitbit Ones and a Charge HR. The Charge HR was wildly inaccurate and I sold it after a few months. I really liked the One, but I've found that Fitbits in general have a shelf life of about a year to 18 months and if I'm shelling out $100+ a pop, I feel it should last longer than that. My last One died and I didn't replace it. My body knows my activity whether I have a device on or not.
  • olive1968
    olive1968 Posts: 148 Member
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    I've done some pretty ridiculous things to get my steps in every day. I love my Fitbit and feel it has made a big difference in increasing my activity level.
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    Grahamw68 wrote: »
    Hesitant to splash the cash if its not going to benefit. Anybody got a review, good or bad?

    You've got two questions really; is step tracking and all day calorie estimation useful to you, and if it is then is FitBit the brand to go for.

    As to the first, it really depends on you. Personally I find the data interesting, but not fundamental. It's not telling me anything I don't know already. I have days I walk a lot, other days not much at all. It doesn't drive me to change behaviour tactically, but it gives more strategic insight.

    As far as FitBit is concerned, again it depends on you. Ive never used one, I'm a Garmin user, but I've not been impressed by what I've read about Fitbit in terms of reliability or accuracy.
  • The_Ta
    The_Ta Posts: 59 Member
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    I used a Fitbit one for three years and loved it. I just bought a Charge 2 because I wanted to monitor my heart rate to improve my fitness. I think any tracker (Fitbit or other) is going to depend on what motivates you.

    This is what I like about it:
    1. I love when my screen lights up green because I hit all of my goals.

    2. I compete with my friends with the challenges. I may not want to do anything that day, but I’ll do it so that I’m not in last place.

    3. I love the “move your butt, lazy” feature on the Charge 2 because I’m prone to getting caught up in a book.

    4. I will go out and walk more if I’m hungry but out of calories on MFP.

    Please keep in mind that no tracker is perfect, so use them as a guideline. There are probably better ones out there if you are a hardcore runner, but I think Fitbit is great for those more prone to being lazy.
  • _em_soph_
    _em_soph_ Posts: 4 Member
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    I think garmins are mich better if you are specializing in a sport, but a Fitbit should do a good job tracking your daily activity if you aren't focusing on running, hiking, golf, etc. also, a off brand Garmin or Fitbit should work just as well for less money.
  • maybe1pe
    maybe1pe Posts: 529 Member
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    I have the Charge HR 2 for about 9 months now. I still love it. It motivates me to stay more active throughout the day. I like the sleep tracking and other aspects of it too.
  • AudreyJDuke
    AudreyJDuke Posts: 1,092 Member
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    I've been wondering about getting one so this discussion really helped!

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