New to FitBit (need information)

Untilproud11
Untilproud11 Posts: 297 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello ! I’ve been to this journey for a long time now and have lost close to 50lbs ! Im proud of myself but I haven’t reached my ultimate goal yet , due to my knee i don’t workout much and a friend of mine mentioned to me getting a FitBit to at least track steps as i do walk around a lot during the day , I looked online and there are so many kinds ! Lol Im lost 😂
What do u guys recommend me ? And how does a Fitbit work? Are there more affordable brands ? I’m looking for something very simple just to track steps thats all plus i saw a kind that is a band and another that looks like an apple watch so Im very comfused , and i work around food a lot in a kitchen therefore it has to be durable and that i can use in water and cooking times plus how does it sync to MFP?
I know i seem like I have no idea about thse things 😂 please bear with me I really want to be well informed before buying one
Thx wonderful pals out there ☺️

Replies

  • Talan79
    Talan79 Posts: 782 Member
    edited April 2019
    I have a Fitbit Flex 2. It’s the most basic and I paid something like $58 on Amazon. I like this bc it’s thin and not a huge bulky band. There is no screen on it, you’d have to open the app to see steps taken. It is waterproof & you can even track swimming with it. So it should be fine for working in the kitchen.
  • Johnd2000
    Johnd2000 Posts: 198 Member
    As someone who came to a Fitbit (Charge2) via a couple of much cheaper Chinese bands, the price premium of the Fitbit is worth it for the software and how it integrates with MFP.

    I love mine and use it all the time, but I’m a bit of a data nerd.
  • Untilproud11
    Untilproud11 Posts: 297 Member
    Thx for the info guys
    I like the simplicity of the fitbit flex 2 i will do some research
  • ChickenKillerPuppy
    ChickenKillerPuppy Posts: 297 Member
    I have a Fitbit Alta and I love it. There is a display but it is thin and it also become my watch - although I'm not sure of the waterproof factor. I find it motivates me to get in more steps than I otherwise would. The only downside is if I am gesticulating wildly with my hands (I often talk with my hands) I notice it will count those as steps. But short of that it seems fairly accurate. I have lost it 3 times over the past several years and I always replace it because I love having it so much.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Ditto to the simple device that doesn't do HR, steps only, don't need more than that.

    How does it work? Like other trackers. If you get a simple one, this is method all the time. HR optional devices use HR-based calculations for calorie burn during exercise, or when it thinks you are doing exercise.

    Impacts from steps are used to calculate distance of each one.
    Distance and time is pace.
    Pace and mass calculate out to really good estimate of calorie burn. (if steps and distance is decently accurate figures)

    Base calorie burn based on BMR like MFP and every other site. So that has activity added to it.

    Not accounted for is calorie burn processing food - that's about 10% of what's eaten.
    Also not accounted for is awake and standing time with no steps - you burn more than sleeping BMR rate.

    But if you have simple life - pretty good estimate can be had, with tweaks to that stride length to improve those calc's, and settings for sensitivity of wrist units to see steps for those figures.

    As to how it syncs with MFP.
    Every time your total daily burn goes up 100 calories more than prior sync - it syncs again - total and time of sync. And steps.
    MFP displays the steps. It does math with the total burned to improve it's estimate of your daily burn, and then adjusts your eating goal to that.

    MFP sends meal totals to Fitbit for display and math on that side.
    Weight entered on one is sent to the other.

    It is pretty simple.

    There are some cheaper options - but they either don't sync with MFP, or they don't sync correctly when you find an app that can do some work arounds to even send the wrong data.
  • KD0BIK
    KD0BIK Posts: 44 Member
    I lost over 50 pounds using the Fitbit One (no longer in production) and recently upgraded to the Charge 3. I was concerned the Charge 3 was over-calculating things...but that seems to have settled down somewhat. I didn't think I would really be interested in heart rate, but it does motivate me to try to keep my HR up in the cardio zone during my walks. I'm happy with the upgrade.
  • Untilproud11
    Untilproud11 Posts: 297 Member
    Well I noticed the ones with a thin screen and the ones with no screen at all im still a little unsure as there are so many options out there
  • daremightythings
    daremightythings Posts: 247 Member
    edited April 2019
    For your situation get a Flex2. That's all you need, it's the cheapest one, it's waterproof so it will hold up in a commercial kitchen. It will track your steps, your active minutes during the day, and your sleep. You can use it to set silent alarms (vibration) if you need reminders to take vitamins or something like that during the day. The app is really easy to use and you can link it to mfp easily if you want to do that.

    Just start simple and get the Flex2.
  • Dreamwa1ker
    Dreamwa1ker Posts: 196 Member
    I've had a number of fitbits over the years. I have found that the ones with heart rate monitoring seem to do a better job on calories burned accuracy for me than the step only models. I use a Charge 3 with HR ($150), but they did just release a new line called "Inspire" which has a HR capable one for $100.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Dreamwa1ker wrote: »
    I've had a number of fitbits over the years. I have found that the ones with heart rate monitoring seem to do a better job on calories burned accuracy for me than the step only models. I use a Charge 3 with HR ($150), but they did just release a new line called "Inspire" which has a HR capable one for $100.

    Depending on workouts that can be very true - many cardio workouts aren't step based at all.

    But the devices attempt to learn you so that they know when and when NOT to use HR-based calorie burn.
    The daily activity level is best by step and distance calorie burn and that's what they try to use. HR-based being reserved for actual exercise.

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