What is better, HRM or Fitbit? Help!

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ve022
ve022 Posts: 21
in Fitness and Exercise
I am looking into what to get to track my own exercise. I do not know the difference really between the two devices. I just want to know the calorie burn and such, for me... Keep in mind I am about 260lbs, so most machines are not set up for my weight. Any help would be welcome.

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  • brittonymiller
    brittonymiller Posts: 2,061 Member
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    I don't know anything about the fitbit, but I love my Polar heartrate monitor. It tells you how many calories you burn. Nothing too fancy, but that's all I need.
  • ThisIsMe_sbd
    ThisIsMe_sbd Posts: 38 Member
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    I have a fitbit and set daily goals i.e. 10,000 steps per day. 15 flights of stairs. etc. But when I work out or go for a run I wear my HRM (Polar F6) as well as my fit bit to get a more accurate calorie burn count.

    The fitbit really keeps me motivated to move and the HRM tracks calories burned more precisely.

    Hope that helps...
  • lappyd425
    lappyd425 Posts: 112 Member
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    I would like to hear others thoughts on this as well!! I've been looking at HRMs but have no real idea what I'm looking for!!
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
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    I have a Polar FT4 HRM. I love it!
  • ged630
    ged630 Posts: 145 Member
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    I had a fitbit but put it in the washer....oops! I would suggest a HRM or a BodyMedia System over the Fitbit. Both are more accurate than the fitbit.

    I currently use a BodyMedia system that I was able to buy on Ebay as well as a 12 Month subscription for around $60-80. It tracks calories burnt all day, steps, sleep, time active. Check out the website. They are pricey new, and require a subscription to use. Also you wear it 24/7 which could be a down side. I don't even know I have it on.
  • Massageu2
    Massageu2 Posts: 59
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    I can't give advice on FitBit, but I have been using the BodyMedia Fit system for several months now. I really like the data that I get from the system, including calories burned, steps taken, number of minutes of moderate and vigorous activity, and sleep quality. It has really made me have to be accountable for everything I do (no lying about the numbers), and helped me on my weight reduction journey. I have a Timex HRM system which I really like, but I have always felt that the numbers it gave for calorie burn were a little too generous for my activity level. I would say, if you are only interested in calories burned, go for an inexpensive HRM system, but if you want a broader picture of your day to day activity go with a body monitor system. There are several on the market including the BodyMedia Fit, FitBit, and BodyBugg. I believe Biggest Loser has just released their own product as well, but I have not researched that one at all.
  • danger_kitteh
    danger_kitteh Posts: 301 Member
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    Having used both

    for exercise and tracking calories - HRM all the way
    for tracking distance, steps and general movement the fitbit works

    I have a garmin305 and a polar fit 6. The garmin for running and the polar fit for when I need something small in the gym/bootcamp.
  • TheBigYin
    TheBigYin Posts: 5,682 Member
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    if you're just wanting something to give you an idea of how many miles you walk in a day, or how many flights of stairs you walk up, then the fitbit's fine. If you want something for tracking your workrate on exercise machines a HRM's definitely the way to go. The fitbit's a nice, unobtrusive thing that you can just clip to your trouser pocket say, but at the end of the day it's a pedometer, not much more. For me, the fitbit's good - most of the exercise I do is on the Bike, where I've a GPS enabled HRM and bike computer, which calculates everything to the n'th degree, then I wear the fitbit for everything else, and it gives me an idea of how lazy i've been apart from when i've been on the bike :laugh:
  • Gt3ch
    Gt3ch Posts: 212 Member
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    They're different. The fitbit is for tracking everything you do- all your activity and sleep 24/7. You have it on all the time and track everything.

    A HRM is for measuring exercise intensity (& perhaps recovery). Unless you have a heart condition you want to monitor you just wear it when you're doing intense exercise. The point is really just to know when it's safe to push harder and when you need to back off. Better HRMs count calories also but that's not really their primary purpose or strength.

    So get a Fitbit to get a better ballpark sense of your calories in & out and sleep quality. But get a HRM if you want to push yourself in the gym (or make sure you push yourself more gradually and safely).
  • thankyou4thevenom
    thankyou4thevenom Posts: 1,581 Member
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    I am looking into what to get to track my own exercise. I do not know the difference really between the two devices. I just want to know the calorie burn and such, for me... Keep in mind I am about 260lbs, so most machines are not set up for my weight. Any help would be welcome.

    It entirely depends on what you're going to use it for.

    - The fitbit is an advanced pedometer, that also tracks your sleep.
    - A HRM is purely designed to track your heart rate.

    The fit bit is useless for tracking any exercise while done on a bicycle, swimming and exercise that mean your feet barely move (like weight lifting).

    I'm not sure about the difference in calorie burn when doing cardio because I'm doing weight training. I'd be curious to see if someone has worn their HRM and fitbit while running or doing bodypump and what the difference between the burn was.
  • Clara
    Clara Posts: 88 Member
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    Polar HRM has my vote. I can track any activity I want.....accurately.
  • Soon2Bfitmamaof3
    Soon2Bfitmamaof3 Posts: 1,911 Member
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    I just returned my fitbit and ordered a hrm. It is really nothing more than a fancy pedometer with extra bells and whistles. They have an awesome idea but the calories burned is really not accurate and that was most important to me. I do lots of exercise inside and it's not really intended for that. The sleep is not accurate either, every time you move it counts it as a wake up. If it could take your HR and had GPS then the $100 is worth it, otherwise a cheap step counter and
    mfp will better suit. I say get a hrm, it's your best tool
  • FaithHopeBELIEVE
    FaithHopeBELIEVE Posts: 626
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    Thankyou for posting this topic as I have been going round and round about it as well. I do like how the fitbit gives you a calorie count for the whole day though and an HRM does not. Well I guess it could if you kept it on all day but it gets annoying on and if I'm not in my HR range it beeps so i dont want that in public...lol and if you keep it on the battery dies rapidly. I have a Polar HRM.
  • Gt3ch
    Gt3ch Posts: 212 Member
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    Polar HRM has my vote. I can track any activity I want.....accurately.

    Polars are very good, reliable & popular. Most models, though, don't have user replaceable batteries. Many of the watch displays aren't that great.

    My fav is the Digitfit app on an iPhone with the Wahoo Run pack. If I was in the market for a HRM watch I'd take another look at Polar but am really interested in the Garmin & Suunto models.

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