HRM vs FitBit

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thegoya
thegoya Posts: 100 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
At approx. the same cost, what would be a better buy a HRM with calorie counter or a FitBit? and why? Thanks.

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  • thegoya
    thegoya Posts: 100 Member
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    Any thoughts?
  • InTheInbetween
    InTheInbetween Posts: 192 Member
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    Bump??
  • Melanie_Robinson
    Melanie_Robinson Posts: 36 Member
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    Well, the HRM is really good at getting a true estimate of calories burned during a workout. The Fitbit will tell you just how active you really are throughout your whole day. I love my fitbit, I do wear a HRM for workouts. If I had to choose one, I'd go with the Fitbit. It has shown me that although I am "busy" and am really under active some days.

    Good luck
    Melanie
  • Vernswifevickie
    Vernswifevickie Posts: 26 Member
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    I have both and I love them both. I use my fitbit as an all day tool to measure how active I am and I use my HRM to help me train for running. It's hard to say what I'd choose if I could only have one...but I'd probably go with the fitbit. I had just the fitbit for about a year before getting my HRM.
  • ashreynolds09
    ashreynolds09 Posts: 257 Member
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    This is a toughie, I loved my FitBit for letting me know how active (or inactive) I was. But my FitBit has taken a poo on me so I have lived life with out it for a few months, however -- I don't work out without my HRM. As far I'm concerned I have my general BMR information as it is with MFP, I know I sit on my butt all day long so the HRM was more important to me for my running.
  • stargazer424
    stargazer424 Posts: 12
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    I have been researching the same thing as a gift for someone. It seems it depends on what you want to use it for.

    Fitbit - For all day use, to check activity levels.

    HRM - For calorie burn tracking during workouts.

    Both - For a combination of both...
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,269 Member
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    I have them both. I had the FitBit first. It's funny, but it actually gave me some very similar numbers to what my HRM gives me if I compare... But not always. The HRM is more accurate. If your exercise mostly consists of walking/jogging, the FitBit would likely give you some decent numbers for calories burned. It also does nice things like tracking sleep, hills/stairs climbed and such. But if you only have enough for one or the other, I would go with the HRM. I really do like my FitBit and still wear it every day, so... lol

    PS The features I'm referring to are on the FitBit Ultra, the original one I don't think has the stuff for stairs, plus I'm not sure about the sleep pattern thing either.
  • leannems
    leannems Posts: 516 Member
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    I have a FitBit, and still want an HRM. The above post really nails it.

    FitBit is a great way to motivate you to be more active, in a general way, throughout the day. I actually do not find it useful for activity which comes from a gym, but love it while I'm away from the gym. So on weekends - I may not make it to the gym, but I know I can eat more because I walked a few miles around the mall or on a trip (I eat back my exercise calories - this is why it matters to me). I also like it to convince myself to take more walks during the day, to park farther away, or to grab the stairs instead of an elevator.

    I want an HRM for the exact opposite - to see what I'm burning when I'm being active through the gym. The HRM would give me a more realistic estimate of my workout calories from gym exercise (as opposed to FitBit, which factors in my walking around stuff) to let me know how many calories I should eat back when I do long periods of cardio or weight lifting.

    That's my opinion on the difference between the two.
  • sexycute
    sexycute Posts: 74 Member
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    I've never used a FitBit, but from what I've read it doesn't really provide any information that a little self-awareness and common sense can't tell you.

    A HRM on the other hand provides invaluable information regarding your caloric output during workouts--that information is crucial to weight loss.

    Thank you! I've been wondering about the same thing but moving toward an HRM.
  • katkins3
    katkins3 Posts: 1,360 Member
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    I use both, but if I had to choose, I'd definitely chose my HRM.
    I trust it more for accurately giving me my calories burned, since it is based on heart rate. The Fitbit doesn't measure heart rate, but gives a more general feedback. Neither of them is any good at helping me quantify swimming.
    Fitbit also counts riding a bike as walking, but I think there is a big difference in walking 10 miles and cycling 10 miles. A HRM will at least show the effort, (heart rate), put into those 10 miles whether walked, cycled or run, not just distance.
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,269 Member
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    I've never used a FitBit, but from what I've read it doesn't really provide any information that a little self-awareness and common sense can't tell you.

    A HRM on the other hand provides invaluable information regarding your caloric output during workouts--that information is crucial to weight loss.

    It actually does give you some idea of the calories you burn via all day movement. But if you're doing exercise that doesn't require you to keep taking steps, it's not going to be accurate. But, as I mentioned, I found that some of my numbers given by FitBit were eerily close to what my HRM showed me was my actual burn. And they weren't the numbers given by MFP, so that's not just being self-aware or having common sense. lol I didn't have a clue how many calories taking a mile and a quarter walk at work twice a day most days was burning. My FitBit told me.
  • mariposa224
    mariposa224 Posts: 1,269 Member
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    I use both, but if I had to choose, I'd definitely chose my HRM.
    I trust it more for accurately giving me my calories burned, since it is based on heart rate. The Fitbit doesn't measure heart rate, but gives a more general feedback. Neither of them is any good at helping me quantify swimming.
    Fitbit also counts riding a bike as walking, but I think there is a big difference in walking 10 miles and cycling 10 miles. A HRM will at least show the effort, (heart rate), put into those 10 miles whether walked, cycled or run, not just distance.

    YES! And what type of HRM do you have? I've read reviews of my Polar FT4 that say that it can be used in the pool. One writer had done it repeatedly and all was well.
  • Ianultrarunner
    Ianultrarunner Posts: 184 Member
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    A HRM is better if you do a lot of Cardio.
    If you swim or weight train a lot neither will help.
    If walk a lot but not exerting yourself Fitbit will be better.
    Write down the percentages of activities you do then decide what'll give you the biggest bang for your buck.
    If you're trying to loose weight get the Fitbit later and just track Cardio exercises.

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