HRM vs. FitBit

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  • wftiger
    wftiger Posts: 1,283 Member
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    I have a fitbit. For me it was the perfect choice because I wanted something to show me how much (or little) I moved. The fitbit does just that. It tracks steps and flights of stairs (I have only found it inaccurate on stairs if I do not wear on waist) and coverts to miles and a "activity level".

    For me a HRM would be overkill as I do not, and do not plan to, eat my exercise calories back. Because of that I do not need something that tracks it to the very calorie.

    If you are looking to eat back your exercise calories then you would probably want to go to a HRM as that would be more accurate. if you just need some motivation then the fitbit certainly provides that.
  • LivingHealthyLovingLife
    LivingHealthyLovingLife Posts: 56
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    I love my fitbit, it far exceeds what I expected. Craziest thing I found out with fitbit........I sleepwalk. I kept seeing this activity during the wee hours of the morning and I'm not talking about going to the bathroom activities, sometimes up to 100 steps. That got my curosity up and I set up a camera and sure enough, fitbit was right on the money.
    Besides all that, it pushes me to do more and more each day, I'm up to like 19,000 steps a day.
    One last thing, fitbit not only syncs with MFP but with this site called EarnedIt which lets you earn points towards discounts at online retailers. Where else can you get discounts for simply just moving?
  • salgalruns
    salgalruns Posts: 83 Member
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    I went with the BodyMedia Fit and LOVE it. Tracks my sleep (which is really an issue for me), my steps (not ever a problem), and more importantly, calories burned over the course of the day. It also tells me with my exercise whether or not it's considered vigorous. I actually take my information off the BodyMedia site and then put it into MFP, which works fine for me.
  • LizKurz
    LizKurz Posts: 340 Member
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    I love my fitbit, it far exceeds what I expected. Craziest thing I found out with fitbit........I sleepwalk. I kept seeing this activity during the wee hours of the morning and I'm not talking about going to the bathroom activities, sometimes up to 100 steps. That got my curosity up and I set up a camera and sure enough, fitbit was right on the money.
    Besides all that, it pushes me to do more and more each day, I'm up to like 19,000 steps a day.
    One last thing, fitbit not only syncs with MFP but with this site called EarnedIt which lets you earn points towards discounts at online retailers. Where else can you get discounts for simply just moving?
    Edited by LivingHealthyLovingLife on Fri 04/20/12 10:01 PM

    Oh wow....that's creepy....
  • LizKurz
    LizKurz Posts: 340 Member
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    Frapping double post, sorry!
  • zellagrrl
    zellagrrl Posts: 439
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    Thanks all! I got a Timex Ironman HRM on Amazon-- seemed to be reasonably priced for the features... will see how it goes once it gets here! BMF was out of the price range for now :(
  • committed_2_health
    committed_2_health Posts: 4 Member
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    Like others have mentioned I have both. I started out with a basic HRM a few years ago and upgraded to a more advanced one. You don't have to spend a small fortune on a HRM. I do realize however that a small fortune is completely relative to your financial situation. I use my HRM for cardio only. I don't wear it when I strength train. I wear my Fitbit all day and when I sleep. I find myself working smarter in my fitness goals utilizing both as tools for tracking and motivating me. If you must decide between the two write out a list of what you want to track and then do a side by side comparison to determine which of the two will best meet your needs. Good luck!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    Thanks all! I got a Timex Ironman HRM on Amazon-- seemed to be reasonably priced for the features... will see how it goes once it gets here! BMF was out of the price range for now :(

    Suggestion on the Timex.

    It is great for training features. Upper/lower zone settings and alarms, time in zone, HR recovery in 1 or 2 min, digital with no interference, post workout stats min, avg, max HR, ect.

    Unless yours has you enter gender, age, weight, and allows changing the max HR - it is worthless at calories though.

    Very inflated.

    So I just used this site to enter in the avg HR for the workout, to get better estimate of calorie burn.

    If you can get an estimate of your VO2max, it makes it more accurate too.

    http://www.braydenwm.com/calburn.htm
  • jsugihara86
    jsugihara86 Posts: 71 Member
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    I have a HRM and HATE the chest strap... so I dont know what to do .. lol
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
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    I have a HRM and HATE the chest strap... so I dont know what to do .. lol

    Only wear it once for each type of workout you enjoy doing, do the workout at your desired intensity (not pace, you'll get faster at same intensity).

    Now you have avg cal burn per mins for that activity, you can apply to other workouts without wearing it.

    If this is for better training in zones to get the most out of intervals or recovery runs or such, that's tough then.

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