Buying a Fitbit...Should I? Or NO?

Same question here...a large portion of my workouts are hot power yoga...so I'm thinking just an HRM would calculate my cals burned more accurately. But I walk A LOT too...hmmmm? Clue us in!

I love my fitbit, but I use it only to make sure I do those 10,000, since I have a desk job. I do not use it for working out, for that I use my HRM. It just really depends on what you are looking for from it.

Hey guys,

I got one for a gift and really like it. No problems with MFP cross-sync at all. I would recommend getting one if you are looking for better insights into your diet/excercise/sleep trends in relationship to your goals.

If nothing else, it serves to highlight your activity levels and help you reach for new goals or provide objective feedback if you are slacking or think you are more active than you are.

The stats are all there on a nice-looking dashboard and I find them consistent and *reasonably* accurate. For me this is fine. It's really not about finite accuracy it is about consistency and keeping you on track. I also find the 'gamification' quite motivating.

The other thing you may want instead (or in addition to) is a heart rate monitor. I love toys and stats!

-LB

I've only had mine for a little over two weeks, and I've been very happy with it. It seems to be very consistent in how it tracks calories burned, etc., and I find it does help me to stay on top of how active I have or haven't been through the day. It's helped me to see where I could make a few small changes to increase daily activity.

Obviously, nothing is going to perfectly mirror what's going on in your body, so it's not something that you just clip on and expect it to perfectly determine your exact calorie burn each day. However, it does give you a good, consistent measurement, in my opinion, and then you can tweak it from there, depending on the results you are getting when you follow the data you receive from the Fitbit. I'm finding that I'm starting to understand better what the numbers mean for me, but there is a (very small) learning curve.

Before i bought mine, I read many of the threads in the "Fitibit Users" group, which helped me to understand how it works and what I could expect from it. I also asked several questions there so that, by the time I got my Fitbit, I had a pretty good basic understanding of how to use it.

It also depends on how much you like to look at numbers: Do you view them as extra input that you can use to analyze and come up with a strategy for weight loss? Or are you overwhelmed with them? While I love the way MFP syncs with Fitbit, it took a bit to figure out where some of the strange numbers (Fitbit Adjustments) were coming from. Once I got that straight, it's been super easy and helpful to me. I think it also depends on how you have things set up on each site. I keep mine pretty simple. I set my caloric goal on both sites as my BMR, as I want to make sure that I always eat that amount at a minimum and also because there is a very small difference between my BMR and my TDEE. I then can adjust what I eat according to my level of activity and exercise each day, if I wish, but I make sure I'm always eating at or above my BMR. It's working for me, but I know many others would find it backward.

I haven't had any problems with my Fitbit so far or with its communication with MFP, but, again, it's only been a little over two weeks.

It depends on what you want to use it for. I bought a fitbit and am glad - but I was most interested in the sleep tracker and stair climbing aspects. I live on the 5th floor of a 10-story building, with 2 garage levels. Before the fitbit, I was winded climbing 5 floors, and I knew that if I could have a goal (and someone other than me keeping count), that I'd be more likely to climb the stairs. And it worked! I use the stairs as much as possible, just to get the number on my fitbit to increase....

The sleep tracker is awesome. I knew that I wasn't sleeping well at night before using the fitbit, but I didn't realize that I was waking up every hour or more each night. I've made a lot of changes to my night routine since getting the fitbit, and now am sleeping most of the night through. You can really see the impact that having an alcoholic beverage or coffee in the evening has upon your sleep once you start using this handy little gadget.

For the ladies out there, don't hook it into your sports bra. I learned the hard way - too much moisture gets into the fitbit, even though the website suggests putting it there. My first fitbit drowned in sweat. But I find the fitbit useful enough that I invested in a second one.

Hope this helps!

I love mine and I'm glad I bought it.

I love my fitBit! It syncs perfectly with MFP for normal daily activities. I run and hues my PolarF7 to log the runs and I assume you could do the same with yoga. I log the activity into the FitBit interface and let it sync with MFP. Basically I only use the FitBit interface to log in activities like sleep and workouts (it does daily steps, etc on its own) It automatically syncs all of that with MFP.

Ive been using them like that since I joined MFP and its been awesome!

I would definitely vote DO IT!!!

I love mine too!!! It makes me move more, that is for sure. It syncs perfectly If I could name one con about it, it is that I drive lots (4hours+) and because of the bumpy roads I get credit for steps(and extra calories) that I didn't do, BUT all I have to do is go in and over-ride it as "driving" and I lose the steps that it logs.

It is worth it.

I use the Fitbit and find it to be a fabulous help. I find it gives a more accurate picture of my overall calories (in and out), and it allows me to monitor steps taken, how well I'm sleeping, and my vitals (BP, heart rate). The visuals provided on the site give a good picture of my progress and it's easier to determine what is or isn't working for me. I'd say it's worth the $100.