Considering a purchase - tell me about your Fitbit!

I'm considering purchasing a Fitbit. I already use Endomondo.com and MFP. Anyone have experience with how these three work together? Do you find the Fitbit helpful? Motivational? Worth the $$? Anyone bought one and not liked it? Thanks in advance for your input!
(Been on MFP since 2-15-12, down about 24 lbs)
:smile:

Replies

  • NMJosephs
    NMJosephs Posts: 185
    I LOVE my Fitbit. I link with MFP only. It works well. Everytime I go to the bathroom I'm checking my step count, flights of stairs and calories. If it's close to bed and I haven't made 10,000 steps I've been known to make laps around my house! It's definitely motivating to me! Plus I like that my exercise calories magically show up on MFP!

    I'd definitely recommend getting a Fitbit!
  • Navotc
    Navotc Posts: 97
    Thank you, NM! I am really eager to hear what everyone thinks of them and am so glad you took time to share your experience! :drinker:
  • VanessaGS
    VanessaGS Posts: 514 Member
    I love mine. It gives me a more accurate calorie count when I work out. You should definitely get one.
  • 4schrocks
    4schrocks Posts: 42 Member
    I too love my Fitbit!! :) I find it very motivational. Instead of using the bathroom on the ground floor at work I now purposely go up a level or two on the stairs. If the work day is ending and I haven't met my 10 level goal, I'll do the steps just to get the 10 level badge. It's fun to watch how much you do in a day. I love after I get back from the gym looking at the red in my calorie burned section. It's off the charts. :)
  • teinepalagi
    teinepalagi Posts: 86 Member
    I LOVE my fitbit. I had set myself to sendentary and the fitbit added more calories in because I apparently was a whole lot more active than sedentary. I no longer log any walking or running.....I just let it do it for me.

    It does not count biking, weight lifting, elliptical as well.....I count those separately. Even on my off days from cardio/weight lifting, I MAKE SURE I get in 10,000 steps a day...even if I have to dance around my kitchen to get it done. It makes me very aware of my movements.....and it makes me get off my *kitten* at work to walk around the hallways a little bit.
  • gigisview
    gigisview Posts: 13 Member
    LOVE my fitbit!!!

    It's simple motivation! And it helped me determine what I actually burn in my average day to eat calories accordingly.

    Well worth the money for me.

    (Started MFP 1-1-12, down 47lbs)
  • aegisprncs
    aegisprncs Posts: 236 Member
    I've had mine for a week now and the only time I am without it is when I'm in the shower. It is so tiny that it really is comfortable in a pocket or attached to a bra. I can wear it all day and forget that it's there (so much so, that I am afraid of losing it to the wash cycle). It get's me up walking and running if I don't meet my steps or stairs. I am completely addicted to it.
  • LeslieMDoyle
    LeslieMDoyle Posts: 162 Member
    I agree! I love my Fitbit. One thing to know...you can walk a 12-min mile one day and walk a 12-min mile the next day WITH ankle weights on...and the Fitbit will record the same calorie burn even though you would have worked harder during that second mile...because it goes by GPS location for your age/height/weight. It does not record your heart rate.

    But it's WONDERFUL for people who walk/run a lot...even incidental steps in a day, like a nurse does on the job. It is not as good for things like weight-lifting where you're doing a lot of work, but you're not moving from one location to another.

    But much like the previous poster, if I'm close to 10 flights of stairs or 10,000 steps for the day, I do whatever I can to hit those milestones before going to bed. I love it!
  • aegisprncs
    aegisprncs Posts: 236 Member
    I've had mine for a week now and the only time I am without it is when I'm in the shower. It is so tiny that it really is comfortable in a pocket or attached to a bra. I can wear it all day and forget that it's there (so much so, that I am afraid of losing it to the wash cycle). It get's me up walking and running if I don't meet my steps or stairs. I am completely addicted to it.

    Oh I've been known to turn up the music in my office and dance around to meet those steps!
  • monacandoitin2012
    monacandoitin2012 Posts: 5 Member
    Love my Fitbit !! Works great with MFP. I look at it constantly and if i dont have enough steps for the day, I have to go out for a walk and get it up to my 12000 steps per day minimum. Keeps me very motivated to get up and go!! I recommend it to everyone.
  • Sheila_Ann
    Sheila_Ann Posts: 365 Member
    I LOVE my fitbit. I had set myself to sendentary and the fitbit added more calories in because I apparently was a whole lot more active than sedentary.

    Did you change it from sendentary? I have the same issue, when I get home from work and it syncs up my calories for the day jump a lot. To the point that some days I just can't eat that much calories.

    My questions are:
    1. should I change it
    2. if I change it, should I still log my weight training and zumba classes? I wear an HRM and the fitbit when I do both.

    Thanks!

    oops forgot to add..yes I love mine!!!!
  • WaterBunnie
    WaterBunnie Posts: 1,371 Member
    I haven't tried twinning it with Endomondo yet because I generally just go by FitBit but will let you know how it goes if I do.
  • SmallMimi
    SmallMimi Posts: 541 Member
    I'm considering purchasing a Fitbit. I already use Endomondo.com and MFP. Anyone have experience with how these three work together? Do you find the Fitbit helpful? Motivational? Worth the $$? Anyone bought one and not liked it? Thanks in advance for your input!
    (Been on MFP since 2-15-12, down about 24 lbs)
    :smile:

    thanks for posting this request for input, I have also been considering buying a fitbit but, was not sure if it was worth it. Just worried that it does not track all exercise (just walking/running and stairs).
  • I absolutely LOVE my fitbit and find it worth the money. One warning, though- I had the first model and a couple of weeks ago I broke it when I sweat too hard while wearing it. I hear the newer ones are better about this. And the best part is, fitbit is sending me their NEW model as a replacement for free, even though my warranty has long run out.

    My fitbit should be here tomorrow and I can't wait to put it back on. I found it very motivating and made it a lot more fun to move when I saw immediate "results"....
  • ultim8fury
    ultim8fury Posts: 42
    On a work day I now take the the stairs always and take laps of the car park at lunch to meet 20 floors and 10k steps. Today I've done quite well and I'm at 12k steps so I'm going to try for the 15k badge and go for a walk in a minute. The damn thing just makes you want to work harder and more often. It's totally worth the money.
  • akshunj
    akshunj Posts: 4
    So far I love this thing. Crazy motivational! And I'm very competitive... Very happy with the purchase so far
  • TiffanyWasmer
    TiffanyWasmer Posts: 190 Member
    I love love love mine!! Not only does it make me feel awesome to see all of my hard work on workout days and active days at the office BUT it has been a great tool to show me when I'm NOT moving enough.
    I've realized that Sundays are a total blah day for me and am working on being a little more active when I can :)
  • ZoeLifts
    ZoeLifts Posts: 10,347 Member
    I was very excited about my fitbit when I first got it and wore it everywhere, eagerly checking to see how many calories I was burning. And then, after a couple of weeks on it, I realized that I didn't really care about the pedometer and that it doesn't measure rate of exertion like my HRM does when I exercise. It is only tracking that I am moving and that my movement may increase or decrease, or be on an incline or decline, or that I had not moved for a while and so I was sleeping.

    Also, I would feel a light twinge and burning sensation wherever I had it close to my skin and for quite a while after I had moved it and that freaked me out a bit, especially since I was wearing it on my bra and since there is a history of breast cancer in my family. I'm not saying there is anything there, and I am not a normally paranoid person, but I'm also wondering how much they do know about the effects of this new technology near the skin. I have seen where others have reported the same thing.

    In any case, I returned it because I'm pretty active anyway, it wasn't telling me anything new calorie wise, especially when I figured out it was not really tracking any heart rate exertion, and the skin thing was weirding me out.
  • Navotc
    Navotc Posts: 97
    cbcbrass,
    Super-helpful info also!
    Thanks, everyone, keep those opinions coming! :)