<p>^Maybe in your dreams you’re conducting an orchestra! :D</p>
<p>Thanks, guys, just ordered my FitBit, since they are all the same price, I went with REI as they will replace it if there are any issues.</p>
<p>I bought a FitBit Flex on Monday. It’s going back today. Wildly inaccurate counting of steps and the sleep tracking has issues as well.</p>
<p>Uh-oh, well I did not buy the flex. I think I will wear the fitbit plus use my MMW app for a couple of weeks to test it.</p>
<p>I did read a comparison website and there is one that works better than the rest, but it is huge and requires an armband. I like the ‘tuck it in’ ability of the fitbit</p>
<p>The fitbit works on a treadmill but not other stationary aerobic devices in our experience. It is also not all that accurate for jogging. If you are a serious runner then the Garmin would be a better fit IMO. It’s really just a simple device to track walking and stairs. That’s too bad about escalators. I have never tried tracking my sleep. Maybe I should.</p>
<p>You can track your sleep with Garmin devices that work with HRMs.</p>
<p>I use both the fitbit zip and the WW activity link. The fitbit opened my eyes to how sedentary my typical day is, and it entices me to run or to take long walks with the dog. I’ve upped my goal from 10,000 to 11,000 steps a day and I’m sure I’ll keep upping it. I love trying to get it all in in the morning so any steps during the day are gravy.</p>
<p>I love my fitbit too. The only time I have found it to be inaccurate was when I was in the back of a bumpy tour bus, and it recorded my bouncing around as we went over bumps. I think it gave me credit for 88 flights of stairs that day. I clip in in my bra so I don’t lose it.</p>
<p>A couple of things I’ve worked out in using my Fitbit One. </p>
<p>First, I attached a tiny cheap carabiner to mine so that I can clip it around something–I lost the first one when it came loose. I clip it to a belt buckle or zip it into a pocket.</p>
<p>Second, it is useless when riding a bicycle, except if you happen to stand on the pedals, which it does record. To me, it’s obvious that its software uses impact in measuring steps. I have experimented with walking with it in my hand very softly, and it will register no steps in that case; if I slide my feet, no steps. Sway in place, no steps. So it’s not going to be measuring steps if you use an elliptical runner or ride a bike. </p>
<p>However, third point, you can use their website to record activities that the Fitbit doesn’t measure, like swimming, cycling, etc. </p>
<p>Fourth, I use the iPhone app AND the desktop app. The iPhone app can be set to sync only when you tell it to, thereby using less phone battery AND less Fitbit battery. (The One’s battery lasts about a week in my use; I wear it all day every day.) The iPhone app can be a little squirrelly from time to time, especially if you have no signal; it will sync steps but loses track of the calories. </p>
<p>To me, the Fitbit itself is only part of the package they provide, which is a record-keeping website (I can look back at my activity in September, when I first started, for example), a calorie-counter that actually correlates how much I’ve eaten with how much exercise I’ve gotten that day (so I can eat more if I’ve walked all day and hit 20K steps…), and a source of silly and (to me) oddly encouraging emails: “congratulations! your lifetime stairs is the equivalent of climbing to helicopter altitude” (I’m currently at “747” and looking for the next one). I am a data-and-facts junkie and the ease of recordkeeping with the Fitbit has enabled me to really dig in to MY personal data about when and how I lose weight (I consistently plateau for weeks at a time, then lose three or four pounds at once). In addition, the cumulative record is very encouraging.</p>
<p>I’m looking at the rei website and they have the fitbit zip, fitbit one and the wristband tracker. Which one do you recommend? Been looking for something like this but I wish there was one for biking.</p>
<p>Also any recommendations for a heart rate monitor?</p>
<p>Deb922, the folks on the Diet/Exercise thread have LOTS of experience with heart rate monitors - I would suggest asking your question over there (don’t be intimidated ! They will be very helpful if you tell them what you’re looking for and for what purpose!)</p>
<p>I use the fitbit zip, but I use it only for the purposes of ensuring I get a certain # of steps a day. I don’t use it for food tracking, since I use WW for that. I don’t have a particular interest in knowing my sleep patterns, but some people do. I wear the fitbit in my bra (in between) and wear the WW Activity Link on a bra strap near my shoulder. They’re both pretty invisible in day to day clothing. It seems like a lot of people wear these things nowadays, it doesn’t seem to have the stigma it used to if it’s accidentally visible.</p>
<p>Not sure how accurate it is but my Fitbit does record steps when I use my elliptical. I tried to count a minute’s worth of steps at my normal speed and got around 60 for each complete revolution; my Fitbit recorded 100+ so it must record each stride. My test wasn’t very scientific but I did want to see if it worked since my elliptical is one of my main sources of exercise.</p>
<p>My Fitbit records my elliptical just fine as steps. It’s the biking that it (obviously) doesn’t get. But it’s really simple to adjust it on their website. I do so for biking (stationary and outdoor) as well as for yoga and pilates.</p>
<p>This sounds like something I might get my husband for Father’s Day. Does anyone know if it would record movement from rollerblading?</p>