Since I just got my replacement fitbit I am going to give it a chance. What are the other ways to monitor cardio workouts?
FitBit is really a step tracker and not a monitor of workouts that don’t involve steps. FitBit doesn’t give you any idea how hard you are working. Heart rate, time and distance are the other ways to monitor a workout.
I am just curious about my heart rate. Not curious enough to put straps on my chest, though.
Michael, you mentioned above that there were some ways to monitor. Am curious, but remember to please dumb it down for those of us who don’t know the lingo. 
Well then put your finger on your wrist and watch the second hand for 15 or 30 seconds and multiply to get the rate for a minute. Knowing your heart rate is only helpful if you know your resting heart rate (first thing in the morning- before getting out of bed- again, take it manually with a second hand) and some approximation of your max. The max is harder to come by without a hard effort workout where you are close to peak output. The formulas (google it- 220 minus age with a correction for resting HR) are very imprecise. If you know those two numbers, then you can figure out what zones you should be hitting for your exercise.
But while you are exercising, if you want a constant read out you either need to wear a chest strap or a more reliable wrist monitor such as Mio Fuse or Garmin.
Sure I can take my pulse when I wake up. If I feel one, and I am not dead, I’ll start my day 
A few years ago my super fit D wanted a fitness tracker with a heart rate monitor. After a lot of research she determined that the wrist band trackers weren’t going to give her an accurate reading. She ended up going with a simpler garmin wristband tracker. She went with garmin since they can get wet. I’m not sure why she wanted one. She is super fit and exercises at a high level daily. She loves to point out the trackers inaccurate data. Her step count goes up when she talks on the phone as she tends to move her other arm when she is in a intense conversation.
I think a fitness tracker works best for someone who tends to need a reminder to get up and move. I just sent me to my other D who is much more sedentary.
Years ago when aerobics was the go to fitness phase our instructor would have up take our heart rate via the method MomofWildChild describes in post 7643. We would take it at various points during the hour long class.
My new bike seat is coming tomorrow. Will be keener about biking with it - we have a green-way with marked bike lanes a few blocks from our home. Saturday H jogged while I rode the bike (I kept riding around to staying active while I waited for him to go the distance). The green-way is pleasant also because of trees shading the whole area, and even during hot days, the greenery and low area has it degrees cooler (area floods during heavy rain, and creek is along the way).
I use a Garmin GPS watch for running. It gives me all my data- time, distance, elevation, course maps, HR, pace, ave pace etc and downloads it all to my online running log. It’s very sophisticated and I love it. Most runners use a GPS watch. I wear my FitBit all day (and when running) to track my steps, even though I know it isn’t accurate. It does get me out of my desk chair or off of the sofa to move. I don’t feel like my “garbage” steps are a fitness boost, but the fact that I’m not sitting IS a health/fitness boost. It’s sort of fun to track the steps, too.
Finished at the gym. Checked it a lot on the treadmill for the hour I was on it and the numbers varied widely +/-. Then checked other machines and it was worse! Someone (you know who you are- thank you ) shared a link that there may be a class action against Fitbit for its inaccurate measurements. I plan to email them today and see what they say.
I told you in post 6733 that there was a class action about the inaccuracy of the heart rate function.
Yes, I see. Thanks. What the other person did was send me the link. Definitely worth exploring further.
Per another mod who follows these things more closely, the sniping level on the diet/exercise threads in particular is out of control. If we need to resort to harsher penalties and more suspensions to get people to act like adults, we will. I sincerely trust we do not have to resort to that.
I’m still doing what I’m doing. Nothing really interesting to report. I do Zumba and working out with a trainer and track my food and exercise in MyFitnessPal.
To all of you who are keeping on keeping on, yay!!! Remember, it’s for your health ultimately. THE most important thing we have, IMO, is good health.
I’m now nursing some kind of hip / groin problem. So much pain when I try to stand up, and can’t straighten leg. Hope it’s not the joint.
@SouthJerseyChessMom , ouch. Healing thoughts. Any idea if you might have injured it?
Had a training session today and it was hard!
Second thought…I seriously sweat like crazy and now with warm weather, its worse than ever. It’s embarrassing. I have to take a towel or handkerchief and constantly wipe my forehead and face. Ugh.
@VaBluebird I really don’t know how I did this, although I have done some 5 mile walks and didn’t stretch, and noticed some pinching in hip during plane flight recently. I’ve never had anything like this-so words of warning to others don’t forget to stretch !!!
Uh oh, @SouthJerseyChessMom ! How are you feeling? Did you get it checked out? What have you tried to treat it?
@jym626 trying the rest and ice routine, and Advil ,without results,yet. Reading about hip joint problems, and marveling how complicated that joint is and that it works at all is amazing. Vowing to stretch all my 600+ muscles regularly like Miranda Edmond -White of classical stretch fame onPBS advocates, when this is resolved.
And, probably, going for orthopedic consult if not better by this weekend, ;(
Clarification of previous post - when my joint “catches” and I can’t straighten my leg, it’s temporary, for a few minutes and happens when I go from low sitting ( toilet) and stand) I can walk and go upstairs without this pain. Only when joint locks is it painful.
How are you feeling @SouthJerseyChessMom?
I have eaten way too much these past few days, so will need to reign things in and am heading to the gym. Heard someone talk about this questionairre, supposedly matching exercise preferences to personality styles, so for kicks and giggles I tried it. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/workout-for-personality_us_571f806ee4b0f309baee8bf2
Doubt there is any reliability to it, but it was amusing just to see what it said. It did get right that I like to ski. But it listed other activities that are not height on my priority list.