About slysam

@Dollydenim wrote: I wanted to know how to set up the active minutes on my fitbit profile to use it, unless the activities I'm doing aren't long enough or aren't the same long enough for the fitbit to count it With Fitbit's active minutes it can go either way. It is about the duration (I think it needs to be at least 10 minutes in duration, is that still true?) and it is about the calorie burn per minute. The calorie burn needs to be a certain ration more than your resting calorie burn. I believe it is what is considered moderate activity on up. Oh, and it also needs to be activity your tracker can sense unless you are manually logging (this will vary a little depending on the type of Fitbit you have so it makes it a little complicated). As far as settings go, the best thing is to make sure your stats are accurate and possibly to make sure your stride length setting is reasonably accurate. I set mine for a normal fairly brisk walk and my running stride is jogging with a shorter stride. Also, if you are doing activities that your Fitbit doesn't track well, for example you have a One and go to spin class or lift weights. Or you swim but use well, any fitbit (sonce they are not waterproof or programmed to track swimming). Then manually logging your workout will make your active minutes more accurate for your true activity level. I hope that makes sense, it is hard to give a dumbed down but meaningful answer. I objected to the change to a minimum duration because I sometimes do interval activities where I work vigorously for 1-2 minutes then recover. I don't get as many active minutes from these as before this change but my heart rate monitoring fitbit does okay with this. If I were only using my One, I would need to log the interval workout. ... View more

Hi, I haven't been as into heart rate monitor training lately, but it use to be a mini-obsession of mine. I use to find that on screen or paper it looked like I never received a good workout because my heart rate would read as lower than the appropriate zones. The thing is... There is so much personal variation in heart rates. Some people naturally have a higher or lower maximum heart rate. Some people naturally have a higher or lower resting heart rate. Some of those can be further influenced by personal fitness, hormone balance, and health (among other things). Most formulas are using a standard to guess based on your age and gender. The benefit to adjusting custom ranges is that it can be more accurate for you when you are looking at your workout intensity. For example, my heart rate runs lower (more so in the past as I was slightly hypothyroid but undiagnosed). So I can do stair laps and be out of breath at 140 bpm. At the time when this was the case, I was exercising once or twice a day up to two hours and averaging 15k steps. On paper 140 bpm should have been my normal cardio range, but my physical reaction as like it was anaerobic. I thought I had poor aerobic fitness and started mixing in HIIT to increase my range. I ended up using an hrm app that links with Fitbit iCardio, and it offered self-administered tests to set a custom range. When I ran the test, the maximum HR was around 150, and 140 was in the anaerobic zones. I find when I walk briskly my heart rate is around 101 which by my custom range was in my fat burning (this makes sense as walking tends to be a fat burning zone activity) while running up stairs can be an anaerobic activity. Setting a custom range made it easier to keep track of my actual workout intensity, and I think it made my calorie burn estimates more accurate and also made it more useful to pay attention to my heart rate during exercise. I mainly go by perceived exertion and use the heart rate more for feedback and record keeping, though. So I guess that mainly just answers the why you might want custom zones. ... View more

All calorie burn numbers are guesstimates. Keep that in mind. One source of difference can be different formulas for your base calorie burn (BMR/RMR which represent calories someone with your stats would burn without activity). I know you are asking about exercise, but this is often built into the formula used by various app, activity trackers, gym cardio machines and heart rate monitors and can make a difference. I would trust the method that uses the most data about you. You want to make sure your height, weight, age and gender are correct. My guess is probably Stava since it would have your stats, the activity (that can be important), distance and heart rate data. But I haven't used Stava. Some apps report heart rate for training purposes, but don't use it in the calorie burn estimates. ... View more

@oriori13 wrote: I have a FitBit One that I wear daily as well as during dance class. I am trying to lose weight so I also wear a HRM during class and I log everything in SparkPeople. Class is 1 hour and according to my HRM I burn on average 500 calories a class. My FitBit logs my steps for class as usually around 3k steps. It's Tahitian dancing so there is a lot of movement. My main question is, am I accidentally double counting my calorie burn? My FitBit is synced to SparkPeople and records an all day exercise calorie burn based on steps alone. Then I add always add any other exercise (Dance, walk, cardio workout etc.) But I'm wondering if I am double counting on dance/exercise? Should I only count the HRM? I have a One and used a heart rate monitor for years. I also dance as a hobby and sometimes perform. I found that my One did just fine with dancing that involved larger movements and traveling steps. For those the One counted calorie burn was pretty similar to my HRM. However, for some dancing the One did not pick up my steps. This included belly dance, Flamenco dance class, and my old Hula dance class. So I would log it from my HRM or my average HRM if I didn't wear it that session. Spark complicates it a little. I haven't used Spark for about a year or so. My opinion is likely outdated.I found the allowance Spark gave me (when linked to Fitbit) was way too high. It was higher than the allowance Fitbit would give based on my stats, activity and logged exercise. I just followed Fitbit's goal. I did log my aerobic exercise on Fitbit and strength on Spark. I think it shares both ways? I don't recall, I also would make a note in the notes section of spark for more details (which workout class or DVD, which type of dance, which stroke if swimming, etc). Usually, if you log an activity, it should overwrite the fitbit burn. You can test this by logging an activity with 1 calorie burn and see if it decreases your total calories burned. Then delete your logged activity and see if the calories restore to normal. I haven't paid attention lately because I rarely log my activity anymore as i have a Surge as well as my One. ... View more

I am hoping they add activity reminders to the Surge as well. I don't think it is dead as it still has some features the new Blaze doesn't have (like GPS). I mostly use mine during workouts and my other Fitbit for general life because the Surge is bulky on my small wrist. But I do sometimes use it when I am spending a long time sedentary and writing and the reminders would be great in that situation. ... View more

I hope they add it to the Surge since it is one of the higher end devices (maybe the highest end in terms of all the features and price). I actually ordered the Alta today. I am not sure what I was thinking since I already have a few Fitbits. My favorite are the One (my daily tracker) and the Surge (for workouts and also I use it when working at home for the reminders). My One has started irritating my skin when I wear it clipped on my bra (strange as it was fine for the two years I have had it) so I decided to go for a sleek, stylish wrist-worn option and the hourly reminders helped cinch that deal. I do still hope they add the reminders to the Surge. I had been setting the stopwatch when I am working at home to remind me to move. ... View more

Hi, I found my One was very accurate for me in terms of calorie allowance when I logged my non-step friendly workouts (yoga, weight lifting, swimming, etc). I would have to work very hard to burn 2000 calories a day though so I would lose weight eating 1400-1600 most days when I was dieting. I also have a Surge, and Charge HR. I actually get fewer steps with the wrist worn than I do with the One. I have mostly worn my Surge during workouts and sometimes desk-bound days (which is bulky for a female wrist, the face is wider than my wrist). My calorie burn was pretty similar on the Surge as the One other than I don't seem to need to log activity as much. Strangely, I don't recall how the Charge HR compares other than it counted fewer steps than my One. To me, not knowing all your stats your calorie allowance did sound high (for your height and weight though there are other factors). Are all your settings correct? Oh, one other thing about MFP. I am not sure whether I am giving outdated advice but this is based on my experience when I had MFP and Fitbit linked... Set your activity level higher to reflect your true activity level not sedentary. If you are getting more than 3000 steps a day, you are not sedentary. Back when I used MFP (over a year ago now), MFP was deducting the deficit off the base activity level. In my case, if I was set for 1 pound loss, the sedentary activity level setting only added about 350 calories to my BMR. So that was all the deficit that was taken off no matter how active I was in reality. That really isn't a big enough margin of error for me. When I set it to lightly active, MFP took off the whole deficit that I requested so my allowance would actually end up lower at the higher activity level setting than at sedentary. At that level I needed about 7,000 steps to see fitbit adjustment, if your steps are consistently higher you might even want to list your level as active. I also did not log any calorie burning exercise on MFP because it also adds it on top. I logged the exercise to Fitbit directly. I saw a lot of people struggle with this issue when I was using MFP and Fitbit together as it can work well, but in some cases can result in too high an allowance. I don't know about the Alta, it looks pretty. I would be interested to hear how it compares. But I would suggest reexamining your settings especially with the integration between MFP and Fitbit. ... View more

@Pyjamas89 wrote: Hi all I was wondering how everyone was managing to hit the 10,000 steps on a work day? I work a fairly active job where I'm not just sat behind a desk, only get half hour break so can't go for a walk then and then go for a short run once I get home but only really getting an average of 7-8,000. Does anyone have any suggestions for helping to improve on this? Any help greatly appreciated. 😄 x Honestly, I don't think you need to worry as much about a 10,000 step goal. My understanding of the origins of it is that 10k steps was developed with Japanese desk office workers in mind to encourage them to fit more activity in throughout the day. Lately it has been popularized as research is showing more and more the dangers of sitting too much. You are not sitting at work, though I think there are issues with standing too much as well (I find light activity easier on my body than standing. I have a part time job where I stand 4-16 hours, when I can I pace around a little to the extent I can without being weird). I do still think you should have activity goals for your time outside of work. Everyone still needs fitness-building exercise for optimum health. Maybe 8,000 on workdays and 10k (or more) on days off would work well for you. ... View more

I use to use Trainer and could very rarely meet the goal for calorie burn and it would tell me that mine was well below average for my class. It was crazy. The times I met the goal I exercised twice those days -- 2 hours and I walked while running errands or for transportation. I would need about 20k steps to met the goal. There was something wrong with the way the goal was calculated. In another group, there were heavier people who just started and were exceeding their goal with 5000 steps. I will say, the class comparisons are not correct unless the "overweight" women in your age bracket are also similar in height and weight. If you happen to be shorter or lighter than others in the group you likely won't burn as many calories. I will say how to burn more -- move more. Any time not sedentary will burn more. My highest burning day was on vacation where I spend a day walking between museums and browsing museums. I didn't do any actual workout and only had about 20 active minutes. The only sedentary time I had was eating a couple meals and sleeping. I suppose that is the other direction you can go with trainer -- very little sedentary time. The only thing I could figure with the goal is that if I was sitting or standing stillish it counted as my BMR. Technically BMR (basal metabolism rate) is laying down in a dark room. Sitting and typing doesn't burn a lot of calories but more than BMR. Standing and preparing food doesn't burn a lot, but more than sitting and typing. But they would be about the same as total rest with my Fitbit One. So I think it would underestimate non-active time. I don't think the wrist-worn do that as bad, though I still feel my One is more accurate with counting steps. ... View more

You get fitness benefits from all the zones. I think it is better for your body to do both throughout the week since too much running can lead to injuries for many people. So it is good that you vary your activity. Now, I would suggest that you not worry so much about the "fat burning zone". As mentioned it is often misinterpreted. You burn fat calories in both workouts. I suspect if you were to look at the calories estimated that you burned each minute you would have burned more fat calories during the higher intensity workout. My old HRM would report an estimate of fat calories burned and it was actually higher during more vigorous workouts where there were fewer "fat burning zone" minutes. Not that it matters that much. Some people follow programs where they only do higher intensity "carb burning" workouts like Hiit intervals and strength training. They often lose fat doing this when coordinated with a good diet. They still burn stored fat from their body. I think if you enjoy both, do both. Both have their benefits. ... View more

@RobiWynia wrote: Hi I'm interested in buying a Fitbit but I have a question its accuracy. I do a lot of walking and bending over at work and and wondering if it will differentiate between the two. Thank you for your reply Not sure. A tri-axis accelerometer tracks movement up and down, side to side and forward and back. So in theory it could. I think I read that Fitbit is now programmed to recognize a few common activities. But I am not sure if that will affect the step count. I wouldn't worry about it. To me, "steps" isn't just literal walking steps (though steps are my most common activity). The 10,000 step programs are more about encouraging movement and activity. Often they have charts to convert time spent doing non-stop activity into "steps". I would be more concerned if you find small movements counted, but bending over uses a lot of muscles and may be equivalent to a step. I did once test this, but I think fitbit's program changed since then. Once I spent an afternoon cleaning a closet. This involved going up and down a ladder and bending over and reaching up. I had very few steps counted but my Fitbit did credit me for light activity. So it sensed activity but only credited some steps. However, I think the programming is different now and I haven't recently tested this. ... View more

Impact does matter with the Fitbit and accelerometers in general. I agree it is very different between the torso worn (one and zip) and wrist worn devices (I happen to have a few Fitbit's -- a one, charge, and Surge). I am not sure whether it is exactly impact, but yet I get a higher Fitbit estimated calorie burn and active minutes with higher impact. (I know they measure gravity and aceleration and track movement relative in three directions -- up/down, right/left, forward/back). I am just not sure with how Fitbit is programed whether it is using more the gravity/acceleration or the up/down motion. Anyway *I see a higher calorie burn going down the stairs than up when moderating my pace with a metronome *I see higher downhill rather than uphill *I always get more active minutes with high impact activities (though running in place has enough impact) *I tested a walking workout video doing it once normal and once with a weighted vest (10 pounds). They had very similar step count and the exact same distance. But the weighted vest was credited with higher calorie burn and more active minutes. I did not log anything or change my settings. I felt slugish and had trouble staying on beat while wearing the vest. I expected it to have been credited lower. I was really surprised. I am not sure how stride length fits in with calorie burn if Fitbit tracked. I thought stride length was mainly to estimate distance. However, I think impact (or up and down motion) might have something to do with whether the walking stride or running stride is applied (and speed too, but my jump roping always counted as "very active" under the old way but the pace was slower than my walking that was counted as "moderately active"). I can only guess it identifies jumproping as running because of either the impact or the up and down motion. The wrist worn are totally different in how they feel impact though. I miss steps holding on to things like shopping carts. I actually get credited with fewer steps with the wrist worn than my One. I have to move my arms a lot to get false step credit. But it is apples to oranges in some ways. Of course, I don't know Fitbit's secret formula and a lot of it is in how it is programmed to recognize movement. Have you seen the article from the New York Times "What Does Your Activity Tracker See and Not See?" It is really informative, but it wasn't a Fitbit and it was posted a couple years ago... But the draphs make it look like the accelerometer they use responds a little to impact (Look at the weight lifting example): http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/projects/2014/03/accelerometers.html ... View more

@amahmud wrote: Hi. I set my stride for 19 inches. When I walk approximately 10 miles, my Fitbit One registers it as 79 miles! I ignore the milage since it's obviously way off. Hmmm.... Strange. Are you sure it is set for inches not feet? I am only 5" 1" and my Fitbit One Stride is set longer than 19 inches, but I do not have this problem. My stride is set for 2 feet 6.1 inches (30.1"), this is the distance covered per step when I walked on a track. My Fitbit mileage is very accurate unless the route is very hilly. Or is it counting a crazy amount of steps? (If so, how are you wearing it? Is it as directed for the One -- on hip or torso?). Mine has never credited me for 79 miles in a day. My best was over a little over 10 miles for 25,000 steps ... View more

@sinch wrote: I do understand that a Fitbit is not exact, but my friend and I both have a Fitbit One. I am much more sedentary than she is. Yesterday, I spent my time around the house, not doing much. My Fitbit showed 2500 steps and 1600 calories. My friend had 6000 steps, which included a 2 mile walk, and only showed 700 calories. Since the Fitbit includes the calories you burn just by living and breathing, I think mine are closer to correct than hers, but why is hers only showing 700 calories burned? What time of day was it? My first guess is that her Fitbit might not be set for the correct time zone. The calorie burn starts at 12am the time it is set for. The other option is, did she have the activity/sleep timer going at the moment when she looked at the calorie burn? If so, the fitbit would be flashing, and in that case the calorie burn would only be for the time that passed since that timer was started not for the full day so far. And finally, do both of you have your height, weight, age and gender correctly set in your profile settings? Sometimes people accidentally enter weird things like a very light weight or very short stature. For the calories burned existing, that is based on your height, weight, age and gender. As you can imagine it can be hard to compare calorie burn if someone is a different age, gender or size than you are. But my first guess is that she should double check all her settings. ... View more

@PaleoCrossfit wrote: @WhiteHusky1975 so far I have loved it (granted, this is my first tub, but still). Maybe you could use the Syntha-6 in smoothies (just so you aren't wasting your money). I make a green smoothie almost every day (spinach, kale, almond milk, half an advocado, banana, frozen mango, scoop of protein). If you used the syntha-6 in a smoothie like that (even just every once in a while), the fiber in the greens might counteract the negative side effects of the protein? I'm not 100% sure on that though, as I quite using it cold turkey because I was tired of being tired! That was my thought though I am not at all familiar with the Synntha-6. I have never had an issue with protein powders when I've used them, but I usually used them to add protein to fruit or vegetable smoothies. My first thought was wondering whether more fiber would help you. ... View more

@Newbie5 wrote: I walked for 40 minutes yesterday and 30 minutes today. Yesterday very few steps were recorded for the time slot. Today, it shows zero steps for my walk. My computer shows that my flex was syned 5 minutes ago. Also, how do you know when you need to recharge your flex? Something sounds wrong there. I would try recharging if it has been a while. I have to charge my one about once a week (maybe it can go two, I never notice but I receive an email when it needs it). I have to recharge my Surge every few days when I use it. I am not sure about the Flex. Were you walking on a treadmill, pushing a stroller or shopping cart? sometimes with the wrist worn devices if you are holding something like that it does not feel your steps. ... View more

That is a tough one. With my HRM watch I use to wear it as low on the wrist as I could (away from the wrist and lower than where the bell would touch when racked) and I also wore a pair of padded wrist bands (that look like the 80's bands but about 4" long and 1/2" thick). I love kettlebells, but have girly hands and skin that I want to keep soft. (And I don't like the pain and bruises). That seemed to work okay for me. Since I got my Surge, I have really only done kettlebell Swings and Get-ups. I am not sure if my Fitbit would fit the ankle. I have another optical HRM that I could wear around my knee using the extender (Schoshe) and sometimes I would use that. So I do know the sensors can work to some extent in other areas where the skin is similar to the inner wrist like the back of the knees. But how you would fit your fitbit around your knees is another issue. Or you could just log it as circuit training, according to my HRM the estimate for that activity is pretty good for Kettlebell training (if done in circuits like most of the kettlebell workouts I have seen). ... View more

@SunsetRunner wrote: does anyone wear theirs on the side of their waist? going to give that a go, as the bounce is limited Oops... I read wrist, but I am leaving my last post up in case some of it is useful. It should be fine on your waist. The only issue I have seen with this placement (for me) is that it picks up more false steps in cars than it does on my bra (but this may depend on bodytype and how supportive the bra is. I tend to splurge on very supportive ones). I can see a loose t-shirt or top could be an issue as I think it moves less on snugger clothing. So you may see fewer false steps on your waistband. ... View more

@SunsetRunner wrote: I find that where I wear it and what I wear affects the accuracy, a loose top for example will add an extra step or 2 however, wearing same top, and using a hand and pushing it against my chest reducing bounce makes it accurate going to try a lanyard tomorrow does anyone wear theirs on the side of their waist? going to give that a go, as the bounce is limited I would not wear a One or Zip on the wrist. It may over count or under count, but it would be flawed since it is not designed for the wrist. I have used some Fitbit models designed for the wrist, they exclude some movement from your step count. I actually get fewer steps on my wrist worn fitbit over all (though some activities are credited higher than my One, and others lower). However, my One is inclined to overcount when worn on the wrist. I usually wear my One clipped to my bra or my waistbant (or in a coin pocket if wearing jeans). I think it would work well in a lanyard if you wore it inside your top for your most active time. I will be intersted to hear how that goes as I have not tried it. I have tried a necklace that an Etsy seller made and it seems a little less sensitive but if it errs it errs on the side of undercounting. This makes me think a lanyard might work fine (the necklace is heavy enough that it does not allow bouncing). ... View more

@walkwithcandy wrote: I know I walked 3 miles this AM at a much faster pace than usual. Shows 55 active minutes but only 2.23 miles. This is so wrong.....This is also my third fit bit as they keep going belly up on me. Wonder whats going on. Your stride will be different at different paces. Stride = distance you cover with each step. When I walk briskly I spring forward a little, more the faster I walk and even more if I run. (some people mistakenly believe that stride = length of their legs or inseam). If you have not done so, you should figure out your average stride per step for walking and running. If you rarely or never run, then use a very brisk walking stride for your running. The most accurate method I have found involves using a running track or correctly measured flat trail or walking path. I wrote a post on my blog about the method I used. You need your fitbit counted steps and the actual distance (ideally not GPS measured since there is a margin or error with phone GPS, but in a pinch it can be a big improvement so may work fine for you). My post: http://www.feelingfit.info/2014/08/how-to-measure-and-calibrate-your-fitbit-stride-settings/ This sounds more like your average stride is set too short than a fitbit going "belly up" issue. ... View more

Your image was too small for me to see the actual words or details (I enlarged it but the resolution was too low to read). But something does look funny to me. What are all those GPS maps? On my Surge, I only get one map per tracked walk when I use the exercise mode on the watch. But, I never use the tracking mode on the Fitbit app. Often I use the activity/sleep mode on my Fitbit One but that does not make GPS maps. Where are your maps coming from? Are they from the Fitbit app? Or do you use a Surge? (if so, are you also using the app, if you are maybe stop using the app to track), or do you have another service like Endomondo, Strava, etc that you set up to sync to Fitbit? If you are synching from multiple sources you can end up logging more than once. I often see two records as HeyBales described but that is when I use the timer on my Fitbit One (this applies to others, but maybe not the Surge) and then manually log an activity or use a third party app that logs for me. In my case, one record shows what fitbit would have tracked (but no map since my One does not have GPS) and the other record shows what I overwrote the Fitbit data with. Sometimes people think this is counting both, but it is not (in my case nor should it be). Your picture looks like something different is going on, but I can't see the times on your listings. I don't use the tracker in the Fitbit app though as I really see no need for it in my case and when I tested it, I didn't like how it altered my step count. ... View more

@JRyan wrote: Thanks for the many helpful suggestions, which I will try. I should have explained that I don't carry my Fitbit fob around with me all day. I only carry it when I am "exercise walking." I wanted a device to measure the distance I walk, and someone gave me the fitbit. Usually I walk on a marked track - or when it's too cold, on my treadmill. I thought that I had properly calculated my stride length, but clearly that is the problem. I'll try your suggestions and see what happens. If you are using a track it chould be fine. I found the method I used (I posted a comment or few back) works fine for me when I measured it on a track. I did one mile for my walking stride to get a good average. You want to factor in the actual distance with the fitbit device counted steps. That way if it over or undercredits your steps it may still get a good "average" as long as the error is pretty consistent. I really should do this test again with my Surge, but my Fitbit distance is still pretty good (I tested on a One as that is what I wear outside of exercise). Be sure and calibrate both walking and running even if you don't run (in that case use your brisker walking pace). I am not sure about the treadmill because originally I calibrated on a treadmill and the distance would always come up short in real life. Then when I calibrated on a track, it was fine except sometimes it is long when I use a treadmill. I think the treadmill regulates our stride so it isn't always natural (at least if we only ocassionally use it, it may be different for those who often use a treadmill). ... View more

@UVcat wrote: Can I ask how you calculated your stride length? I did mine by walking 0.1 miles on the treadmill while counting my own steps. I did this while wearing my flex, so I could also check how accurate its step count was. I found that as long as I was swinging my arms freely (more of an issue with the flex than the zip, I would assume), it counted my number of steps correctly (it was plus or minus a few steps from my count). Great. Then, I used my step count for 0.1 miles (at about 3.5 mph treadmill speed) to calculate my step length and inputted this into my settings. The thing I don't fully understand how to account for is that my stride length definitely varies with how fast I'm walking. In order for my fitbit to be accurate for the "puttering around" steps I take around my home or at work, I think the stride length would need to be shorter (I'm not walking at "full tilt"). You can enter two stride lengths -- walking and running. If you don't regularly run or if you use a treadmill or GPS for your running distance then you can use these two strides for regular walk and fast walk. I am pretty sure my One would sometimes credit me for running when I was walking briskly. It use to overestimate and did it even after I calibrated my walking stride. This was fixed for me when I calibrated both (though it underestimates when I run since I chose a compromise between a jog and brisk walk for my running stride). I wrote a post about the method I used. I would suggest you do a longer distance like a full mile or half mile if you can to get a better average. I did mine on a track outside and it tends to be accurate outside (treadmills change our stride some, but it is usually close if I set it at my average speed). My post: http://www.feelingfit.info/2014/08/how-to-measure-and-calibrate-your-fitbit-stride-settings/ ... View more

Did you calibrate your stride? Even if you do it won't be perfect since the actual distance you cover per step will often vary depending on your shoes, the surface, etc. However if you figure out your average stride for walking and running it should be close. I posted instuctions on how I did it on my blog, for the method I used you need to invest a workout into the process but my Fitbit distances are pretty accurate. When I test on a measured track my phone GPS is often off by .1 mile (often over) and my Fitbit is also often off by .1 (often under). If they were off in the same direction I would suspect the track wasn't accurately measured. However within .1 is pretty good. Here is a link to my post: http://www.feelingfit.info/2014/08/how-to-measure-and-calibrate-your-fitbit-stride-settings/ ... View more

@dynagirl wrote: from what I understand fitbit will not track ur exercise if you are not actually moving in distance. I am not sure what you mean, mine definitely will track activity if I am moving in a way it can detect but I don't have to be moving in distance. For example, my Fitbit One credits pretty much the same calorie burn whe I jump rope while wearing it as my Polar heart rate monitor. I am in the same spot the whole workout (and didn't log it so it is just what the tracker detects). A triaxis accelerometer can track movement in three directions, usually forward and back, right to left and up and down. I think it does credit walking covering space (forward or back) better than stepping in place, but it can track movements in one place too. It doesn't do as well with resistance activities since the movement isn't where the intensity comes from or activities like cycling or rowing where you are mostly still as far as the device can detect. ... View more

@CaptDad wrote: I have similar concerns. I have a Fitbit surge and I use MFP for intake and I use a HR monitor linked to DigiFit for workouts. My question is, if I have my Surge on & DigiFit tracking my workout, am I seeing calories burned tracked by Surge added to the calories burned tracked by DigiFit - or does FitBit account for the 3rd party data imported. Should I stop using DigiFit & strictly track with surge or simple take Surge off when I workout? Love the Surge - just don't want to cheat my efforts with mis-leading information. I use to use Digift all the time. I trust their calorie burn more because I did the assessments and have custom zones set (my heart rate zones are a little weird). I use to use my Fitbit One for all day tracking and walking and Digifit for non-walking workouts (and a non-bluetooth waterprof polar for water workouts that I manually logged). That actually seemed very accurate for me in calorie burn as I was dieting and would lose a pound when I had a deficit slightly higher than the 3,500 (I assume my food logging wasn't perfect aspecially as I ate out a couple times a week then). At that time there was no double counting, Digitfit was replacing Fitbit's burn. The way to test, pick a day to sacrafice your logged exercise. Look at the numbers and note them (calorie burn, etc). Then delete the logged activity and see how it changes things. Though, I should say my Digifit and Fitbit One gave the same estimate for jumping rope, zumba, cardio kickboxing and jogging for me so it would show no difference. I found the biggst difference with circuit training either bodyweight curcuits or weight curcuits. But I don't know that the Surge would show the same difference. I use a Surge during workouts now. I don't actually feel that the calorie burn is as accurate for me as Digifit, but since I am not counting calories I am not that worried about it. So I actually have not logged exercise since using the Surge. The other test would be to manually log a 1 calorie hour long workout and see if it decreases your calorie burn. If replacing rather than doubling it should. You can always delter the test workout after you are done and it should restore the fitbit numbers. I tend to do this over a sedentary time period or one where nothing is logged to avoid messing with my actual logged workouts. If you log multiple at the same time it will count each one (I had that once when Digifit had a glitch and sent 3 of the same workout to Fitbit). ... View more

@SilviaFitbitI have used various Fitbit's for years. In the past it has always been that when you log an activity that whatever you log replaces the Fitbit tracker's estimate for that time duration. That is why you log a start time and duration. This has always worked, I have seen my calorie burn increase, decrease or stay exactly the same depending how what I logged compared to Fitbit's estimate. It did not double count. Has this changed? If so, why? It makes no sense that Fitbit would remove a useful function to replace it to one that would ruin people's results (especially for those eating based on their Fitbit calorie burn). I haven't been logging workouts recently since wearing a Surge, but I am confused by the advice about double countingsince that is something that didn't use to happen. It also seems inconsistent if so, because some are asking why their calorie burn decreased after logging exercise. The decrease makes sense if the Fitbit burn is replaced when an activity is logged. Is it different for different trackers? There just seems to be confusing conflicting information including from moderators. ... View more

I have have had a Fitbit for years and have used most of the apps in the app gallery. But keep in mind things do change and I haven't looked at this as closely lately because I realized it doesn't really matter. When you log something (or when another app logs it for you) than whatever is logged should replace Fitbit's estimate. It isn't that Fitbit doesn't trust it's own data, that is just how it is set up. People generally log an activity to correct Fitbit's data. It will have to do with the information Endomondo is sending over to Fitbit. With your strength workout (I never used Endo to log strength training so I am not sure how it works...), do you log specific times? The workout needs to be stamped to the specific time it replaces. Many apps that let you log strength workouts do not do it this way. I noticed when I used Endomondo it logged weird intervals of activity that made no sense to me so I stopped using it. I didn't trust its data and discovered apps I liked better. I will say, the total Endomondo gave you for the workout should be its estimate including the calories you would have burned living. That is because what it is replacing on Fitbit will be a total for a given time period including the calories you would have burned anyway. Most estimates do include those base line calories burned, but some do not. If you log something that dosn't it will credit with fewer total caloreis burned. If it is using a total, it is possible that there really wasn't as big of a difference between Fitbit and Endo's estimates as you thought. What did Fitbit credit just for the time period of your workout? My heart rate monitor app has logged workouts and there was literally no change to the calorie burn for the day (though this never happens for weight lifting, it tends to be for more step based activities). That is because the two estimates actually matched each other. ... View more

@NatalieSheppard wrote: @smhermione wrote: Kevin is right. If your log your activity it won't double it because fitbit will erase the steps that it had tracked for that period of time. That's why it is important to make sure you log your time correctly when you log you various activities. Happy stepping! Mine does double the steps when I manually log it...or if I go on a walk & track it with the GPS. But, I have also been having an issue with the miles not adding up with the steps I have walked. I walked 2.5 miles today & fitbit said I did not even walk 2...I am going to try to reset it tonight & see if that helps... It shouldn't double since what you log should replace Fitbit's estimate. Is it logged for the correct time? I would suggest you email customer service. Just a note, you may see two records if you have it manually logged (or logged by another app) and you have an activity record. This is just showing what you logged and what fitbit would have credited, it shouldn't be doubling. The way to check is if you delete the logged record is it very significantly decreasing your steps, distance and calorie burn? About the mileage. Are you refering to your Fitbit mileage from the trackers data? People's stride length varies. The same person's can vary depending on what they are wearing (especially shoes), the route, their intention, who they are walking with, etc. But a typical stride will also vary by the person. Fitbit factors in height and gender to get an estimate but yours may be higher or lower. You can measure your average stride and calibrate. I did that and mine if pretty accurate when walking at my normal pace outside and also for jogging. (I wrote a detailed blog post about the method I used: http://www.feelingfit.info/2014/08/how-to-measure-and-calibrate-your-fitbit-stride-settings/) Even though mine is accurate since calibrating, I do not walk 5 miles in 10,000 steps like the classic average, it is more like 4 miles and something for me. It varies person to person. It sounds like your stride might be set very short for some reason. ... View more

The problem with articles like this... They seem to emphasize what people spend on fitness. What they don't always acknowledge is that most inactive people do not stick with these things long enough to see results and that people may not always be honest about how active they are or are not (even to themselves). Anyone who regularly goes to the gym knows how crowded it is in January then how much less so in February or March. and many who go may or may not be making the right lifestyle changes the rest of the day. Weight loss is mostly about diet and nutrition, I agree. And often the weight loss benefits of exercise are oversold. For most people, even consistently working out an hour a day will only make a small difference in their calorie burn, and it may give them an excuse to eat more if not also being careful with their diet (which is human nature and survival instinct). However, that isn't really what all day trackers like Fitbit are promoting. Fitbit (and similar devices) are promoting increased all - day activity. The average sedentary person burns something like 80% of their total calories just existing. For someone like me (smallish, female) a good workout may burn 200-300 caloreis (including about 60 I would have burned existing). That doesn't really allow me to each much more in a day especially if I am sedentary outside my workout. However, it helps and more importantly it helps keep my body healthy and gives me stamina. The results are better, if I also replace more of my sedentary time with light activity, well that will boost my calorie burn better than my workout and usually does not trigger increased hunger as much. That can allow me to add 500 calories (more or less) a day. I think one benefit of all day trackers is they can help the user think about the whole 24 hour day and how to live a more active lifestyle all day. This makes more of a difference. This made it so I could eat the amount that would have maintained my weight (if sendetary) and lose weight without feeling that deprived. It is a tool for people to work out the right balance of food, sleep and activity for them. And it often works very well for those who get that concept and approach it as tool to assist their lifestyle change. Sadly, writers of these articles often do not get it. Though they often raise some very valuable points to consider. However what really gets me, the value of exercise and activity is not just weight loss. It is so much more, weight loss is just one thing that helps motivate people to start. ... View more

@susiebee44 wrote: A month ago I upgraded to a Charge HR (from a Fitbit One) and noticed an immediate increase in Active Minutes, so guess the heart-rate info was making this happen...I haven't read all this topic's posts, so will do so to see if others have noticed this. Any comments would be helpful... Likely, I have used quite a few of the trackers. Currently I have both the One and Surge attached to my account (you can link more than one now). When in "exercise mode" the Surge does credit me for more active mintues for some specific activities that One would not based on movement. Is it because it is factoring in the heart rate or because I am wearing a wrist worn tracker vs. torso worn? I've worn mine to a barre class that does include some nonimpact aerobics mixed in (non step). My one sometimes classes this type of workout as a nap if in timer mode. The Surge (and I think Charge HR) did credit it with some active minutes (not the whole class) when in workout mode. Likely because some of the time my heart rate is in aerobic zones. I still prefer my One for general activity as it counts more steps for me than the wrist worn trackers (I have tried the Charge, Charge HR and Surge and this difference is consistent for me.) I had good success eating accoridng to my Fitbit One allowance (and logging non-step exercise from my HRM to adjust it). So I tend to trust it most. Right now I use the Surge for workouts and outdoor activities (for the GPS) and sometimes when sedentary at home to get the resting heart rate figure. I also think they might be including moderately active + active minutes (I heard that but haven't been paying much attention lately) so that in iteself would increase your minutes if you upgraded around that same time. ... View more

@lewisgl1 wrote: to clarify, i am not showing any difference in my calorie burn on the days i do intense crossfit activities for 2 hours versus the following day when i am taking the day off, but just walking the dogs about 3-4 miles a day (which i also do on the crossfit days) I'm trying to get a true estimate of how many calories that i'm burning doing crossfit, but the total number is about the same on all days. Also the active minutes seem to be grossly underepresented. I'm not sure what the problem is, but i want to turn the calorie estimation off to see if that helps but i cant find it. Hi @lewisgl1 which kind of Fitbit do you have (I have several)? And are you logging your Crossfit activity? The answer may vary by your device. I have been using a Fitbit for years and have used a few different types. Most Fitbit devices don't really do well with resistance activities and those that do not involve step like motions. They do fine with activities involving walking, running, skipping, jumping, some types of dance, etc. Not so well with lifting weights, cardio machines with high resistance settings, calishthenics where you are not traveling (i.e. pullups and pushups), etc. I typically need to log those. The heart rate monitoring Fitbit devices do a better job with those activities, but not always. ... View more

@Heybales wrote: @Arcangel25 wrote: did this before and i lost my excercise track on calendar. Showed no exercise for that day. That was a track based on GPS of probably smart phone - it may have been more accurate. Meaning your Fitbit is overestimating distance, and therefore calorie burn, and VAM time. But all you need to do is take the start and stop time - and go create an activity record with the same, which will then use the Fitbit recorded stats. After you delete that workout record with calorie/step/distance info that was NOT giving you VAM time. I haven't used the GPS log in the app because it does the same for me. In my case, I calibrated my Fitbit and the distance is typically accurate (or close, if off, the phone GPS app tends to be off by a similar amount when I test it on a measured track.) My fitbit calorie burn seems fine too compared to the link HeyBales sometimes posts where you estimate calorie burn from your stats and distance walked or ran. My other heart rate monitor GPS app Digifit gives similar distance and calorie burn to Firbit. But the mobile track (or whatever it is called) would take steps and very active minutes away when I used it. I only tried it for a week some time ago as it did this consistently. I was told it counts steps from the accelerometer in the phone. I would often have my phone in a purse or pack so I am guessing for me it missed steps. I thought it would be cool to have the GPS map of walks, but I ended up deleting it. This was quite a while ago so it may have changed. I just find letting the tracker track usually works best (if it is that vs the phone). Though if it isn't logged you don't get the tick for exercise, I don't really care about that as I can tell how active I was from the fitbit data. ... View more

@Willpower wrote: I am new to using fitbit. I purchased the "Zip"-which I love. After reading many posts in the forum, I was logging my elliptical minutes which average about 65 minutes per session. I discovered that my Zip was actually measuring my steps during my elliptical sessions-so I was in fact "double dipping" for calories burned ! I am confused though, regarding the "intensity level" I should designate for my elliptical sessions. I average 3.5 MPH which keeps me at or near my target heart rate of 132 per minute-I am 62 years old. Thus far, I am happy with my weight loss-have lost 18 pounds since 1/1/2015-though I have seemingly hit a "plateau" recently ! It should not be double dipping (unless this is a new bug), if it actually is then email support. The way it usually works is if you log an activity what you log replaces whatever Fitbit had credited. Whether I need to log the elliptical depends on my resistance settings. On no resistance my One over credits intensity. On low resistance my One and HRM give matching calorie burn estimates (but lower than the machine), on higher resistance levels the One underestimates compared to my HRM. I wear my One clipped to my sports bra so it does pick up some upper body movements. Where it falls short with the elliptical is factoring resistance, but that is true for most (maybe all) Fitbit devices and most activities where the intensity comes from added resistance. ... View more

@cmarti wrote: I've been sitting at a desk all day, and my Fitbit says I've burned 1,102 calories. Very confusing! Most of those are calories that you would burn anyway just being alive. This is based on your height, weight, age and gender. Individuals vary, but in my opinion the formula Fitbit uses is not out of line for what is typical for someone like you. There is another popular (more common) formula to estimate this that credits me hundreds more than Fitbit for a day. If you are very sedentary--no exercise, no walking on errands, no physical work, desk job, commute by car, read or watch TV in the evening, minimal activity... Your BMR (basal metabolism rate) is the calories you burn being alive (running your organs, digesting food, regulating your body temperature, etc.) and it will be soemthing like 75-80% of your total calorie burn. Even if quite active it will be a big portion of your calorie burn. Mine is about 1200 if I stayed in bed all day, and that seems about right and I am short and do not have a high BMR compared to a lot of people. ... View more

@SGreen09 wrote: Do I have to use the extra calories allotted each day due to my increased activity? What happens if I don't? And, I have the Fitbit HR - does that track my workouts so that I don't have to log separately as an activity? I haven't noticed how well the HR fitbit's do with strength training so I will leave that to someone else. Usually HRM's are better at estimating aerobic activity and strength training is anaerobic. But about the other... If you chronically undereat and take in inadequate nutrition it can slow your metabolism so you burn at a slower rate than you should. This is where the controversial "starvation mode" comes in. "Starvation mode" doesn't stop you from starving, but it tries so it slows the metabolism. Obviously you would still waste away if you continue to undereat. It can be a problem if you undereat for long enough that it kicks in then you go off your diet and eat normally. Some people find when they go off a very low calorie diet they regain weight quickly and end up gaining a little extra. This can lead to the yo-yo dieting pattern where you lose weight by depriving yourself, feel horrible, go off the diet than regain the weight plus a little extra. Getting a little fatter each time. If this sounds familiar to your experience, you might want to re-examine your pattern. I don't think it is a big deal to be under once in a while though. Some people even fast periodically for diet or religious reasons with no issue. The allowance is just subtracting your weight loss goal from what the fitbit estimates you burn. So if you say you want to lose 1/2 pound a week, it subtracts 250 calories from your burn for the day. The Fitbit is estimating your burn and in this case -250 isn't underating by much anyway. If someone on this plan ate -500 they might still be fine--it depends on their actual burn (as oppose to the estimate), how long they have been undereating, how good their nutrition is, how much body fat they are already carrying, and maybe lots of other variables. So it is hard to say one size fits all with diet. But undereating on a -250 plan probably isn't an issue unless already very lean. But undereating on a -1000 plan is more likely to be an issue again depending on various variables. ... View more

@Lou-dale wrote: It must be frustrating to put in hard effort and not get your active minutes as you had hoped. Oddly, the opposite has happened to me. My new Flex arrived just as I went down with gastric flu and spent 3 days in the foetal position. A mere 1,200 steps all day! Then I needed to walk down the road to the doctors; tiny steps, tottering like a drunken sailor because I'm dizzy and exhausted. Ta da! I've scored 9 active minutes! I guess Fitbit skews to measuring Active Minutes on stride frequency (lots of little steps, must be working hard) or by comparing to 'normal' activity levels (in my case, near comatose). I am sorry you were unwell! 9 active minutes really is not much (it is plenty when you have flu). The CDC recommends something like 30-45 per day (varies by intensity). Some devices count active minutes both as when you do vigorous activity and when you do moderate activity. You may have been doing moderate activity during that walk. I think lots of little steps can skew it a bit though, but it isn't actually just the total step count. It is the speed of those steps and how much motion (forward/back, side to side, up and down usually with a tri-axis accelerometer like Fitbit has). Fitbit does change their formulas, but at least recently the intensity level has to do with your calorie burn those minutes compared to your resting rate. The calorie burn is based on the movement data and how the fitbit formulas interpret it. But it isn't really just straight forward steps. you can have a sedentary day (I think 1,200 steps count as that) that still contain some moderate or even vigorous activity. It is possible something could be off, but I would personally suggest waiting until things are "normal" to judge this. ... View more

@SunsetRunner wrote: From what I have read on herein different posts, your better off not logging something that already counts VAM. True, if your activity is actually "very active". If it is crediting inactive time as "very active" than you might do better logging your activity to correct that (i.e. very active minutes riding in a car, if you have that issue. I luckily do not). Of course, you can log if you prefer, it is always your choice. Or you can keep it simple if that is your choice. ... View more

@Tami13 wrote: My new surge it giving me way too many very active minutes. I seriously haven't done anything but a slow walk today and I have been awarded 31 very active minutes. Not a fan of this..my fitbit one was very accurate for me in this catagory. Is there a way I can adjust this in my settings so I would receive a more accurate reading? I have a One and a surge too, I am not in the loop as much as Colin lately though. I just wanted to point out that they are using different standards. It can be a little difficult to compare devices because of this. The One (last I noticed) reports "very active" minutes meaning you burned a certain amount over your resting rate during those minutes (it was at least 6 times your resting rate). I don't know why those are called "active minutes" as actually a lot of healthy exercise is not in this category. I believe the Surge is reporting "active minutes" which is both your very active minutes the One reported and your moderately active minutes (the one reports those on your desktop, but they just don't count towards "very active minutes"). A lot of walking (really most walking should be "moderate) and aerobic exercise is what is considered "moderately active" minutes. So in some ways, this is actually more correct. I am surprised a slow walk counts, but if you had it in exercise mode your heart rate was likely factored. I think for the Surge, you also need to be active continuously at least 10 minutes for it to count (?). My guess is your minutes were of the moderate variety and maybe even on the low end of that standard. The settings do make a difference--mainly whether set to dominant vs non-dominant wrist and how that compares to how you actually wear it. I have mine set non-dominant and wear it on my less dominant hand. For everyday, I actually prefer my One as well. I think the Surge is great and has some nice features (such as convenient heart rate monitoring). I don't know that the stride setting makes a big difference for accuracy *unless* your distance estimates are way off. I set my stride the same on both devices for comparison, but I only calculated it using the One. But my Surge distances seem fine. Yours? ... View more

I use to a lot and found my Fitbit One actually did okay with jump roping on its own. The calorie burn matched or was similar to my Polar heart rate monitor (sometimes Fitbit was 10-20 higher than Polar, sometimes Polar was higher, sometimes they matched exactly). I haven't tried it with the wrist worn Fitbits though. It counted a step per jump which seems like it should underestimate but since it uses impact and/or up and down motion it seemed to get it close enough. ... View more