Review: Fitbit

The much anticipated Fitbit review! Where to begin? I can't say enough good about the Fitbit!

I first found out about the Fitbit from one of my friend's Facebook statuses. I would see her statuses daily proclaiming the number of steps and miles she walked that day and the number of calories she had burned based on her Fitbit. So I started my research....

The Fitbit is not your every day pedometer. A $0.99 pedometer generally tracks your steps and that's it.

The Fitbit on the other hand, tracks sooo much more. Let me show you...

First, the fit bit, like all other pedometers tracks your steps. Most pedometers are not accurate. Just shake em around a bit and magically you have walked an extra 20 steps. Not with the Fitbit! I have jumped with the Fitbit on, shook it around and still the step count did not move. I have also tested the Fitbit by counting my steps up to 100 and the steps were accurately recorded.

Not only does the Fitbit monitor your steps, it also monitors your distance! Again, I of course tested for accuracy. Two nights ago I took my Fitbit for a spin on the treadmill. One hour on the Treadmill I walked 2.16 miles. I had walked 0.5 miles the rest of the day to and from the fridge and around the house to my car and to the treadmill and just under a quarter of a mile after the gym. Super awesome!

The next view on the Fitbit is a pretty flower... it doesn't always look this big. The flower grows as you get active. The more active you are the bigger your flower gets. While this is not the most exciting feature it is meant to be a motivator. The Fitbit will remember how active you are and over time it will get harder and hard and you will have to do more activity to make it grow. Are you up for the challenge?

Lastly, my favorite feature! The Fitbit tracks the amount of calories you have burned throughout the day. I usually burn 2500 calories a day. This is an amazing feature because you can gauge your weight loss each day. In case you don't know, 1 pound is 3500 calories. So if the average bariatric patient takes in 800 calories and you are burning 2500, you should be losing 1 pound every 2 days, obviously more if you are malabsorbing your calories. If you are wondering how I burn so many calories... well, realize this thing monitors not only the calories burned when I am working out but the calories burned when I'm sitting on my butt writing this blog and when I'm sleeping! so 2500 calories a day!

You may have just noticed I said that my Fitbit monitors my calories when I sleep. I wear my Fitbit 24 hours a day! At night your Fitbit will monitor how much time you spent in bed, how long it took you to fall asleep, how many times you woke up & how much you slept.
                                                                                                                                                                    

The Fitbit comes with a wristband that you wear to sleep with a pocket for the Fitbit, a clip for your belt that holds the Fitbit, and the base station.  

Another perk of the Fitbit is the online program that it comes with. It's free and it monitors all the stats your Fitbit picks up on. Your stats are displayed in numbers, charts and graphs. Part of the program also allows you to track your food and exercise. There is also an online forum for use and a WLS group!

You can also link your Fitbit account with Facebook and Twitter to update your friends and family daily of your results. There will be a status posted that looks like this.

"I walked 6,752 steps and 2.9 miles and burned 3,001 calories via my fitbit http://www.fitbit.com/user/22BRX6"  ~ My actual stats from yesterday posted to Facebook

Breakdown of the Fitbit:


Pros:

• Small and easy to conceal
• Accurate
• Tracks sleep, calories burned over a 24 hour period, steps taken, and miles traveled
• Wirelessly syncs with the base station anytime you walk within 15 feet
• Holds 7 days worth of data
• Battery lasts about a week. I charge it whenever I am in the shower.

Cons:

• The food tracking systems doesn't have such an extensive food list but you can add foods to the list.

Where to Buy:

You can buy your FitBit in many locations. It is sold in most Best Buy's and 24 Hour Fitness Gyms. You can also buy it directly from Fitbit.com. I suggest you buy your Fitbit from 24 Hour Fitness Online because I have given you a coupon for 10% off below. 

Cost: $99.00 ($90 if bought from 24 hour fitness no tax or shipping)
Coupon: AFPRM50101210 (Valid until Jan 31, 2011) This coupon is good on 10% off any purchase of $50 or more.

The Main question people have asked me is... Why a Fitbit and not a BodyBugg?
For me there were a few reasons.
a. COST... The Fitbit was $90 while the cheapest Bodybugg is double that price. Also, the tracking program is free for the Fitbit while you have to pay a monthly subscription of $10 for the bodybugg program.
b. SIZE... I do not want to that big thing on my arm. It is nobody's business if I wear a pedometer. I don't need anyone to know I workout or I'm trying to lose weight. I wear my Fitbit on my bra and no one but me (and now you) knows it's there.
c. FITBIT TRACKS MORE.... I like that the Fitbit tracks my sleep. I have sleep apnea and my sleep is really important to me. The Fitbit tells me how many times I woke up at night and how much time I actually spent sleeping. This helps me monitor when it's time for a CPap adjustment. The Bodybugg does not do this.

If you have any questions feel free to leave it in the comments!
I hope you found this review helpful!
xoxo
Sleeve Pixie