My friend Lauren (over at Dimples Does It) has had this little contraption for a while now so she is much more experienced with it. I just got it on Sunday and used it for the first time yesterday but I will tell you what I know so far!
Basically, its a little clip on tricked-out pedometer that you can wear anywhere on your body (I wear it on my bra, TMI? LoL). I have the FitBit Ultra which tracks steps, calories, distance, and stairs climbed (not on regular one). It syncs wirelessly with your computer to upload data to the FitBit website where you can see all your data (OMG graphs!!!) and log your food and other activities throughout the day. You can make goals and have friends on the website also. It costs $99 and I believe is available at Best Buy.
When you start your day, it gives you a baseline calorie target for the day based on if you were to lay in bed and not move the entire day. My target intake for the day is shown at the top here. It shows how much I have eaten so far (178) and how much I have left (1386).
Then as you begin moving around and logging activities, it will increase your calorie intake for the day as shown in the second box. So far today, I have moved around enough to increase my calories by 52.
Additionally, I have mine set to have a weight loss goal of 0.5lbs per week until I reach 140lbs. “Easier” is the 0.5lbs per week. It shows the date I should reach my goal all the way on the right.
Sleep
One really cool thing about the FitBit is that it will monitor your sleep. It really just watches how much you move around but it is still pretty cool. Apparently I don’t move at all when I’m sleeping!
I think this feature will really come in handy! Only issue is, when do I charge it then??? Well, this morning, I put it on the charger while I was in the shower and then just tracked “Standing – preparing for bed” for 10 minutes. LoL!
Activities & Steps
This one is pretty self explanatory. You just track what you were doing during a certain time. You can track everything throughout your day including things like sitting at your desk, cleaning the house, etc. If you click on the picture to the right, you can see where I tracked standing this morning. I will probably only track major workouts in this. I guess it just helps to give a more accurate picture of the calories you burned throughout the day. It works with the readings from your FitBit for better accuracy. Below, you can see my Calories Burned chart for today so far. You can also view steps, floors and your “active score”.
Ok, now you guys can all see why I love this thing already! Lauren has been just raving about it for months. I wanted it but didn’t want to spend the money and find out I didn’t like it. Of course I love it! Look at all those charts and graphs!!! But seriously, this is really going to help me get back on the band wagon. I have been struggling a lot lately. Here comes confession time.
I’ve gained 2% Body Fat and 6lbs (7 yesterday but I lost 1 since yesterday)
This summer was emotionally rough. Then the moving, then school started. I just haven’t been able to get into a groove. I’m finally feeling more like myself now though and armed with my new gadget, I am totally ready to tackle this weight loss thing again! I took my measurements immediately when I set up my FitBit yesterday morning:
My tactic is going to be the same one I used to lose the weight the first time. I’m going to think about my calorie differential (difference between how many calories you burn during the day and the calories you ate, i.e. calories in, calories out). And the FitBit basically does all that for you with the way it increases your calories intake the move active you are. I’m going to concentrate a lot on building muscle so I’m going to make sure I eat at least 1500 calories per day (under 1400 and you break down muscle) and take my measurements every few weeks, not just weight.
Also, I’m just going to use the FitBit website to track everything and not Spark People. I know!!! I love Spark People but now its just going to be to check in with friends and maybe do some team stuff (been too busy for that lately). I will always love Spark People but I’ve got to pick one place. I am really excited though! How many people do you know get excited about fitness and weight loss?? Here we go!
This looks like a FANTASTIC tool!! I'm jealous…
Do they require a subscription to use the website after a "trial"period?
Nope! The FitBit website is 100% free!
~Ang
Wow! Looks like it's right up your alley! Very exciting! Enjoy!!!
Oooh, this looks great! Is the calorie count accurate though? That's my biggest gripe with electronics like that – I use my Polar because it's always accurate for me. Also, does it get irritating to wear constantly? (That was my bodybugg gripe). And do you know if it's waterproof? Lol, sorry, too many questions! But I'm really interested.
I also had no idea we're supposed to keep our cals above 1400 to keep from losing muscle!
Excited for you to kick it into high gear again!
Yeah! Good to know about the muscle thing huh?
– I can't even feel it when I'm wearing it.
– It sort of estimates your calories with your BMR combined with your movement so it will still be an estimation but a better one.
– It is not water proof (Ask Lauren who decided to wear it in the ocean, hehe!)
I figure this is good for me because its small and easy to use. Its not going to be 100% perfect but its better than just checking my BMR (times 1.2 for a sedentary lifestyle which comes to about 1750 calories for me). So far, I love it!
~Ang
FitBit is the COOLEST! I have a tiny pedometer that I always forget to stick on my belt. And when I do remember, I'm not sure how accurate it is. This FitBit is awesome!! Must check it out.
Haha — OMG Graphs!! Love that. I think I’ll have to ask for this for Christmas — sounds totally awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!