The FitBit Flex…Buy It or Not?

Posted April 6, 2014 by Prairie Wife - 6 comments

So, last week was my birthday. The Cowboy is not known for his gift giving skills (more on that next week) and is usually hit or miss. Sometimes he does an amazing job, though it is usually because he calls Texas Two Steppin’, Cheleeo, or TallGirlJ for advice. Other times he does absolutely terribly! This year for my birthday he got me a FitBit Flex Wireless Activety + Sleep Tracker from our local Best Buy store. Now you might think that this was another oops for The Cowboy, because a FitBit is a way to help you keep on track with your exercise and usually weight loss goals. But, I lost all the baby weight from Cowboy C months ago and I had actually hinted that I wanted one. With all this blogging I am finding that I am sitting on my butt a lot more than usual. Add to that back to back trips to Vegas and France as well as this never ending Winter/Spring and I was hoping that having a FitBit would motivate me to move more.

Here is the verdict. I LOVE it! All you do is slip the super lightweight and simple bracelet on, register online (5 minutes tops) load the app on your phone, and get on with your life. The Cowboy was smart and bought me a pack of colored “bracelets” that you can slip the FitBit in. So, I never have to worry about it being super obvious. My watch fits comfortably next to it, and my bracelets all slide easily over it. You never need to take it off (it is completely water proof) but I do after the shower. Just to air it out, and so I don’t get lotion on it. It keeps track of all your movement as well as calories burned and distance in steps and miles. You can add workouts like Yoga that don’t register as steps into your app. It also has a food plan option and a calorie and water intake section. I am not particularly counting calories right now so, I haven’t messed with that part.

I was particularly excited to use the sleep tracker. All you do it tap the top of your bracelet rapidly for few seconds before you go to bed. It keeps track of your restless minutes, awake minutes, and sleep time. It’s pretty accurate (I noticed it took a day to really figure out my nighttime movements), it was right on track with the times I was up with the baby, and it was nice to see that it adds it all up for you and gives you the total time asleep and awake! Just don’t forget to tap it again rapidly to turn sleep mode off when you wake up, or your step count will be off! It can also be set with a silent alarm that simply vibrates when it is time to get up. This would be great for The Cowboy who often gets up for work at 5:30 (and wakes me and sometimes the baby with his alarm) but, for me it wasn’t any more of a help than my regular alarm.

The FitBit is set for 10,000 steps a day as your goal but I changed mine to 8,000. Right now with snow almost every day it might be weeks before I get to go for a run. And while yoga counts as a calorie burner it doesn’t add to your steps. On my errand days I easily made it over my 8,000 count but on days when we are at home I had more trouble. But, this is the great part…when I saw it was 4:00 and I still hadn’t met my goal, it motivated me to throw on some mud boots and go outside with the kids. I played a pickup game of soccer with Cowboy J and we walked to the mail box on several days I otherwise would have skipped it. I even found myself asking the kids to get things for me less, and instead did it myself, just to get steps in!

My verdict is this. If you are looking for a way to be more aware of your fitness level, whether for overall health or for weight loss, I think this is a wonderful tool. It took me maybe 10 minutes to figure out how to navigate the app and even less to learn to read the information it gave me. I am very excited to wear it on a run (if it ever stops snowing) and see how it measures up to my Nike Running app. It has definitely motivated me to get off my butt (literally) and get moving. The one day I didn’t make my goal I was really kinda bummed, and the next day I went out of my way to go above and beyond my 8,000 step goal! It made me more aware of my sedate times (it vibrates if you have been still too long, which I haven’t had yet) and I realized I do a lot more running around the house than I thought. Will this change your life? Maybe not, but I always think that being more aware of where you need to do better is the first and most important step towards positive change!

What has kept you motivated during this never ending Winter?

Categories: Prairie Wife Style

Tags: , exercise, fitness, Gotta Have it, Health and Motivation, heathy choices, technology, walking, working out