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Well-Trained Fitbits

ocelotmom

By ocelotmom,
in The Chat Board

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sunflowerlady
sunflowerlady

I am all happy and patting myself on the back when I get my modified goal of 6000. :). I will work my way up to 10000 when the weather is better.

Jean in Newcastle
Jean in Newcastle

I upped my goal by 100 steps this week.  I know - a big number, right?  But my goal is my minimum for even pain days.  On good days I easily surpass it by a thousand steps or more.  So tiny increases

melmichigan
melmichigan

I applaud everyone who is setting a realistic goal for their situation and meeting it.   :hurray:

DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

I am SO frustrated.

 

My Fitbit isn't working and I have emailed tech support 3 times and they take about 4 days to respond to each request.

 

I really am hoping they either replace it or offer a discount on another one and am waiting for that before buying a brand new one.

 

I am using my pedometer in the meantime, but can't log in with you all.

 

*POUT*

 

Dawn

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Tress

Tress

Posted
Posted

I am SO frustrated.

 

My Fitbit isn't working and I have emailed tech support 3 times and they take about 4 days to respond to each request.

 

I really am hoping they either replace it or offer a discount on another one and am waiting for that before buying a brand new one.

 

I am using my pedometer in the meantime, but can't log in with you all.

 

*POUT*

 

Dawn

 

:grouphug:

 

 

I don't even wanna look at the leaderboard. I was so proud of being in the top 10.....then I had to stay in bed for three days...and that was the end of that :glare: .

 

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Tress

Tress

Posted
Posted

Is the leaderboard rated by month?

Yes, by month. If you look at the full leaderboard, you can select 'by month' and '7 days'.

 

I knew I could never end the month in the top 10, but was determined to try for as long as possible.

 

Just for laughs, I made a screenshot when I was number one, which obviously only happens on the first of the month while all Americans are still asleep :lol:.

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DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

Thanks.

 

I am tempted to get a cheap Fitbit on CL to tide me over for a while.  Mine is just not syncing and I can't manually put in what is on my pedometer.

 

They are coming out with a new Fitbit soon.....I am curious as to what else it will do.

 

Dawn

 

 

Yes, by month. If you look at the full leaderboard, you can select 'by month' and '7 days'.

I knew I could never end the month in the top 10, but was determined to try for as long as possible.

Just for laughs, I made a screenshot when I was number one, which obviously only happens on the first of the month while all Americans are still asleep :lol:.

 

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Tress

Tress

Posted
Posted

Thanks.

 

I am tempted to get a cheap Fitbit on CL to tide me over for a while. Mine is just not syncing and I can't manually put in what is on my pedometer.

 

They are coming out with a new Fitbit soon.....I am curious as to what else it will do.

 

Dawn

A new model...ohhh, if it tracks bicycling, I will definitely buy it!

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aggie96

aggie96

Posted
Posted

You know, the more people that join, the harder it is to stay in the top 10!

 

 

Yes!  And my knee-jerk reaction?  No one who has more steps than me should join the group!   :glare:   I was aiming for a top 5 finish this month, but the top 10 is a tough group!

 

Between weather, my knee giving me fits, and family/life literally preventing me from walking around our lakes, I have started off September with a whimper instead of the bang I ended on in August.  :(

 

But WTM Fitbitters watch out!  I WILL get back in my groove.   :leaving:    

 

Keep stepping'!!!   :lol:

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Luckymama

Luckymama

Posted
Posted

I have a question about the "Very Active Minutes" on the leaderboard. After using my Zip for 2 days I have 82 very active minutes, then under that it says 7 avg. What does the 7 avg mean?

 

Also, is there a way to see groups from the app?

You can't see groups from the app---at least, I haven't found a way yet.

 

Very Active Minutes don't make sense to me, a non-runner. Some days I get a lot, some days I get 3, while walking the same route at the same pace. And using the elliptical at a killing pace doesn't get me any active minutes. Go figure. (I wear a One on my waistband.)

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DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

UGH.  After all the back and forth with the Fitbit folks and me thinking they would replace it (as many others have had done), it looks like they won't.  I don't have a receipt as it was a Christmas gift (and I prob wouldn't have kept a receipt that long anyway).

 

I wish they had let me know that over a week ago when I started emailing them.

 

I am picking up a used Fitbit, the cheapest model, for $20 off of CL today.  I will use that until the new model comes out and then will decide what to do.  

 

So, I will start this afternoon sometime.

 

Don't worry about me being in any top 10 competition!  I am WAY low on the totem pole!  I am up to 7,000 steps about 5 days a week right now.  That is my max so far.

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aggie96

aggie96

Posted
Posted

Re: Very Active Minutes
 
Everything I've read indicates that an Elliptical is more akin to cycling than stepping due to the motion.
 
As far as how to achieve/calculate VAM, I found this:
t all depends on the type of Activity. Fitbit One is a motion detector and reflects movement from the torso. The Active Minutes are calculated every 60 seconds based on steps and speed and your BMR. To achieve 1 active minute the resulting calorie burn has to be 6 times your BMR as a minimum. That is 6 METs as per the Fitbit Help Online.  [/size]I find it spasmodic, and many need to walk at about 3.8mph. I need to walk at 4.2 mph minimum. As you lose weight it gets more difficult to achieve VAM because your BMR drops. Over the 3 years my BMR has dropped 163 calories/day. It is important your physical characteristics are accurate. In my case, the 3 years older only dropped the BMR 15 calories so it is all in the weight loss. This BMR calculator is the same as Fitbits as verified by their Support line.
 
and this...
http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/What-are-very-active-minutes/

You earn "very active minutes" when you wear your Fitbit while doing cardio workouts and high-intensity activities like jogging and running. Note that your active minute count will be lower for activities that are not primarily step-based, such as weight lifting, cycling, and rowing.

By default, you are given a starting goal of 30 active minutes a day based on the Center for Disease Control's recommendation of 20-30 minutes of daily moderate-to-intense activity. You can always change your very active minutes goal to meet your personal needs.
All Fitbit trackers calculate active minutes using metabolic equivalents (METs). A MET is a unit used to represent the amount of oxygen used by a body during physical activity; therefore, METs can be used as an indicator for intensity of physical activities. For example, a MET of 1 indicates a body at rest. Your MET value in any given minute is determined by the intensity of your activity based on your speed. Active minutes are earned for all minutes at or above 6 METs.
The more calories you burn the higher your MET value, and therefore the more calories you burn, the higher your very active minutes. When looking at your calorie graph, shown below, the green spikes indicate that you’re earning very active minutes.

 

DH and walk the same route every night.  Last night I knew I wasn't going to register VAM because it felt like I was walking slower.  If I take longer strides, I can make the same distance in the same time, but I won't register any VAM.  I have to increase the speed of my steps which means I need to shorten my stride (because I'm not in good enough shape to keep the longer stride faster).  It's akin to stepping double time.  It takes the same amount of time to go the same distance, I'm just taking more steps and faster steps during that period.

 

 

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aggie96

aggie96

Posted
Posted

I have a question about the "Very Active Minutes" on the leaderboard.  After using my Zip for 2 days I have 82 very active minutes, then under that it says 7 avg.  What does the 7 avg mean?  

 

Also, is there a way to see groups from the app?

 

Re: Averages

Wait until you get several days under you belt.  The 7-day average averages the previous 7 days, so you have 5 days at 0 steps that are being averaged into that calculation.  I *think* the average shown on the month page is either the month average or lifetime average?  I'm not sure about that one.

 

Re: Groups

I have not found a way to see groups from the app.  I have to log onto Fitbit from a browser (which is very hard to read on my phone) or the computer to see groups.

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aggie96

aggie96

Posted
Posted

Fitbit PSA:

 

Fitbit links nicely to MyFitnessPal and LoseIt.

 

To sync to LoseIt, you need a Premium account ($40/yr).  You use your Fitbit to track exercise (steps and manually logged activity) and LoseIt to track food.  They sync to each other to coordinate calories in/out, etc.  The FitBit Aria weight measurements will also sync to LoseIt.

 

I have used free LoseIt for over a year and just prefer this app for tracking calories (personal preference).  I like the format, food database, and bar code scanner better than My Fitness Pal or Fitbit.  I didn't upgrade to the Premium until my FitBit came along.  DH uses free FitBit to track calories and enjoys it.

 

So I thought I would throw this out here in case any one was wondering.  :)

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ocelotmom

ocelotmom

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I'd like for mine to have a watch on it somehow.  I'm constantly checking my Flex to see what time it is  :huh:

 

Oh good, I'm glad I'm not the only one with this problem :)

 

They had the Force, which had a watch built-in, but recalled it because it caused a lot of skin reactions. So it isn't at all a stretch to think they could do that again.

 

I've been tempted to track down a Force and take my chances.

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DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

You have a Force?

 

I have heard they were great, and if you don't have the skin irritations......

 

I don't use mine for the time, but it does show it.

 

I typically look at my phone for the time.

 

Oh good, I'm glad I'm not the only one with this problem :)

 

They had the Force, which had a watch built-in, but recalled it because it caused a lot of skin reactions. So it isn't at all a stretch to think they could do that again.

 

I've been tempted to track down a Force and take my chances.

 

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MelAR05

MelAR05

Posted
Posted

I just wanted everyone to know that somehow my fitbit got switched with my husband's tonight. I got it all fixed but it gave me about 11,000 extra steps that were not mine. The steps belong to my husband. So even though i am in first, the total is inaccurate. Maybe Fitbit will fix it but I don't know.

 

Also, due to nursing a spider bite, I have not been able to exercise like normal. I am feeling much better but the bite is on my hip and any exercise irritates the site. Ugh!

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aggie96

aggie96

Posted
Posted

@ Melissa   We had the same thing happen to us!  I was sooooo excited to have DH's steps, and so deflated when I discovered the error.  Of course, it made sense something was off because I would have been laying in the street half dead if I had stepped as much as DH.   :)

 

In case anyone needs to delete inaccurate steps, here are the instructions from FitBit.  It has worked for me.

 

http://help.fitbit.com/articles/en_US/Help_article/Can-I-delete-data

(removed copied text and changed to link)

 

And I am curious about Momma, too!  Reveal yourself Momma and tell us that you are really 16 years old and a fitness instructor that leads 10k runs twice a day!   :lol: 

​I'm just joking!  But I am REALLY impressed!   :coolgleamA: 

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MelAR05

MelAR05

Posted
Posted

@ Melissa   We had the same thing happen to us!  I was sooooo excited to have DH's steps, and so deflated when I discovered the error.  Of course, it made sense something was off because I would have been laying in the street half dead if I had stepped as much as DH.   :)

 

In case anyone needs to delete inaccurate steps, here are the instructions from FitBit.  It has worked for me.

 

HOW DO I DELETE STEPS AND FLOORS?

There is currently no way to delete steps and floors outright, but you can negate them using the following steps:

Go to your Activity Log.

Select the date or dates that you'd like to clear data from.

In the activity menu, type in "Automobile or light truck (not a semi) driving" and enter the duration and start time.

Click Log Activity. You will see your steps, floors, and calories burned decrease for the time period specified.

 

Thanks! It worked!

 

I had received all of my husband's lawn mowing steps. He will be happy to know it is fixed. :) Of course, it looks like I am going to need all the steps I can get.

 

ETA: I am a little relieved to be out of first place. I always felt like I was being chased. :driving:

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IrishMum

IrishMum

Posted
Posted

When we saw that Momma is crushing Melissa M, we started speculating. Here are some possibilities:

 

-training for a marathon

-walking mail carrier

-rides around on lawnmowers all day while wearing Fitbit

-DH suggested something about living on another planet with lower gravity or crazy time zones

 

Has to be the last one. She did over 38,000 steps one day. The woman isn't human!!

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IrishMum

IrishMum

Posted
Posted

OK, so here is a little Fit Bit news for you all.

 

I wore mine attached to the center of my bra.  Given my figure, it added 50% to my bra size.  

 

However, it also resulted in disrupting my thyroid because of the radiation emitted by Bluetooth.  My naturopath found that today.  :-<   

BUT she also tested me when I wore it at my waist, on my belt-line, and it is perfectly fine there.  

 

I will admit to being extremely sensitive to this kind of thing, but thought I would mention it for anyone else who has this concern. 

 

The bluetooth worry me. I no longer wear my Flex at night to give my body a break from the EMFs, and I try to walk barefoot on the grass or beach every day to ground. Yeah, I am turning into a hippie ;)

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DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

Ah, ok.  Well, they are coming out with a new one (they say soon) so I would wait if I were you.  The Force models I see on ebay are going for a lot.  The original price was $129.

 

Dawn

 

 

No. I'm occasionally tempted to try to find one on ebay or something, but not tempted enough that I've actually done it.

 

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DawnM

DawnM

Posted
Posted

ACK,  I have forgotten to even put the darn thing on 3 days now!  I remember after I leave the house, so I put it on at night, but not in time to actually get the bulk of my steps in.

 

I need to at least get in the habit so that I can make sure to wear it all of October.

 

However, looking at the top person in the 300,000 steps by mid month, there is no way I could possibly keep up.

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