Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Comparing Fitbit with Garmin....

It's rare I have the same post on both blogs - but I know some people only read one or the other & I know that with trackers being all the rage, this could help everyone... so I originally posted this on my Fitness Blog Press On & Run but wanted to share here as well....
 
 
 



These little trackers are EVERY WHERE!!!

I knew these were cool before the world did.  I used to wear a pedometer that was the size of a pager - for those of you that are old enough to remember pagers when they were all the rage... before cell phones even existed.

But seriously - I have always loved the drive of knowing how many steps I've taken in a day....

& when these little gadgets came out, I was on board to upgrade my heavy hip-bearing pedometer to a little electronic wonder.

Enter into my life my FitBit One.

I have loved everything about it.  Seriously. I have recommended it to everyone. I panic when I loose it on my clothes. I can't live without it.

& then I kept seeing all these wrists trackers popping up & wondered how they worked. 

I was never planning on getting another one until my FitBit One conked out.. but then that dang Amazon had to go do a Deal of the Day on the Garmin Vivofit for $59.00 ... heck, I spend $59.00 at Starbucks in a week... not really... kinda.... so went ahead & ordered it.

So I've been using BOTH of my pedometers for 2 weeks now.  & here's my pro/con list of the two

FitBit One

Pros:
 
* It seems pretty dang accurate.  It was actually listed in the top 3 of the most accurate pedometers because it is on the waist, along with the FitBit Zip.
* Love the ease of finding people & friending them on the app.
* Love the challenges that people extend every day or week/weekend
* Syncs automatically when turning on app or Bluetooth is on
* Counts steps in incline/stairs
 
 
 
Cons:
 
* Have to remember to charge about every 7-8 days
* Easy to forget that its on clothes when you take them off & throw into the laundry
* Bulky to wear under clothes when you have to wear on undergarments
* which leads to - not always convenient to wear (dresses)
* If sitting a certain way or cramped up, will turn on sleeping mode by hitting button
 
 
Garmin VivoFit
 
Pros:
 
* No battery that needs to be charged - lasts for a year
* Waterproof. Love I don't have to ever take it off.
* Comfortable.
* Use as a watch since its on my wrist
* Red Line shows when haven't moved in awhile - a great motivator to get moving.
* Like you can change the color of your bands
 
Cons:
 
* Does not count steps when pushing basket/stroller, cutting grass or holding a purse & arm is not swinging, or walking while holding something.
* Counts too many steps if arms swing a lot (like in kick boxing doing punches)
*Counted LESS while running!!!!
* Does not count going up stairs
* Finding connections on app is not easy
 
 
So as you can see - they both are handy... they both have advantages & disadvantages
 
I really hate that the Garmin Vivo Fit is weird on how it counts & doesn't count steps.
I will go in the grocery & push the cart & it doesn't count me but going a few steps the whole time.  Can you imagine if you were in Disney World pushing a stroller all day & it took you for doing like 2000 steps for the day?  nooooo!!!!!

I even cut the grass with it on & walked for 35 minutes & it only counted me doing 100 steps the entire time.  That's really not cool.
 
But I will say, when it wouldn't count those steps where the arms aren't moving & my FitBit would continue to count my steps, it actually sort of even-ed out the playing field making them almost even.
 
& I'm not even sure how this worked, but when I went for my run for my 10k, the Garmin counted LESS steps then my FitBit... probably because with my shoulder injury, I try to minimize my arms from swinging.
 
That's messed up.
 
But I kept count of 2 weeks worth of difference
 
FitBit / Garmin 2 week Difference
 
Day 1 - 10,553 / 12,677 / 2124
Day 2 - 11,266 / 23,399 / 2133
Day 3 - 8,391 / 10,242 / 1851
Day 4 - 10,772 / 11,783 / 1011
Day 5 - 16,542 / 14,094 / <2448> ... this was my 10K???
Day 6 - 10,196 / 11,483 / 1287
Day 7 - 6,449 / 6,960 / 511
Day 8 - 10,257 / 12,263 / 2006
Day 9- 10,151 / 12,542 / 2391
Day 10 - 8,687 / 10,547 / 1850
Day 11 - 10,027 / 11,016 / 989
Day 12 - 10,322 / 10,166 / <156>
Day 13 - 11,159 / 13,348 / 2189
Day 14- 10,576 / 10,810 / 234
 
 
As you can see - there is no rhyme or reason to the difference!!!!
Some days were really close... but the majority is around 2,000 steps difference.
Go figure.
 
I guess the key is to know that neither is 100% accurate...
& they both have great things about them... both have flaws.
 
I'm not even sure I could pick a favorite if I had to because I like them both for different reasons.

I would say I would pick my FitBit for Accuracy.
I would pick my Garmin for Convenience.
 
I just know they keep me moving... & that's not a bad thing.
 
For the record, I'll probably always wear both until one of them bombs or I make the jump to the ones that have the heart rate monitors built into them... I obviously am a number person so I will enjoy the comparison thing for awhile.
 
  
Do you have a Fitness Tracker?
 
Which brand/kind do you prefer?
 

9 comments:

  1. I have a pedometer, but seldom wear it. I really need to get it back out. We got our daughter a Fitbit for Christmas. I don't know if she uses it or not.

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  2. I have a FitBit Flex (a Christmas present from my mother-in-law ... what's she trying to tell me? - just kidding ... I LOVE IT!) and have worn it daily since getting it. I absolutely LOVE FitBit's customer service as this is actually my third tracker in 5 1/2 months. The first one flat-out died, second one didn't charge at all, this one's been working great and I receive the replacement within the week of reporting the issue. A friend of mine has the Zip and bought a wristband for it so it works like a Flex but looks more like a watch -- wonder if that would work for the One? FitBit challenges are great at keeping me motivated too. Keep on walkin'!

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    Replies
    1. I like my FitBit One on my waist - those tend to be the most accurate. But I do love the convenience of the wrist. So I'll just keep sporting them both for now :) ... I do love Fitbit's Customer Service as well - I've only heard great things from so many about issues they take care of.

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  3. I find this to be so interesting that the fit bit wasn't tracking everything properly!! I had the fitbit one but actually lost it because of the size so now I have the fit flex and love it!! xo, Biana -BlovedBoston

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  4. I have the fit bit one, and i love it. I don't like wearing things on my wrist since it bangs all day when I type at work. I wear mine on my bra everyday facing in. Never had any issues losing it yet. Interesting that they tracked differently.

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  5. Thank you for your comparisons. I don't have anything to count my steps. I do have a pedometer somewhere!

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  6. I tried the fitbit but sent it back...I am just not motivated by counting my steps. But I did love the sleep app on it, that was pretty cool.

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  7. I had no idea you had another blog. How do you do it all?? You amaze me! I got my dad a Fitbit for his birthday, which my mom proceeded to steal. I'm almost afraid to see how many few steps I take a day though.

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  8. I love my Fitbit One! I should probably not admit this, but I wear it on my underwear when I don't have pockets :) I also wear it on my underwear at night (instead of using the arm band) because the arm band kept getting snagged on the blankets & coming off (or the fitbit would slide out & I'd have to dive back into the bed to find it in the morning.

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