Is a Fitbit (or equivalent) worth the money?

[MalmMumma]

A friend of mine has just got one and raves about it. I'm tempted to jump on the bandwagon and wondered if anyone has any views before I splash out on something I may not need/is just a fad!! Thanks xx

[munkisocks]

No clue about others but my DP had one. It died after a month. They replaced it. It died 3 month later. He's now got a samsung smartwatch which is more expensive but much better. He loved the fitbit though but it did suddenly start going wrong. On his motorbike it thought he was on a cycle bike so thought he was burning ridiculous amount of calories. Also it kept telling him he'd walked equivalent of 52 flights of stairs a day when he is in a desk job. It was good but he also had an issue with a rash on his arm where something on the strap rubbed badly. I looked it up and it's a common complaint they haven't sorted yet. So Yeh I wouldn't recommend on that.

[Champagneformyrealfriends]

Love my Fitbit! I've lost my charger and realised today and I'm so upset I can't use it. It really gets me moving.

[Mistigri]

You can get a chinese Fitbit wannabe called a Mi-fit for a tenner. If you're not sure you want one or not, that's what I'd get. My daughter has one and they work just fine. She doesn't use it any more and that's fine too because it cost next to nothing.

[HungryHorace]

Champagne, for the cost of postage you can have my charger as I lost my Fitbit (it popped off my wrist at a kids' farm place and wasn't handed in). I'm not replacing it as I didn't get enough use from it.

[chipsandpeas]

i love mine, its deffo made me more active

[GhostofFrankGrimes]

Bought one for DP at xmas. It started taking ages to charge/died quickly after a few months. Couldn't seem to handle all the running/exercise classes!

[sepa]

My Fitbit has been a god send after having DC. It motivates me to get moving. Had it well over a year and no issues. Bought mine second hand from eBay

[gamerchick]

I love mine, I take it off for bed though and swap wrists each month to stop itchy rash.

I've lost inches and am pretty pleased.

[curren]

I love mine. But I keep upgrading it. Started with flex, the charge HR and now just got the blaze.

Never had a problem. I don't expect the are 100% but I it's good for keeping me motivated. I use it as a guideline. Not gospel. I took up running just to make sure I got my steps in.

[Champagneformyrealfriends]

I've already ordered one hungry-thank you though

[StillMedusa]

I love mine.. had it for Xmas and wear it all day every day. I'm a lazy sod and it actually HAS made me walk instead of using the car for short trips, and I will go out in the evening for a walk if I haven't quite made my 10000 steps . I also love the silent alarm which gets me up in the morning.
DH has one and his strap broke, but thecustomer service was great... replaced straight away!

[wispaxmas]

Love my Fitbit! Without it I find it hard to motivate myself to move around, I was probably doing about 6-7k steps a day on average, but the Fitbit has me doing 20k on weekdays and 10k on weekends no problem. I don't know why it gets me motivated, maybe it's the competitive aspect of it.

[40somethingwonderful]

I Iove my fitbit, dh and DD has one, it helps keep us moving as we have challenges throughout the week.

[haggard1]

I have a jawbone. Doesn't track heart rate but steps, sleep and food. I figured it was cheaper than my online sub for weight watchers. I too love the wake up alarm and it's made me much more mindful of my sleep (which I wasn't expecting) and made me realise I was vastly underestimating how much the DCs interrupt it! I'm sure it's not incredibly accurate but I find it does motivate me.

[BooAvenue]

Mine has been bloody life changing.

I love the way it interlinks with MFP and I've lost 3 stone so far and I'm a shit ton fitter. I find it so motivating to get me moving more and I love looking at how much I've improved over the past couple of months. I have the charge HR which is great because it ensures I really push myself to get my heart rate up during my HIIT.

[Ludways]

I'm wearing mine for the second year and it's still going fine, it's s Charge HR, the heart rate is good but more novelty than of use really. I definitely move more than I did.

[RattieOfCatan]

I love my one, I had the second one up, clipped it to my trousers most days. I've lost it and I'm gutted, we're moving house soon and if it doesn't show up I'm going to replace it at Christmas!

[Florinda2016]

I love mine. However if I have a bath and forget to put it back on for a few hours afterwards I'm gutted because of the steps I have 'wasted'!

[Crisscrosscranky]

I love my Charge HR - I definitely move more when I have it on.

[EarSlaps]

Yes, I bought a Charge HR second hand ( previous owner was about to have surgery and wouldn't be exercising for nearly a year) and I love it. It encourages me to move a lot more, walk at the furthest edge of the car park etc.

I've also signed up to Bounts, so I get points for my steps, for going to the gym and for tracking runs with certain apps. Those points can be used to get high street vouchers. I signed up for the premium version (£14.99 a year) and have earned £5 of vouchers in two weeks.

[RosieWithTheGoodHair]

I've had a flex since just before christmas and it's been invaluable in keeping me (mostly) on the straight and narrow with my eating/walking. Buying one isn't going to immediately make you lose a stone but if you use it as a tool it can be really helpful

[RosieWithTheGoodHair]

Also, I asked for mine for my birthday and was convinced I'd get bored of it within a week. I've worn mine and looked at the app every single day since amazingly.

Also, I lost mine a few months ago traipsing around town, emailed them as the battery had died so I had no chance of finding it, in the hope they'd help, and they sent me a brand new one in box with no questions asked. Excellent customer service

[Tiredbutfuckingfine]

I got the mi as I didn't want to spend any money lots
It's fab, cost £11 seems to work well although I take it off when I'm in the house sitting around watching tv.
Counts my steps, buzzy alarm is nice and sleep data is interesting. I linked to the bounts app so I earn points and eventually will get a shopping voucher, as well as getting fit

[Thatrabbittrickedme]

I got a Blaze a few weeks back and I love love love it! I'm more active, motivated and also make better food choices. Not sure how long I will stick at it but enjoying it so much and feeling fitter so Im sure I will keep it up.

My main conclusions from having it are that I was eating too much/badly and not active enough, with the Fitbit I've been able to make positive changes instantly and tracking results is what's so motivating to carry on.

I think the blaze is good value £150 and it fully synchs with my iPhone (even get texts and call alerts on it which is very James Bond) so does 99% of what an Apple Watch does at a fraction of the price.

Go for it I say!

[AugustaFinkNottle]

I got the Fitbit Zip, which is the most cheap and cheerful one - I could see no point whatsoever in getting the ones that tell me how well I've slept. But I think it's been worth every penny. For years exercise has been something I was going to start tomorrow, but with the Fitbit I suddenly find myself parking at the opposite end of the supermarket car park because those extra steps will help me reach my target; I'm parking a long way away from my office so I have a decent walk to work, I'm seeing more of my surrounding neighbourhood because I'm walking round it, I'm walking instead of taking the bus etc etc. As a side benefit it's exercising my brain, because I like to have something to listen to when I walk and I've downloaded all sorts of fascinating radio programmes onto my phone plus audiobooks from the library. Win win, I'd say.