Embrace Your Inner Dork While Getting Healthy -- A FitBit One Device & IOS App Review

I am a dork. I won't deny it. There is something about tracking things that make me feel like I'm accomplishing something. Last spring, I decided to invest in a FitBit One. I'd show you pics, but alas it went missing in my newborn, sleep-deprived, nurse-everywhere state. After it survived being in the washer & dryer. Sigh.

Features

There are a few really cool features.

Step tracking
Stair tracking
Water tracking
Estimated Calories Expended
Sleep tracking
Weight tracking
Calorie tracking (eaten)

You can also set your step/mileage goals, earn badges and find others who use the FitBit. If you want to do more, you can pay for a premium membership and get things like custom trackers, a training plan and in-depth analysis of your data.

Limitations

It's not the most accurate device I've ever used, but its consistent. When I compare day-to-day readings, I'm just comparing against my own previous days, which is good enough for me.

I was kind of bummed that it didn't track more than one sleep because I was really interested in comparing preggo sleep to newborn sleep. I wanted to be able to add naps, but it doesn’t do that. It DOES give you an idea of how much you stir throughout the night though, which is still useful.

The FitBit App

The FitBit One does have a small digital display, and you have to sync it for the first time on your computer. After that, it syncs with the FitBit App via Bluetooth, which is pretty awesome.

You can get instant updates on the app and it syncs with the website. And they don't delete the data. I was able to take the screenshots of my data even after my FitBit had been lost for 7 months and the app was deleted from my phone.

I really like the water tracking option because it felt like I was drinking all day...and I was not drinking nearly as much as I thought.
Another feature that I really like is that the app will tell you how hard you are working, if at all :). Pre & post-partum, there wasn't much medium or hard work going on, but if there WAS it would tell you how many minutes.

You can also see detailed graphs showing when you get most of your steps, milage, flights, etc. in each day. It's fun to see when your lulls are.

And the coolest feature is the sleep tracker. It only measures one sleep per day, but if you forget to indicate it on the device, you can enter it in the app the next day and it reinterprets your data. I was bummed that you can't count naps, but it was enlightening to see how many times I woke up while pregnant vs. with a newborn. And this screenshot? The night I woke up in labor...and went back to bed. I don't do night labor; I need my sleep. Ha!

There is also a website you can use (the one you register on to start) but I like the app better. There is a better level of detail on the website and more tracking & logs, but the app works great for everything *I* care about. You can also set goals, earn badges and find others and "compete."

If you are looking to get healthier and are externally motivated by things like tracking, cool apps/devices, or simply having it under your nose regularly, this might be a good option for you. In fact, I couldn't take it anymore and bought the FitBit Flex. It came last week and I'm back to being a stat junkie ☺.

Does the FitBit sound like something you'd have fun with?

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