I have been an avid Fitbit user for almost 5 years. Ever since my significant other bought me one, I LOVED the idea that I could not only see how my daily activity translated into me getting healthy, but it was just the thing to motivate me to want to be more active. And I had been using my Fitbit well before I became a mom (this point will be important in the next train of thought).
Some of the key features of the Fitbit and how I used it include:
Daily Steps - I wore the Fitbit for a week just to see how my regular movement translated to my daily step count. I worked at a desk job and before even starting any workout regiment I was averaging about 6k steps (I thought this was A BIG deal at the time…lol)
Calories Burned - this portion I didn't really pay attention to too much because I was never big on counting calories.
Miles - it was nice to see that me running up and down the steps to wash clothes on the weekends actually translated into me walking a certain mileage.
Alarm - the alarm is GREAT for anyone who has a significant other or small children because it gives you a vibration that is strong enough to wake you out your sleep, but doesn't disturb anyone else around you like a traditional alarm.
Sleep Tracker - this post was the most enlightening. It allowed me to see that even though I was in the bed at a certain time and THOUGHT I was getting enough sleep, it showed me just how much SOUND asleep I was getting (which wasn't much). I would be in bed for about 7 hours, but because I would toss and turn out get up to use the bathroom, I was averaging about 4.5 hours.
Fast forward about 4 years later. Here comes my bundle of joy. I am now a stay at home mom who spends majority of my time running after a small child and running many miscellaneous errands. My significant other and I have a conversation about my cell phone usage when I am in the car. He wants to make sure I am not only able to be reached at all times, but he wants to make sure I'm safe while in the car. I suggest it may be a good investment to try the Apple Watch. I liked the idea that I could still use all my pedometer functions like my Fitbit, plus I could use other functions (i.e. messaging, navigation, etc.) without having to touch my phone.
To my surprise, after purchasing my Apple Watch, I actually prefer my Fitbit over the Apple Watch. Here are a few reasons why:
- When using the Apple Watch as a pedometer, I find my daily step count is way off (I'm talking about by hundreds of steps). And this is with me wearing my Fitbit and Apple Watch simultaneously.
- When doing specific workouts, I find that if I am in an area that has less than stellar cellular coverage, the phone and watch don't relay information to each other and it doesn't always log all of my workout (which is a bummer).
- The user interface (how the device looks and functions) is a lot more simpler on the Fitbit. This is probably largely in part because of all the other things that the Apple Watch does. When I am doing a workout I only need to push one button on the Fitbit in order for it to track my exercise. Even with Siri, there are two steps to even get into the app on the Apple Watch.
- When doing specific workouts, I find that if I am in an area that has less than stellar cellular coverage, the phone and watch don't relay information to each other and it doesn't always log all of my workout (which is a bummer).
- The user interface (how the device looks and functions) is a lot more simpler on the Fitbit. This is probably largely in part because of all the other things that the Apple Watch does. When I am doing a workout I only need to push one button on the Fitbit in order for it to track my exercise. Even with Siri, there are two steps to even get into the app on the Apple Watch.
- THE APPLE WATCH DOES NOT TRACK YOUR SLEEP PATTERNS. To some, this might not seem like a big deal, but when you become accustomed to a feature and seeing a result from it, to not have it almost feels like your being slighted. And for the money of the Apple Watch, it would be a nice feature to have.
- The Apple Health app compared to the Fitbit App is very remedial and you have to enter a lot of information in manually in the Apple Health App compared to the Fitbit app's auto tracking.
All in all, the Apple Watch is a neat device which has a lot of capabilities, but when it comes to pedometer functions, the Fitbit makes more sense.
Feel free to share your thoughts and ideas on how you use either device and how it works (or doesn't work) for you. Also feel free to share just what device does work for you even if it's not either of these.
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