I’ve been thinking about investing in a Fitness Tracker. I’ve done a little bit of research and have been asking around. Here’s what I’ve found…..I’m still undecided. At the end of the day, as long as it gives me a baseline of my steps, I think it is a good idea. Even if it’s not super accurate, it will still tell me if I’ve made progress from one day to the next. And that is the point. Once you know about how many steps you take on a daily basis you can then decide if you need to increase that or if you are good. 7,000 is what you should shoot for. 10,000 to be “active” and more than 10,000 steps is a excellent. I think the day we moved I got 30,000 steps. The is my record.
Fitbit Charge HR – $150
Pro – syncs well with other apps you may already be using and comes in a wide variety of colors. If wearing it on your wrist doesn’t appeal to you, then they have a clip that can be worn on your clothes and hidden. Not sure how accurate that is depending on where you choose to wear it. Best option is always your hip. You can also upgrade to the Surge model that has a heart rate monitor for $250 or downgrade to their basic model the Flex for $80.
Con – constantly needs to be charged and feedback says that you need to keep resetting it to sync.
Garmin VivoActive – $250
Pro – Battery can last up to a year as opposed to all of the others that need to be recharged. It is also waterproof. Golfers can upload nearby courses to see stats like distances from the green.
Con – I honestly couldn’t find any con’s other than the price, but you can check out the VivoSmart for $170
Samsung Gear Fit – $150
Pro – Has a heart rate monitor, which is something the other basic models don’t have. It also has a large display so you can see and read your daily progress without (well maybe) your readers! 🙂
Con – It works exclusively with Samsung Smart Phones. So if you want the tracker, you have to buy the phone as well! 🙁
Jawbone – $150 or $45 at Amazon
Pro – for the price it does the job of tracking your steps and sleep.
Con – doesn’t have a display on it so you have to look at your smartphone to see where you at in your steps.
So if you are just looking to track your steps, the Jawbone or FitBit Flex or good options. If you want all the bells and whistles then upgrade to the other models that most of these brands offer. I believe the simpler the better. You already have your Smartphone to do all the other stuff. Hope this helps.