Hi all!

I initially posted this topic in another forum, but found this forum and am hoping for a bigger audience, because I am anxious to hear from all of you!

I wanted to start this thread because I am curious as to how many of you use activity trackers with your exercise and any fitness apps that have helped you in your weight loss journeys. What are your reviews and how do you like them? How have they helped you?

I started out many years ago with my first activity tracker before I had been banded. I had bought a FitBit One. It worked remarkably well with the features of tracking miles, sleep, steps, calories burned, time and date, and a growing flower which would grow the more activity you did. I clipped it on my sports bra or my waist of my pants and it was discreet. It was about $100 back then when they first came out and it was an investment I was willing to make to boost my activity and help with my weight loss efforts. Loved it! I paired it with Fitness Pal app and it really helped!!! However, I found out that it does not do well in the washing machine haha. I forgot to remove it from my sports bra and that was money down the drain. I never replaced it and just used the Fitness Pal app, but I didn't have that added reminder to move.

When I realized I was having all of these problems with my band, I was in the market for a new activity tracker and researched ALOT for something that would do everything I had before but less risky for me to toss in the washing machine! Activity trackers are NOT cheap and I wanted to make a sound investment that would last. I had researched the Fitbit Flex, and Fitbit Flex HR, Jawbone UP24, and the Garmin Vivofit and Vivosmart among others but found that the Fitbit Flex had problems with the band breaking or tearing after about 6 months, not to mention the band was wider than I would have wanted. My co-worker had a jawbone which was considerably cheaper, but again it was something to clip on. My Zumba instructor had the Jawbone Up24 which was pretty cool looking, the band was lightweight, looked durable, and easy to put on, but you would always have to look at the phone app to see what was going on with your info. A friend of mine had the Garmin Vivofit, and I liked the number display but the band was too wide and thick for me......yeah I know picky picky....so I finally noticed the Garmin Vivofit and I really liked it. It had all of the features that I wanted, plus a slim band. In addition, it has a move bar that reminds you to get your booty moving, by vibrating your wrist if you have been sitting too long which was exactly what I needed. I also can receive Facebook notifications and phone calls, and even can control my Pandora music! My husband actually surprised me with it. It is waterproof, but I don't want to chance it so I remove it for showers. It has an excellent battery life. I have gone over a week without having to charge it. I absolutely love mine. I pair it with my Fitness Pal and I am so glad I have it. It was a bit more than I wanted my husband to spend, but he knew it was something I really wanted. Normally its about 150.00, but he was able to pricematch it at Bestbuy for 129.00 yay! He liked my tracker so much, that he bought one for himself a few weeks later! It has already helped me keep moving. I keep increasing my goals every week when I continue to meet them. It's a great motivator and I know for sure that it will help me be more successful to stay on track when I have my revision surgery!

Tell me what your activity tracker is, and what fitness apps that you use and your reviews and how it has helped you!

On the most basic side I've had The Jawbone Up, and regular FitBit in the past. The thing I never liked about them is they are at best guessing your distance and calories through out the day. Even though they tell you to put the tracker on your non dominant wrist I was still getting steps counted sitting at my desk working. If I was to go this route again I would get one that has the ability to clip to my waist.

The next level up would be the same products but have a heart rate monitor in them like the FitBit HR and above. At least with this device if you are doing physical activity you get the added benefit of having your heart rate monitored so you will get a more accurate reflection of output.

To the extreme would be devices like GPS enabled watches also track activity. One of the best for the money is the new Garmin Forerunner 225. Although is has a $300 price tag it does a ton of things very well. I would seriously give it a look especially if like me you want more than just a simple activity tracker.

My current device of choice has been the Apple Sport Watch. I found a 42mm one on Craigslist for $360 that was less than a month old. The native activity and exercise apps are wonderful. I also like how it pushes me everyday. Based on my "move" goal it will adjust every week to keep pushing you to step up your activity. Even though the watch itself isn't GPS enabled I always have my iPhone with me and once you go for a few walks/runs with it the device learns your stride. Then you don't need the phone on you unless you want mapping data. I also think with the new OS version coming out where 3rd party apps can uses the watch sensors things will continue to get better and better. I'm looking forward to the Nike+ app being able to use the heart rate sensor. Quite a few people at work all use Nike+ and track each others miles and have made friendly competition out of it.

Other than what I mentioned above I am a die hard MyFitnessPal user.

I use a regualr fit bit. My fitness pal to track food and JE Fit for strength training.

I have a Fitbit Flex. I purchased it a couple years ago. I selected it because you could use it in the pool, and at that time I worked out a lot in the pool. I also liked that the band was small and you can change the bands. I have about 10 and change them to match my outfits. They can be purchased in packs on amazon and eBay. They are not FitBit OEM but aftermarket.

I have decided to purchase a FitBit Charge HR in the next few weeks for workouts. I want the constant heart rate monitoring. I don't trust the machine at the gym. It is wider than the Flex, so I plan on just wearing it for workouts, walks and maybe around the house. I am going to purchase a Tory Burch band for my Flex so I can wear it out and have it look like a piece of jewelry instead of a fitness tracker.

Fitbit is updated so you can have 2 trackers now.

Right now I track everything on the Fitbit website. I am going to switch back LoseIt and upgrade to premium. Fitbit is removing some recording features soon so this seems like a good time to take make the switch. i really like the visuals that LoseIt has as far as tracking your foods.

There is a girl on Instagram that was sleeved this year and posts all her food each day on Instagram. She uses LoseIt Premium so you can see it in action

https://instagram.com/sleevedin2015/

I think the Fitbit Charge HR is the best deal...it functions as a watch, heart rate monitor (this feature is why it's $20 more than the basic Charge), and floor tracker, none of which the Flex has. It also has all the basic calories burned, steps taken, etc..., so you don't have to keep looking at the phone app to see your progress...just press the button. I wouldn't go for a Surge because it is just twice as expensive because it is equipped with GPS, and I don't understand why anybody needs GPS to keep track of distance. Unless you go such long distances that you need help finding your way back (in which case you may be off the beaten path and it can't help you anyway).

Yeah the surge seems like a waste. And as far as the GPS goes, it doesn't have a good review.

The Charge HR is ugly though, and it is limited to one color. That is okay for working out, but when I am dressed in street clothes, I am going to use my Flex because it is more fashionable, plus I own it and there is nothing wrong with it.

The fact you can have 2 trackers now in one fitbit account is the best of both worlds

GPS is not there to help you find your way. It is there for accurate distance measurements.

@OutsideMatchInside- that instagram and Lose it is pretty cool. Is the premium charge per month or year? Those Tory Burch bands are nice but kinda pricey, but I like the flexibility and versatility of the Flex.

@ - how accurate is the heart monitor on the charge HR?

@ - how accurate is the heart monitor on the charge HR?

It lines up with what the treadmills say when you place your hands on the bars, so certainly no less accurate than those!