Giving this fitness thing a try - tech toy!

Ol!ver

Ol!ver

Ol!ver

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Joined
4 Oct 2003
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Sheffield, S.Yorks
I've decided it's time to get some more exercise done, and that's led me to buying a Fitbit Flex just to try and keep myself interested.

I've created a Runkeeper account too, so if anyone wants to 'friend up,' they can observe my woefully inadequate goings-on there. Got a Fitbit account, too.

http://oliverhaslam.com/fitbit-flex-giving-this-exercise-thing-a-try/

Am I the only one that needs a tangible reason to do stuff like this, other than not dying early and having clothes that fit?!
 
arknor said:
Just use a smart phone with endomondo :P
you get awesome stats and a nice map view of your route
you just set it to the exercise you are doing like
walking
http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/37614044/3208730
cycling
http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/217051252/3208730

you can get heart rate monitors for smart phones to btw ;) that £80 would likely have been better spent elsewhere
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i looked into monitors for smartphones and unless you have an iphone it's pointless tbh.

so many issues with one's and android from what i read unless you have a specific model of phone and never upgrade.
 
I've never heard of anyone having issues.

he still could have got a gps watch with heartrate monitor for little more than he spent on that overpriced pedometer bracelet
 
You can pay a lot for GPS watches my Garmin forerunner 610 with HRM was £290 but then again im a running junkie, these bracelets are good for people who need motivation or want to track total fitness
 
I've got a Nike FuelBand, though admittedly I also have proper run/cycle GPS and heart rate monitors too.

I find that they are a bit of fun really and I like my gadgets, so that is why I bought one.

They are what you make of it though, its a motivational tool really and you still have to put the effort in to let it motivate you.

One area is competing with friends, I think it suffers a bit there though as I have no Nike+ friends who also have a FuelBand. Especially when you now compare it to something like Strava which lets you compete on all kinds of levels.
 
Just bought myself one of those Jawbone UP bands and i have to say its quite good. One of the lads that works for me has one so thought id get one myself after he explained what it does ie keeps a track of how many steps, how much you have slept etc and if you are inactive for 15mins then it gives you a gentle vibrate to let you know that you should get your lazy fat ass up and walk a bit:p. You can adjust the 15min time interval for longer if you want.

They have a few different colours but i went for black and it synch nicely with either an iphone or an Android phone...luckily i have kept my S3 as i was looking to sell it but seeing as Jawbone have no plans to make an app for my Blackberry Z10, ill have to stick with my s3 until they do.

Looks nice and cost me £100 from the apple store near where i live. So far ive walked about 7098 steps today, slept for 7hrs and have the lad that works for me added so we can keep an eye on each other:p.

Damn must get up again and walk round as i just had the vibrate lol:p...definitely would recommend getting one, its a good way of keeping track of your activities and through the app, you can also add what you eat as well.
 
Nexus said:
I've got a Nike FuelBand, though admittedly I also have proper run/cycle GPS and heart rate monitors too.

I find that they are a bit of fun really and I like my gadgets, so that is why I bought one.

They are what you make of it though, its a motivational tool really and you still have to put the effort in to let it motivate you.

One area is competing with friends, I think it suffers a bit there though as I have no Nike+ friends who also have a FuelBand. Especially when you now compare it to something like Strava which lets you compete on all kinds of levels.
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looks like a pointless purchase tbh, even after you have explained it all, especially since your proper monitor should have all these features tbh.

Yas786 said:
Just bought myself one of those Jawbone UP bands and i have to say its quite good. One of the lads that works for me has one so thought id get one myself after he explained what it does ie keeps a track of how many steps, how much you have slept etc and if you are inactive for 15mins then it gives you a gentle vibrate to let you know that you should get your lazy fat ass up and walk a bit:p. You can adjust the 15min time interval for longer if you want.

They have a few different colours but i went for black and it synch nicely with either an iphone or an Android phone...luckily i have kept my S3 as i was looking to sell it but seeing as Jawbone have no plans to make an app for my Blackberry Z10, ill have to stick with my s3 until they do.

Looks nice and cost me £100 from the apple store near where i live. So far ive walked about 7098 steps today, slept for 7hrs and have the lad that works for me added so we can keep an eye on each other:p.

Damn must get up again and walk round as i just had the vibrate lol:p...definitely would recommend getting one, its a good way of keeping track of your activities and through the app, you can also add what you eat as well.
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again you would have been better off buying a device which doesnt rely on a specific phone, especially since your thing cost £100 and doesnt even track heart rate, which imo is the best way of tracking calories burnt along with GPS.

also the whole 15 minute vibrate thing sounds annoying tbh. you could always set up an alarm to go off on your phone every 15 mins to be equally annoying, etc, it seems like a gimmicky device tbh.


also you can do heart rate specific training with a heart rate monitor by staying in a specific zone works a different part of your fitness: aerobic or anaerobic.

these things are basically glorified pedometers which most smartphones can do for free, but people choose not to install those apps because they are pretty much pointless.

also the whole competing thing only works if you have a large number of personal friends doing it with you and you constantly talk about it on a regular basis, which one of you has none and the other has one. again a desperate attempt to justify a gimmicky item.

walking is going to burn more calories than not walking, but it aint going to improve your fitness like a proper monitor will, combined with a training regime.

seriously there are much better ways to spend your money, especially since apps can do most of what these do for free.
 
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Psycho Sonny said:
looks like a pointless purchase tbh, even after you have explained it all, especially since your proper monitor should have all these features tbh.



again you would have been better off buying a device which doesnt rely on a specific phone, especially since your thing cost £100 and doesnt even track heart rate, which imo is the best way of tracking calories burnt along with GPS.

also the whole 15 minute vibrate thing sounds annoying tbh. you could always set up an alarm to go off on your phone every 15 mins to be equally annoying, etc, it seems like a gimmicky device tbh.


also you can do heart rate specific training with a heart rate monitor by staying in a specific zone works a different part of your fitness: aerobic or anaerobic.

these things are basically glorified pedometers which most smartphones can do for free, but people choose not to install those apps because they are pretty much pointless.

also the whole competing thing only works if you have a large number of personal friends doing it with you and you constantly talk about it on a regular basis, which one of you has none and the other has one. again a desperate attempt to justify a gimmicky item.

walking is going to burn more calories than not walking, but it aint going to improve your fitness like a proper monitor will, combined with a training regime.

seriously there are much better ways to spend your money, especially since apps can do most of what these do for free.
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LOL oh dear...couldnt care less what you think tbh but your entitled to your opinion...thankfully thats all it is:)
 
Yas786 said:
LOL oh dear...couldnt care less what you think tbh but your entitled to your opinion...thankfully thats all it is:)
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seriously look at what you are doing?

first of all your going to keep your s3 instead of selling it on £200+ wasted right there.

then £100 on your pedometer which vibrates every 15 minutes.

that £300 could have bought you a spin bike, which would be a lot more beneficial for your health and fitness.
 
Oh dear. Someone's a bit too concerned about how we spend our money.

Are you all using these alongside Runkeeper too? Got both Runkeeper and a Fitbit apps installed on my iPhone. They tie together so work well.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
seriously look at what you are doing?

first of all your going to keep your s3 instead of selling it on £200+ wasted right there.

then £100 on your pedometer which vibrates every 15 minutes.

that £300 could have bought you a spin bike, which would be a lot more beneficial for your health and fitness.
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Seriously what is your problem?? and what concern is it of yours how i or any other person spends their money??.

You see it as a waste of money and time, good for you. Go and preach to someone who actually gives a toss.
 
Ol!ver said:
Oh dear. Someone's a bit too concerned about how we spend our money.

Are you all using these alongside Runkeeper too? Got both Runkeeper and a Fitbit apps installed on my iPhone. They tie together so work well.
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Indeed.

Only app im using is the UP app but i know runkeeper will also work with the bracelet i have so will have a look at that at some point.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
looks like a pointless purchase tbh, even after you have explained it all, especially since your proper monitor should have all these features tbh.
Click to expand...

Not really.

Yes my GPS heart rate monitor has more features, but I don't go around wearing it all day. The whole point of such devices like this is that you set a goal for the day and then try and achieve it. Even if say you go for a run but haven't achieved it, you might go out of your way to take the stairs instead of the lift or something just so you make the goal and keep your streak going.

The FuelBand is also a watch and I actually think it looks really good with its LED lights.
Rumor has it that the FuelBand 2 will have a heart rate monitor built in.

At the end of the day, I wouldn't have bought it and a heart rate monitor if I couldn't afford it and I've never regretted my purchase.

Each to their own.
 
Ive never had an issue with endomondo on any phone ive used it on, so long as its GPS capable its great.
 
seem to have hit a nerve, i was expressing my opinion on such things, they are gimmicks imo.

if you want to be healthier you will go out of your way to be healthier, also the competition with friends thing holds true for the better devices too. that is if you have friends with like minded goals in the first place.

by posting your purchases and discussing them then they are open to criticism, so you should take it on the chin, not throw your toys out the pram.
 
Well, a couple of days in and it's going OK. I had a wander down to the shop yesterday rather than taking the car, which isn't like me. Might be the novelty, might now. We shall see!
 
Ol!ver said:
Well, a couple of days in and it's going OK. I had a wander down to the shop yesterday rather than taking the car, which isn't like me. Might be the novelty, might now. We shall see!
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usually it's a willpower issue.

people every year join a gym, go for a few days, weeks, months, and then stop and never go back.

therefore the gadget or gym membership helps initially, in the end it comes down to willpower though for the long run.

those that really really want it would achieve it regardless of said gadget or gym membership, that's what separates the men from the boy's at the end of the day.

also the amount of walking you need to do to burn off a meal from mc donalds would take up half your day. therefore diet is usually the most important thing for weight loss.

if you want to improve your fitness then proper cardio mixed with weights is the best thing to do, and by proper cardio i mean something which really pushes your aerobic and anaerobic abilities, which walking does not do for the average person.

what is it that you are actually hoping to achieve?
 
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