To put it simply: it's a pedometer. But really, it's so much more than that. It not only counts your steps, it counts flights of stairs climbed, estimates the calories you're burning, and greets you with cute messages like "You rock!". Did I mention it also measures your sleep efficiency?
If you really want to invest in your health, the whole setup includes a digital, bluetooth-enabled scale.
The scale not only weighs you, but estimates your body fat percentage and BMI, and THEN uploads that information to your profile on the fitbit website! It makes it so easy to set goals and track your progress.
My favorite parts of the whole system are the food and activity logs on the website. Fitbit will tell you how many calories you should be eating each day based on your current weight, goal weight, height, and the program intensity you choose. To make sure you stay on track, you keep records of everything you eat and any physical activities you do. This has been so motivating to me in a variety of ways. First, having to own up to every morsel of food I put in my mouth has pushed me to eat simpler, healthier meals. And isn't that what I should be doing anyway?! I mean, typing "greek yogurt", "zucchini", and "salmon", is waaay easier than typing (and looking up nutrition info for) "Five Guys Cheeseburger with Cajun Fries." And surprise! those foods are infinitely healthier options.
Second, every time you tell fitbit about some physical activity you took part in, it rewards you with BONUS calories you can consume that day! And hello, that's what your body is already doing, fitbit is just visualizing the process for you! So now I make it a goal to add extra little activities into my day- say, walking to the mailbox (hello extra 35 calories), mid-day crunches, or ping-pong after dinner with the hubby (I'm well on my way to earning dessert!). We've found the activity tracker to be pretty motivating to do bigger activities as well, such as running, swimming, and rock climbing.
As if that's not enough, the fitbit also tracks your sleep. You move it from your waistband to a soft wrist strap and you press a button to tell it it's bedtime. You press it again when you wake up and it tracks your sleep efficiency. This hasn't done a whole lot for my fitness level, but it's an interesting bit of info to learn about yourself. :)
Here's a glance at my weekly summary:
You can also link your web profile to friends' and compete on daily steps, weight loss, etc. And you can even hide the numbers you'd rather not share. ;)
So there you have it! That's our current GET FIT plan in a nutshell. We're really enjoying it and have lost 7 pounds between us. Woo-hoo!
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