Fitbit blaze recording cycling as steps taken and stairs climbed?

[BorisShady]

Hello, I just used my new fitbit blaze for biking for the first time today.

I went for an mtb ride this mornng. I selected the bike exercise mode and off I went. My milage and gps map transfered right over to my strava account. I was very happy with this feature. The ride was 12.32 miles and took me 1 hour 18 mins 56 sec. I had 2 issues with my data.

1st issue: after syncing the blaze with my phone, I was shown I only had 13 active mins and my avg heart rate was 71 bpm. I know my heart rate was well above this and think the issue here was location of the watch on my wrist during the ride. I will need to wear it a bit tighter so it doesn't slide as I ride. I assume that "active minutes" is calculated based on heart rate.

2nd issue is the one that bugs me. Even though I selected cycling as my exercise the fit bit logged 7000 plus steps during my ride. I am under the impression cycling does not contribute to steps taken. I also saw that the blaze logged 83 flights of stairs climbed.

I contacted customer support and they told me to reboot the unit and call back if the issue persists. I will try again tomorrow and hope for the best.

Has anyone else had this problem?

[SilviaFitbit]

@BorisShady Welcome to the Community! When you're using Strava and Fitbit. Strava will sync calories and active minutes to your Dashboard. GPS tracked by your Blaze will be synced to Strava. 

Please check this post posted by @MakMak to know how your active minutes will be calculated. 

Regarding the cycling that was logged, this will help you to know your stats tracked while doing cycling such as calories burned and distance. However, steps and floors will be tracked; the only activity that will delete the steps is "driving". 

Hope this helps. Thanks for your understanding . 

[BorisShady]

Hmm, this doesn't reflect the data I am seeing on the fitbit...after choosing biking as an exercise mode and using the gps from my phone the cycling activity reflected on my steps taken and stairs climbed. When I get on the bike and cycle leisurely for less then 10 minutes before the blaze can autodetect my activity I do not see any reflection in steps taken or stairs climbed. I experimented getting on and off the bike...while I ride no steps counted, when I walk alongside the bike steps are counted.

Any input will be appreciated.

[AlvaroFitbit]

@BorisShady Take into consideration the rode you are on. If you are on a bumpy road or went mountain biking and the terrain is difficult then there will be a lot of bumping and this will cause your tracker to record steps. Meanwhile if you are starting your run while on concrete/asphalt roads which won't cause bumps then you won't see that many steps recorded by your Blaze. Also regarding the heart rate some members have used a sport/sweat wristband to keep their trackers into place (wear it in "front" of your tracker so it doesn't slip from your arm).

Let me know how it goes!

[SunsetRunner]

This isn't a helpful answer.

What is the point of recording steps and stairs climbed when recording a bike activity? I notice it has been two years since the original post and this pointless glitch is still a problem.

When I ride my bike, I want cycling related statistics. My Blaze gives me this through the GPS with my phone and then a link to Strava, but the steps and stairs climbed are completely irrelevant. Surely it is within the realms of possibility for these statistics to be switched off when a 'bike' activity is selected? Will Fitbit be updating the systems to do this?

On a seperate note, stairs climbed is a pointless statistic at any time. Is there any way I can remove it from my watch and dashboard?