You know you're a Fitbit addict when...

[V1CK1]

• You pace the house to get to a particular figure before going to bed
• You sit down when recharging as you don't want to 'waste' any steps
• You park further away from the shops to gain extra steps

Moderator edit: format

[SunsetRunner]

When putting back on the fitbit as soon it's charged cause feeling empty without it.

[losinit]

You get anxious to take off the fitbit to charge because you could be logging more steps to beat your last step count. 

[DramaQueenDiva]

.....when your friends and family ask you about Fitbit trackers you don't even own!  Or when you're in Wal Mart and see two people debating between which trackers to buy and you have to resist the urge to not interrupt them! 

[Donna_K]

@DramaQueenDiva  Or you brag to everyone about the weight you have lost because your Alta reminds you to get up and keep moving!  Which BTW currently is 58 lbs!!  More to go, but you will have to friend me to see the ultimate result!  It is not that far away.  Woo Hoo!  It's a long slow journey, but that is the way I want it as this is a lifestyle change for life, and NOT a short term diet and exercise thing.  I started my journey August 15, 2015 with the intent of achieving a normal BMI for life.  No crazy diet schemes, no weirdness, just a slow but steady trek to better health and happiness.  I got my Fitbit(s) in the middle of the journey and they keep me on track.  Yes, I use two trackers at the same time and that for me is perfect!

[Donna_K]

@V1CK1  You walk out of the fabric store and you eye Costco at the far end of the street which appears to be downhill and wonder if there is enough of an incline on the way back to count as a flight of stairs, so you walk to Costco for steps and on your return, you check your tracker and realize that it counted not one, but THREE floors.  So at the next stop, you eye yet another parking lot and do the same thing.  I racked up a total of 5 floors yesterday between going to Costco and later going to the pharmacy!  I will DEFINITELY do that again!!

[BarbaraH.]

What am I missing?  Why do you use 2 trackers at the same time?  At a 58-pound weight loss which is fantastic, did 2 trackers help that?  Just trying to understand.

[Donna_K]

@BarbaraH.  Hi Barbara!  Nope, you  didn't miss a thing!  Trackers on your arm don't count steps when you are pushing a grocery cart whether it be for groceries or anything else.  With the ONE on my waistband, it catches what the Alta misses so I don't give it a thought. I broke a band on my Alta by taking it off all the time and tucking into the waistband of workout wear for lack of a pocket in order to get it to count when I was pushing a cart.  Plus I have started incorporating stairs into my life again after avoiding them for a long time as much as possible.  The Alta doesn't count stairs, but I love it's reminders and how it looks with my leather band.  The ONE counts stairs and you can see in the display the exact 3 or 4 digit number, where on the Alta you can see 2 numbers maximum on the display with the clock face I chose.  Oh, and another reason, I don't tolerate the trackers with HR monitors for a very strange reason, so adding the ONE was the logical choice for me.For some reason unbeknownst to me, neither tracker was counting on a stationary bicycle at the gym last evening, so that annoyed me.  So I won't do that again or use a stationary bicycle because I lost 15 minutes worth of steps before I figured that out!! Grr.  Going to the gym is my friend for losing more weight!!  Yup, I do believe I qualify as a Fitbitaholic!  Don't you think so?

[BarbaraH.]

Yes, you definitely are an addict.  I have been walking 10,000 steps for 2 months now.  I have a Charge 2 (upgraded from HR).  I want to keep it up but have been trying to figure out how I got all this started!  I was good for 3,000 to 5,000 before.  Still, I intend to keep it going.  I have lost about 13 pounds so far but need to focus on the food some.  I do feel better since the walking 10,000.  I'll have to watch to see the count at the grocery store, however.

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@Donna_K wrote:

@BarbaraH.  Hi Barbara!  Nope, you  didn't miss a thing!  Trackers on your arm don't count steps when you are pushing a grocery cart whether it be for groceries or anything else.  With the ONE on my waistband, it catches what the Alta misses so I don't give it a thought. I broke a band on my Alta by taking it off all the time and tucking into the waistband of workout wear for lack of a pocket in order to get it to count when I was pushing a cart.  Plus I have started incorporating stairs into my life again after avoiding them for a long time as much as possible.  The Alta doesn't count stairs, but I love it's reminders and how it looks with my leather band.  The ONE counts stairs and you can see in the display the exact 3 or 4 digit number, where on the Alta you can see 2 numbers maximum on the display with the clock face I chose.  Oh, and another reason, I don't tolerate the trackers with HR monitors for a very strange reason, so adding the ONE was the logical choice for me.For some reason unbeknownst to me, neither tracker was counting on a stationary bicycle at the gym last evening, so that annoyed me.  So I won't do that again or use a stationary bicycle because I lost 15 minutes worth of steps before I figured that out!! Grr.  Going to the gym is my friend for losing more weight!!  Yup, I do believe I qualify as a Fitbitaholic!  Don't you think so?

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[Marydu]

Now, apparently I'm a Fitbit addict who's not supposed to walk - thought I'd go ahead with the 5th back surgery, then they decide that the first, major thing is osteoporosis - old lady stuff. I finally accepted the idea that if I fell off a ladder I could break something. Now they say I can break something doing nothing and if I fall, I'll shatter, not break. What part of 21 and bullet proof aren't these doctors getting? Then there's the cataract problem - I think the doc assumes I have someone to drive me places. None of the cats can reach the peddles, they don't like leaving the house and lose interest in anything new really fast! Oh well. I continue.

[Donna_K]

@Marydu  I have to agree with you.  What part don't they understand?  Silly doctors anyway sometimes are male idjiots, ya know? As far as cataracts go, I could have sworn you said the cats had them, not you, so they really shouldn't be driving at night anyway.  Oh wait, was that you??  Just get the doggone things taken care of so you can see better.  It's not that big of a deal, I've gotten people ready for that surgery and you don't even have to go to sleep for it.  How nifty is that?  Actually, they can do it with numbing eye drops and no injections if you find the right doc that does that.  Unfortunately just for that day and the next you would need a driver, but that's the only time.  In the meantime, just keep putting one foot in front of the other.  You are a most determined lady.  Take your tums (calcium) and your Fosamax for those cranky wimpy bones and just keep on keeping on!

[Donna_K]

@BarbaraH. Congrats on the 13 lbs!! You are doing GREAT!! For me the thing that has helped the most is not looking at the whole weight loss thing as a diet, but as a lifestyle change.  That being said, I obsessively track my food even more than my steps.  It is said that 80% of weight loss is what you eat, and 20% is exercise.  So by adding the Fitbits, my exercise went from nearly nothing to perhaps the 20%.  But even if not 20%, some exercise is better than none, right?  I've been on this journey since August 2015 and when I added my first Fitbit was at a time when I needed some encouragement to continue and got it.  Adding the ONE helped get me past a really long plateau, but on the upside, the trackers kept me from gaining over the holidays even though I didn't lose.  That was a good thing for me.  Maintaining at tough time of the year is better than gaining!

[BarbaraH.]

I'm working on it but some days, the 10,000 steps is a chore.  Yet, I seem to be hooked and don't want to miss a day.  You are right.  My doctor advised me that it is what I put in my mouth and how much.  I bought some 1-cup containers and plan to start keeping better track of that too.  It seems crazy!  Exercise for my arms to keep them from flying in the wind, exercise for my neck so I don't favor a turkey, exercise for my hands so I can have more strength in my hands, exercise for my arms so my shoulders don't get frozen shoulder, exercise for my tummy, and then the 10,000 steps!!!!  Sleep is NO problem.

[Donna_K]

@BarbaraH. Another suggestion for you that works for me is using a kitchen scale and obsessively weighing everything.  The other night I wanted some goulash as I hadn't made any in probably 30 years.  I weighed out every component for one serving and when I was done, it was enough.  When I make more of ANYTHING, I always seem to throw sense and sensibility out the window and eat twice as much as I really need.  You can find an inexpensive kitchen scale with a flat glass top at Walmart for $20.  I even weigh nuts for snacks.

JUST LOG EVERYTHING as it goes into you mouth.  Studies have proven that helps teach portion control.  I do belive they are absolutely right!  LOG     LOG     LOG!!!

[SantiR]

You know you are a Fitbit addict when your morning alarm's name is "Get up and run", "Run like hell", "Run, Run, Run".

I have used the three of them actually! 

[Marydu]

The cats' eyes are great - I have spent days hauling them to the vet - one got sneezers (upper respiratory thing I can't spell), then passed it on. Just figured out that I have spent $635 at the vet since right after Christmas. Meantime, it's been raining like crazy - guess who's sick now? My doctor called in an Rx for me, but I still have go to get it. Yeah, cataract surgery is nothing - comparatively speaking. They are getting approval and will do the right eye first - they said it takes 20 minutes, with light sedation - I got enough drugs to lightly sedate myself before leaving the house!! I've fallen twice in the last 3 days. Pretty good, @Donna_K - I challenge you, then get sick. Guess it's light enough outside to go get my prescription. Driving during the day is sort of okay, driving at night is a whole different ballgame - scares even me!! At least one of my falls I landed on my good knee - goodness knows what would happen if I landed on the bad one. The other fall wasn't really a fall, I didn't hit the ground - just did the "herky-jerky" and made pieces and parts hurt - I'm over it. I looked so good with 2 cat carriers loaded on my tray on my walker and trying to haul a third cat carrier at the same time - in the rain. Don't tell me the "babies" weigh only 12 pounds each. Certainly did a number on my neck and my Visa!! Enough of this - gotta blow my nose and get my prescription!

[Rich_Laue]

 Might be addicted since i have two charging cords at home, one in the car, and one at work. You never know when you forgot to charge and might need to.

[DanielleinDC]

I 

I have one at home and carry one in my purse so I can charge on the go. This time, I keep it in a box so it doesn't get broken. That is a flaw of the Alta charger--the design lends itself to easy breakage.

[Donna_K]

@Rich_Laue, @DanielleinDC  Since the outlet in the car doesn't work, I carry a powerbank in a rigid case and keep my cord for the Alta in it.  I almost had my Alta pass out for lack of a charge so that won't happen again!

[Marydu]

At 4:00 this morning while cleaning, I decided I could get on the floor and install my new thingy from Dish - then I called for help from Dish. The gal who helped me also is a Fitbit addict and she said she wears her Fitbit (forgot to ask what kind) on her ankle when she's on the treadmill - she thinks she gets a more accurate count. I told her I wear mine on my ankle (against the advise of Customer Service) because I walk funny and don't move my arms right - I did pass on my tip on how to get an extra 500 steps (with the thingy on your wrist) - make a batch of box brownies! After being sick(ier) I'm working like crazy today. I deleted junk email the other day and now have another 127. Oh well - gotta get moving!!

[DanielleinDC]

A few weeks ago, I was helping with a major mailing at work. Who knew that the process of stuffing envelopes would make my Alta count "steps"?