Step count on Blaze is inaccurate

[MaureenSantos]

I walk the same distance just about every day; approximately 3.75 miles. With my Charge 2 I would get over 7,000 steps. 

May walking app tells me I have 7.6K steps. My new Blaze says I only have 4,500 steps. This has happened several times now. I have read all the forums about this and have tried a couple of changes ... swinging my arms in a different position; swinging my arms in a bigger movement. Nothing worked. Suggestions?? 

Moderator edit: Updated title for clarity

[Rich_Laue]

I find a natural seeing works best

Are you using the multisport mode called walk?

If so I suggest testing it.

This is the way I do it:

Put the tracker into walk

Start walking with the right leg

Count every left step.

Stop at 100 0r 250

Double this number for a total of 200 or 500 steps.

Look at what the Blaze counted.

[MaureenSantos]

Where do I find the multi sport mode? When I go to Exercise on my Blaze, it shows run, bike, weights, treadmill, elliptical, and workout. When I go to the app, I only have walk selected. 

[Rich_Laue]

If walk is only shown on the app, the next time the Blaze syncs you will only see walk on the Blaze.

Let's look below, click on Help, then a quick search will bring up the documents on the multisport mode.

How do I track my workouts with my Fitbit device?

Track your workouts in real time with the Exercise app to capture in-depth activity stats

[MaureenSantos]

Thank you for your help. I’ve added walk and will test it out tomorrow morning. 

Okay, I went for my regular walk this morning and my Blaze showed 4857 steps... still not close to the usual 7,000+ I normally get. (I also track my steps using the ‘Map my Walk’ app; that shows I have over 7,000 steps.) so I did the next thing you suggested ... walking  steps and see what Blaze says.  I walked 50 steps, doubled it to 100, and my Blaze only showed 75 steps.  Suggestions???

Moderator edit: Merged replies

[Mrs_r14]

Mine is doing the exact same. It’s very frustrating!! Counts even less when I’m carrying my child or pushing the pram. Any suggestions most welcome!!! 

[Rich_Laue]

@Mrs_r14 yes if your arm is ok the handle of the Pram then yes this sends to bigger the up/down movement of the arm. It would be the same with a child or heavy box in the arms.

Comparing your tracker to another tracker is useless, unless you have confirmed the other tracker counts properly. In any case a user needs to count their steps in their head so tthen compare their count with what the Fitbit tracker says.

[FerdinandFitbit]

Hi there @MaureenSantos @Mrs_r14, welcome to the Fitbit Community Forums! 🙂

I'm very sorry to hear that you are having problems with your Blaze trackers not recording your steps accurately. I'd like to help you out.

Adding to what @Rich_Laue has already said, if you feel that your step count and distance are inaccurate, first make sure the wrist placement settings are correct. Next, double check that you entered your height correctly. Since we use height to estimate your walking and running stride lengths, you may want to measure and manually adjust these values if your legs are longer or shorter than average. For more information, see How do I measure and adjust stride length for my Fitbit device?

Sometimes, when you start walking you may notice that your steps may not update on your device right away. After about 10-15 continuous steps, you'll notice the steps catch up and start updating in real-time with each step you take.

@Mrs_r14 in your case, we don't recommend keeping your arms stationary (holding on to a shopping cart or holding a child as you describe) as your Blaze is a wrist based tracker and will need to sense a walking like pattern in order to detect steps.

Hope you guys find this information helpful. Let us know if you need anything else!

[Mrs_r14]

Thanks Ferdinand. Unfortunately being a mum means taking my child on walks with me so holding him or pushing his buggy (stroller!) is kind of unavoidable. Anyways I took the blaze back to the shop yesterday and swapped it for a Charge 3 which counts my steps much better- even on the 3mile walk with my son and dogs today. Problem solved!