Fit Bit won't count steps while using walker

[kjscott]

My wife has a mobility (walking) problem and uses a "Roll-a-lator" when walking, (basically a walker on wheels).  She is trying to strengthen her legs by walking in the evenings.  We would like to know how far she walks so she can have some sense of accomplishment.  Is there ANY Fit Bit that will count her steps while using the walker?  We have not tried attaching it to her ankle sine she is afraid of loosing it.  I bought a std. pedometer but that didn't work either since she can't actually make complete steps (drags one foot).  We have tried it on different arms with no difference.

Suggestions?

[SteveH]

This is a notorious problem with any wrist-worn tracker. By holding onto the walker the hands are not swinging normally and many steps - if not all - will be missed.

The normal advise is to look at a tracker than is clipped to clothing rather than worn on the wrist. Fitbit sell the Zip and the One (although the One is being discontinued and is becoming increasingly difficult to find). However, these work partly by detecting the impact of the foot landing during a step so although they will probably work better than a wrist-worn tracker I would not expect them to track all steps in your wife's case.

It's possible that a GPS based tracker could provide better data but is probably using a sledgehammer to crack a nut and although a GPS might give good distance measurement it won't help with step counts.

I'm afraid I don't have a solution for you. If you can secure the fitbit to an ankle then results will probably be better but (due to the dragging foot) not 100% accurate.

I hope someone else posts with a solution for you.

[SunsetRunner]

Do you have a 'smart' phone?  When I walk I always have my fitbit paired with my phone and the phones

 GPS capabilities do the distance calculations and even gives me a pretty map on my dashboard.  It may not count the steps, but it will give you the distance and math can give you the step count if you really want it.    Good for your wife, keeping strong is so important!

[WendyB]

When I used a walker I put the device in my pocket. All though  still not accurate its was better.

The One or the Zip did not work that well either as using a walker you are sort of hunched over.

You can buy and extender for the ankle for what ever model she has and it should make it more secure so she doesn't lose it. Just search Amazon for the fitbit name and add extender

[Corney]

My daughter-in-law said that when she pushes the stroller her Fitbit doesn't count her steps, yet when I mow my yard with a walk behind mower my Fitbit seem to count all of my steps and since it has a dead man device I must keep both hands on the mower.  Any ideas?

[Mukluk4]

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@Corney wrote:

My daughter-in-law said that when she pushes the stroller her Fitbit doesn't count her steps, yet when I mow my yard with a walk behind mower my Fitbit seem to count all of my steps and since it has a dead man device I must keep both hands on the mower.  Any ideas?

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Unless you have a completely flat lawn or a reel mower, those are two completely different activities to your body.  I can tell you that my mower picks up the vibrations and the bumps of the engine and can actually inflate steps a bit (maybe 10-15%).  The stroller runs a bit smoother and on concrete so there isn't as much jostle.