Just got Fitbit: Counting steps on a elliptical

[Joy2]

Does the Fitbit count steps while doing elliptical

[mcmyjoy]

It would not read on the stairstep elliptical. Or the stair machine. I had it on my shoelace and that solve the problem. If anyone disagrees please let me know because I want to do this right thank you

[USAF-Larry]

I agree with not reading on the stairstep elliptical, @mcmyjoy, especially if you are doing the HIIT workout on it - you really need to concentrate on your exercise on that machine.  I wear my Charge 2 on my wrist as normal, using the Elliptical exercise mode, and it does a really good job of tracking steps, HR, calories, etc., due to the arm movement with the workout.

[mcmyjoy]

Thanks! I didn't know there was an elliptical mode. So much to learn about this

Take cake, Myra

[Heybales]

Thanks! I didn't know there was an elliptical mode. So much to learn about
this

Take cake, Myra

It's not really an elliptical "mode" - it's an elliptical text label for the
name of the workout.

Nothing with sensitivity, calorie burn, ect changes, it's not a special
"mode" the device is put in.

The problem with it being on 1 foot - and you can confirm this easily, it'll
usually just see 1 foot going down. Normally it would see impact of each
foot going down, which is what it's trying to measure.

So look at current step count, do 100 steps with right foot, and look at
step count again - if correct it would say 200, if really wrong it'll be
less than 100, or somewhere inbetween.

Now if this was step-based calorie count, the mere use on an elliptical is
going to be wrong anyway - but being HR based there is better chance.
Distance is of course meaningless too, but you can hope to get some steps
out of it.

[USAF-Larry]

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@Heybales wrote:

The problem with it being on 1 foot - and you can confirm this easily, it'll
usually just see 1 foot going down. Normally it would see impact of each
foot going down, which is what it's trying to measure.

---

That is not exactly the case. On a wrist worn tracker your feet do not need to move at all to count steps. You can stand perfectly still in one place and swing your arm forward and back, and for each arm swing the tracker will count two steps just as if both feet had moved forward one step each.  This is frequently discussed in posts about people cheating on challenges.

[Heybales]

That is not exactly the case. On a wrist worn tracker your feet do not need
to move at all to count steps. You can stand perfectly still in one place
and swing your arm forward and back, and for each arm swing the tracker will
count two steps just as if both feet had moved forward one step each. This
is frequently discussed in posts about people cheating on challenges.

Actually - it's trying to sense the impact of the steps to do some
calculations with - despite the swinging of the arm.

And those people doing false "steps" that way have little distance
associated with that minimal impact, and therefore minimal extra calories
burned. That's the reason why the calculations are based on impact, not the
actual swinging.

Same as you can walk with a wrist worn tracker on your hip, or hold your arm
to your chest, and it'll still see the impact and calculate distance, and
distance and time and mass moved is calories burned.

Same as you can be walking gripping on to shopping cart and despite step
impacts, they aren't seen at your wrist, so no steps, no distance, no
calorie burn above sleeping BMR level.

But the formula used (pretty accurate for walking and running level) is not
accurate for incline/decline, or elliptical or stair machines.

But for a HR-based calorie burn - that doesn't matter anyway.

[Smurfy1992]

When I was usingu one it was clipped to my sports bra and I never had a problem

[TMORGA11]

II do enter manualy  it dose not give me a place to log the info that the elliptical give me at the end of a workout. 

[MBP666]

I have a clip on for my shoe & it does not count my elliptical steps! I'm going to try clipping on my bra strap or in my waistband

[MBP666]

Some ellipticals don't have moving arms....there are 2 different types at the 2 gyms I belong to.

[Spyder95]

Yup. I don't use the moving arms either.  I still don't understand how one arm-swing equates to two "steps" but one ankle-swing does not.   When I run (or elliptical), one leg-swing requires that the other has swung also, before this leg swings again.   'Splain it to me!

[Heybales]

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@Spyder95 wrote:

Yup. I don't use the moving arms either.  I still don't understand how one arm-swing equates to two "steps" but one ankle-swing does not.   When I run (or elliptical), one leg-swing requires that the other has swung also, before this leg swings again.   'Splain it to me!

---

Because steps actually don't have anything to do with arms swinging, but rather impacts.

When on the arm, it's actually trying to discern impacts despite the swing, and it can see both feet hit usually.

You can time your arm swing in such a way as to reverse direction right as foot impact occurs, and impact won't be seen.

You can also cross your arms and walk and steps are seen still. Or death grip grocery cart and no impact steps seen.

That's why elliptical and spin bike isn't considered step-based for those types of trackers. The steps seen, even if you got an accurate count, have no corresponding distance that has any relation to the formula used to calculate calories from distance.

You can do elliptical in such a way as to be very close to spin bike - meaning 1 foot down might be seen, or in such a way to see even less impacts.

And side-point, putting it on your ankle is even a worse idea unless truly running, because it can see the impact of each foot then.

But walking, with one foot on the ground while other impacts, usually causes half the steps to be seen.

[Spyder95]

If this device can detect foot impacts from the wrist, then it can detect the foot impact from the other ankle. The whole body transmits the shock.

Thanks, Eric

[USAF-Larry]

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@Heybales wrote:

Because steps actually don't have anything to do with arms swinging, but rather impacts.

When on the arm, it's actually trying to discern impacts despite the swing, and it can see both feet hit usually.

---

Steps actually have a lot to with arm swings - if you walk at a normal pace, as your left foot goes forward so does your right arm, and as your right foot goes forwards so does your left arm. This how the body balances during walking.

The wrist-worn tracker is not trying to "discern impacts", the accelerometer in it is detecting movement. Try simply standing in one place, without moving your feet or body in any way, and swing your arm forward and backward as if walking normally, and you will find that you wrist-worn tracker will count 2 steps for each swing of the arm. There is no impact needed, just the accelerometer detecting the movement.

[USAF-Larry]

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@MBP666 wrote:

Some ellipticals don't have moving arms....there are 2 different types at the 2 gyms I belong to.

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If the machine does not have moving arms, it is most likely not an elliptical, but a Stair Stepper or Stair Climber. 

[Heybales]

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@Spyder95 wrote:
If this device can detect foot impacts from the wrist, then it can detect the foot impact from the other ankle. The whole body transmits the shock.

Thanks, Eric

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Whole body transmits some tremors perhaps - but not enough impact to do any math with if it's on right ankle say with right foot on the ground while the left foot impacts from walking.

It's also trying to take out any false steps - which if it saw any deceleration at all from impacting foot, it would likely count as that.

In fact they have used the motions aspect to attempt to guess your workout on some models.

Interesting results some people find there.

[Heybales]

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@USAF-Larry wrote:

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@Heybales wrote:

Because steps actually don't have anything to do with arms swinging, but rather impacts.

When on the arm, it's actually trying to discern impacts despite the swing, and it can see both feet hit usually.

---

Steps actually have a lot to with arm swings - if you walk at a normal pace, as your left foot goes forward so does your right arm, and as your right foot goes forwards so does your left arm. This how the body balances during walking.

The wrist-worn tracker is not trying to "discern impacts", the accelerometer in it is detecting movement. Try simply standing in one place, without moving your feet or body in any way, and swing your arm forward and backward as if walking normally, and you will find that you wrist-worn tracker will count 2 steps for each swing of the arm. There is no impact needed, just the accelerometer detecting the movement.

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Try looking at what it thinks the distance was for those "steps" - go ahead and swing your arms long enough just like you would for a long stride fast pace walk, with no leg movement as you suggest.

Now hug your chest and go walk a known distance you've observed it's correct with, when doing normal arm swinging walking. Or put the device on belt not jiggling to remove arms altogether.

I and others have already done such tests, like taking the wrist models and putting on belt clip - where there is obviously no arm swing to deal with, only impacts. And same accuracy is there, usually better.

If you read up on the chipsets involved in the accelerometer they get into the stats on what they can do, and the newer ones do all the math onboard as opposed to earlier models outputting the figures for another chip to do math with. Fitbit or whoever can still put their custom formula's in that single chipset. And the accelerometer is indeed used to determine hang time between impacts to attempt to determine walking or running, and likely distance of stride for running besides just expected impact which can workout good enough for walking.

New attempts are to figure out hills, up and down - but still not good to getting a grade to calculate increased calorie burn with that.

When I used the term "steps" with arm swings - I meant Fitbit "steps" not literal steps which obviously have some arm motion involved - unless you are Raquel Welch walking on NYC streets. 😉

[tapfumam]

This does not account for correct steps made. 30 minutes of head Eliptical activity is only showing less than 1 Mile on Fitbit but it was actually 3 miles of work on the Elipitcal. There is no option to put this on the dashboard .

How exactly is this a work around

[Kimr430]

I have a Flex 2 & thought the same thing. Since my main forms of exercise are  elliptical & stationary bike I thought it was worth a try to put it on my ankle with the larger strap. The Flex 2 is very inconsistent-I’m not sure how it’s calculating pace but it’s different every time. 

I assume that for elliptical & stationary  bike applications probably a Fitbit with HR detection would work better. 

[tapfumam]

I moved to HR some time ago and trust me . It's the same unfortunately