Active Zone Minutes in FitBit VS Heart Points in Google Fit

[I.Em.]

UPDATE:  Scrolling back, I was awarded 78 points for a walk that was recorded automatically.  Same walk, recorded using the Walk Exercise button awarded only 2 points. So, different recording methods award wildly different points.  Very odd.

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I do a brisk 5km walk each day at 5km/hr.  Fitbit only records 2 Active Zone Minutes.  When the data is synced with Google Fit, I'm awarded 58 Heart Points for the same activity. 

Are these different metrics? They both refer to earning 150 points per week, but that's unattainable using FitBit measurements.

My exercise heart rate zone in Fitbit is set as advised by my cardiologist.  

Thank you for any insight.

[JohnnyRow · Accepted solution]

This is not a simple answer so bear with me.  When you say your exercise heart rate zone is set as advised by your cardiologist, I assume you mean you set this as your custom heart zone.  Incidentally, custom heart zone is not taken into account by Fitbit in calculating Zone Minutes; it is just for your own reference.

Fitbit's Active Zone Minutes (AZM) are based totally on heart rate.  I don't use Google Fit so don't know what it uses, but think it takes input from several sources, some of which don't have heart rate data, so assuming it does not consider that. If you click on the zone minutes circle on Fitbit phone app and scroll down, you can see the heart rate range for the different heart rate zones.  These zones are calculated based on your age and resting heart rate.  At least moderate is required to earn AZM. Vigorous earns double AZM.  In the previous version these were called fat-burn and aerobic zones and might still be called those some places.  You could be just a beat or two below the moderate zone for most of your walk and not be earning any AZM but still getting benefits so it is really somewhat of an artificial cutoff point.  You can look at the heart rate chart of your walks to see how close your heart rate is coming to that threshold.  It might be that increasing your just a bit might make a big difference in your AZM.

The 150 points or minutes recommendation is seen many places and comes from the American Heart Association and CDC:

https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/fitness/fitness-basics/aha-recs-for-physical-activity-in-adu...

"Get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes per week of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both, preferably spread throughout the week."

But there seem to be various interpretations of exactly what qualifies as moderate and vigorous activity.  I agree Fitbit's AZM limits do seem to make this more difficult that most other interpretations.

[I.Em.]

 In understanding your comments, it certainly appears that I'm a beat or two below the cutoff which makes sense based on my caridac history and supervised treadmill tests.    Inorder for me to get over that number though, I'd have to jog, and that ain't happening. 😂   I walk a mimimum of 420 minutes per week at a healthy brisk pace of just over 3mph (5kmh) and have been for over a decade.  This certainly exceeds the suggested requirements by AHA and CDC which is 150 minutes at 2.5mph (4kph).    I appreciate your input.  Thank you!