Steps are inaccurate - far too high for the mileage

[KittyBitty]

I'm having a problem with the number of steps not matching the mileage.  For example usually 10,000 steps is 5 miles.  Today it shows 17,317 steps and 3.7 miles.  The number of steps is grossly exaggerated.  Is anyone else having this problem? Is there a fix for it?  I have uninstalled the app on both my phone and computer and reinstalled with no success.  I have turned off and turned on WiFi.  Any help would be very much appreciated.  Thanks!

[AlvaroFitbit]

@KittyBitty Welcome! It's great to see you around! 

Let me help you with your steps and distance calculation. Regarding the steps, your device will detect the movement on your arm and translate that movement into steps. There are situations in which your arm may move but you won't be actually walking. For example, this may happen when you are playing the drums, burping a baby or clapping. It can also happen while driving. You can negate these steps by logging a driving activity. You can try wearing your device on your non dominant hand but select that hand as dominant on the device’s settings to make it less sensitive to movement.

Now about the distance calculation, your device uses the number of steps and stride length to calculate the distance. You can improve the accuracy by measuring and logging your stride length. Feel free to use these instructions to do this.

Let me know how it goes.

[KittyBitty]

I have used a Fit Bit for years without a problem and this one was purchased new in November.  It has worked fine until about 5 days ago.