Convert Bike Distance (or Spinning) into Steps

[GayleB-S]

Hi. I'd like to see additional information for my bike ride so that it shows the distance as well as that distance converted into steps.  I know to be healthy you should do 10,000 steps and it feels like a let down when you do a 26km bike ride to not show any steps!  Very disappointed this is not tracked correctly on my Charge 2. 

Moderator edit: Labels & title

[PhilL-1]

My major activity is biking and a big yes there should be a conversion to steps

It is not double dipping as some would suggest since steps are shown as a total and other activities can be viewed separately under the exercise section

[Rich_Laue]

You might want to add your vote to this request at https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Feature-Suggestions/Track-Cycling-on-Mobile-App-with-GPS/idi-p/69116...

To track bike distance gps is needed, so you will need tye phone anyway

[Mcayal]

Yesterday after a 3 hrs bike ride, noticed that at the end of the day I only got to a little over 9,000 steps, yet my tracker had accurately kept track of the time I had spent biking. I understand that on a bike, the motion sensor might not count steps, but it would be great if at sync, the app could translate biking time into steps, that way people who regularly bike, could meet their daily goal by pedaling! 

[capt2960]

I would like to see the fitbit track my bike miles and convert to steps so that it shows up on the dashboard. that way those of us not walking still get the steps from our exercise

[valken]

I ride my Healthrider bike 5 days a week for 30-45 minutes.  It calculates the distance in miles, calories burns and tracks the time.  I have to manually add this information in activities, but why can't Fitbit contact Healrider to convert this into steps?

[PhilL-1]

Actually I use a Polar Bike Computer to track my rides and so I have that information as well.
I doubt that Fitbit wants to talk to Polar but I would not object to manually adding this info to my Fitbit Dashboard results.
If this can't be accomplished I might just move over to Polar as they provide me with all the same info, though their watch is bulky

[cfw43]

Hello PhilL-1, I’ll be very honest with you. In my opinion I don’t believe Fitbit really cares about converting “activities” such as biking, or spinning or anything else into steps. If I try to look at it maybe from their point of view, maybe they are correct. They are really only interested in counting steps when we walk or run. All of the other activities can be measured in their own way. For biking or spinning it would be kilometers or miles. For elliptical machines or stair step machines or walking up and down steps the effort is measured in another way, floors for instance. Fitbit is giving us an environment in which to measure many different types of activities. Before Fitbits (and others) we measured how many miles or KM we ran or walked. We measured our heartbeat after we ran, not during because there was no way to do that initially. We marked in books our workouts with the number of reps we did on the weight machines, how many situps we did, how many crunches we did, etc.

And now everyone wants to turn all those different measurements in steps? Maybe that is not such a good idea after all. I suggest therefore that walking and running be measured in steps. Biking and spinning stick with miles or KM. All other activities need to be measured on their own methods. Step machines = number of floors, NOT steps. Elliptical machines ???. Lifting weights, yoga etc. I don’t know.

Maybe there is only one measurement that is common across all types of activities and that is Calories Burned.

I think in a way we all have been sold a bill of goods to try to use number of steps as the universal measurement to tell us somehow what kind of shape we are in and how well we are doing with our physical activities and our physical self. But that’s why Fitbit and others are trying to do to make sure we buy their products and buy into their system.

Right now I have a beef with my Charge 2 not syncing well with my smartphone so that I can track my activities on a map. It seems a very hit and miss process. I don’t know if it is a problem with Fitbit hardware (Charge 2) or software, or a problem on my smartphone. If I make a bike run, first I have a heck of a time getting the Charge 2 to sync with my smartphone so that it uses the GPS connected function. Then most of the time when I think it is connected correctly, I never get a complete picture on the map. Once I rode 13KM but the tracks on the map showed only 8.3 of it. Not the complete ride. Shouldn’t have been a GPS problem because I was in an open area under sunny skies. I have put this out into the community but never received any responses nor does Fitbit seem to be addressing this.

[valken]

Thanks for the feedback.

Valerie Arnold
Sent from my iPad

[DanieGirl13013]

I vote for this feature too.  I think it would be best if you could select the activity that you are doing (like biking) and then fit bit would give you steps based on your heart rate for how hard you are working. 

[Danielcur]

Please find a solution to log bike runs 

[Rich_Laue]

It would be better to base the steps on the equivalent caloried burn.

[YojanaFitbit]

Hi @GayleB-S thanks for posting this suggestion. We are continuing to explore other bike ride distance conversion options to further meet the needs of our users but do not have any details to share at this time. Watch this space!

[YojanaFitbit]

Great idea @Eve.danke, it would really encourage you to keep adding your suggestion on the board, so that we can streamline responses and discussion. I know this is a popular request, so watch this space for updates. Thanks for your patience.

[GayleB-S]

Thanks everyone for your support and additional comments. Thanks Yojana, I look forward to seeing what conversions you guys come up with. 

[capt2960]

Thanks

--


Sharon Nilson
Live, Love, Laugh and above all Believe in God.

[Vissott]

I have found having my tires rock hard means I get 4500 steps or so for a 9 mile bike ride-better than nothing!!

[Albysea]

I hope Fitbit can come up with some conversion factor for bike riding to steps and some calorie consideration, even if it is half of something it is better than nothing . There is some benefit from bicycling and we are receiving no data, which is discouraging. since all rides differ even some credit with an asterisk would be encouraging. 

[Rich_Laue]

calories come from heart rate. Not the counting of bumps in the road. 

Their are many that want Fitbit to re

I've all steps cited dieting a bike ride. 

[Mogsy]

I would very much like to see distance registered for step based activities in the Charge 2. I would have thought this would be standard, as it is in many fitness trackers. Unlike total distance for a day, each resistered exercise could display its distance. 

[Albysea]

seems like the idea of converting miles on bike to steps is gaining traction, but I haven't found and definite ways to do it. I have an ionic , which i really like, but and doing a loy of biking and no way to track steps. very disappointing.

[capt2960]

I am with you. I normally go to activities and figure my miles into steps and add it in manually.

[Albysea]

I didn't think if you did that your steps went into your total for when you are competing with friends?   I thought manually entered step just went into you weekly stats? 

[Rich_Laue]

@Mogsy when did bike riding become a step based activity? This conversion would need to be based on the equivalent caloric burn. 

Of course this request to convert cycle miles to steps is in direct competition to remove all steps from bike riding. 

[Mogsy]

Posted in wrong thread... of course biking isn’t step based..🙄

[SunsetRunner]

I'd like to see the miles I manually enter from my exercise bike added to the distance on the dashboard.  I have read of people who put the fitbit in their sock to get a step count then it shows in distance. Can't be very accurate and you can't monitor your heart rate with you fitbit in your sock.