Please create a chest strap attachment for the Fitbit Sense

[Kpstatic]

Create a chest strap attachment for the fitbit sense... Many exercises just aren't easy or even possible with a wrist band. I was doing kettle bell swings and almost broke the watch. I sometimes hit the punching bag and cant really capture the data. There are literally millions of people that practice these activities. Make it happen. I'm seriously considering 3D printing something and attaching a chest band to it.

Moderator edit: updated subject for clarity and format. 

[Rich_Laue]

Maybe one of your fellow fitbit users will come up with one. 

But what will the tracker be measuring on the chest? 

It can not measure steps. 

Would it be able to measure heart rate? The logic is not written for this location. 

[Kpstatic]

Logging steps isn't needed for kettle bell swings or Boxing. Who do we talk to about making this happen and how do i get a cut of this million dolla!

[t.parker]

@Kpstatic it's actually a very good question. What do you expect it to measure when it's attached to the chest? It probably won't work for heart rate (not designed for that) and if steps are not relevant then you may just take it off during those activities. On the other hand, it may be cheaper just to update firmware and let it pair with a BT chest strap monitor, and no need to spend million dollars for that 😉 It's just not gonna happen because Fitbit isn't interested in it. I'd rather get a different watch + $100 chest monitor than invest into the chest attachment (or whatever would call it) for Fitbit. What Fitbit really needs is to pair with external HR monitors.

[Kpstatic]

The sensor literally works by measuring pulse on your skin. Thankfully, I have skin on my chest.... Yes, the metric I'm looking for is heart rate ranges and estimated calories burned. Obviously, the accuracy might change a little (a couple of b/s) but nothing a 3rd grade formula won't fix. Try it for yourself, it actually works and is only off 1-2 b/s... possibly on the more accurate side. I never buy my fitbit to measure steps anyway. I train and compete in martial arts like Jiujitsu, muay thai, MMA and boxing. All of my fitness is base on the strength and condition around those arts. So steps arent a priority.

I agree, they should allow pairing with a BT chest strap monitor. Fitbit lost touch with the consumer a while ago. I said i wouldn't go back after the Ionic... but when my Ionic stopped working (Shortly after the update, suspiciously...) they offered me a huge discount on the Sense... If fell for it. 

[t.parker]

@Kpstatic it doesn't work like that. The sensor measures blood flow (not pulse) under your skin. You need areas rich in capillaries and the chest is no such area on the human body. For that reason, there are no optical chest straps. If you look at other optical solutions like PolarOH1 they are best used on the forearm, bicep, calf, or - in the case of swimming - temple (attached to the swimming goggles). If Fitbit could bring an alternative strap to the market, it should be something like that. For me, it didn't work (I tried actually after reading your first post), got completely rubbish readings. It may work for some people but then why would I bother if I can use a proper chest strap (and many other sensors) with a better watch?

Well, Sense is a poor choice for sports tracking. There would have to be improved a lot first for me to change my mind. If any accessories, I'd rather see something that allows me to wear it higher up my forearm or bicep, maybe it could even get closer to OH1.

[lablover55]

Ugh, I always hated chest straps. No thank you..

[Murray67]

Or you could do what I did, ditch Fitbit and get a watch with ANT+ or Bluetooth connectivity, so you can connect to a chest strap or other devices. Having had a G-brand watch for a couple of months now, after buying then quickly returning the Sense, my major takeaway is that Fitbits just aren't intended to be used for sports. Fitbit's focus is much more on the lifestyle/wellness market, which probably makes economic sense since surveys show that most people don't actually use smartwatches for activity tracking.

I use a chest strap while weightlifting, since all wrist-based HRMs do poorly at strength activities, and it connects to my G watch immediately upon starting the workout.

In other activities, the G watch is much, much better at heart rate tracking (though the Sense is the worst of recent Fitbits for heart rate), is much more configurable, has a greater variety of apps, but is nowhere near as good for sleep tracking.

[Rich_Laue · Accepted solution]

@t.parker you hit on what I was inferring. Your fitbit would be next to useless on the strap. 

Chest straps look at the electrical signal that controls the heart. Fitbit looks at the changes in blood density in the wrist. 

[Kpstatic]

I returned my Fitbit Sense and am dropping the whole brand all together. The fact that an update bricked my Ionic has me upset. Fitbit quickly offered a discount on a new device. It looks like a bunch of Ionic users have had this exact same thing happen to them. The price has entered territories it cannot compete it with Apple and galaxy watches doing the same things and even more for the same price. Seemless integration as well... the Galaxy 4 watch can measure bodyfat!!!! It hurts to say it... but I'm gone... see you guys on the other side.

[rdwillia]

A chest strap heart rate monitor is mandatory otherwise it's just a watch that provides skewed results. I pedal my but off breathing hard and look at my Sense and I'm running an 86 hr? Basically it's useless on a bike because you're gripping the bars tight. Make a chest strap! I'd toss this device for a Garmin but it was a gift from my wife and I want to make her happy.

[t.parker]

@rdwillia it's not only that readings are rubbish because of holding handlebars. You can sometimes get acceptable HR on bike trainer despite holding the bars. The problem is that outdoor the whole bike shakes and that seem to prevent any good readings. The chest strap is a must but Fitbit hasn't seen and probably doesn't see a need of supporting that. My guess is that as long as there is no Fitbit branded chest strap the company won't allow integration of 3rd party hardware and that means we may forget that it will ever happen 🙂 I hardly believe the company QA team ever tests anything in the field to notice a need for pairing external sensors. Otherwise they would also notice why using chest strap is better in certain cases during activities (for example, the watch could be attached to the handlebars, still receive HR and serve as mini bike computer or it could be worn on top of the sleeve, less contact with sweat etc.). But such scenarios are not known to Fitbit. Those watches are made to be a step counters not real sports watches.