About Dominique

@WaltTN wrote: BMI has ALWAYS been a poor indicator of being overweight.  It only takes height and weight into consideration.  Wonder if you can demand that they do a fat % test.  When you come out with low numbers there, may they'll back off... I'd be interested to know what share of people who have a BMI higher than 30 also have a low body fat. My guess is the vast majority has a high body fat % as well. I think BMI is still a good indicator for the vast majority of "ordinary" people who live a sedentary life. ... View more

@JenniLacey wrote: I agree that cardio has its place as well as strength training. 3 sessions, 3x a week of 30 mins HIIT (high intensity interval training) is often recommended. 30 minutes of HIIT is very long: you either need to be extremely fit in order to sustain it for that long, or it won't be intense enough to qualify as HIIT.   I often read 15 minutes of HIIT has the same benefits as 1 hour of steady state cardio, so it should be a no brainer. Problem is, many people who could easily do 1 hour of steady state cardio won't be able to sustain even 10 minutes of HIIT (if done at the required intensity level). HIIT is supposed to be an "all out" effort, with minimal recovery periods in between.   I therefore believe steady state cardio still has its place, if only to get you to the fitness level required to sustain HIIT later on. ... View more

The bureaucrats do include a disclaimer about BMI:   Although BMI can be used for most men and women, it does have some limits: It may overestimate body fat in athletes and others who have a muscular build. Have a look at this Fitbitter's profile photos: https://www.fitbit.com/user/24C63Q He's also borderline obese as per BMI. Clearly, many people (me included) would like to be borderline obese with his physique ... View more

If you have a compatible smartphone that supports syncing, the mobile app will notify you when you reach  your daily step goal. It will also let you know when you are close to it. Otherwise, the One won't vibrate on that occasion, as @Jim_M already said.   The only time the One vibrates is when you start/stop recording an activity (you need the latest firmware for that) and when an alarm you set is being triggered. I wish it would vibrate when I have been inactive for too long. ... View more

@mom23rn1t wrote: from what I understand active min are diffrent than regular steps you have to have at least 30 min of an avtivity like running or biking to count as active time.  Actually, no, Fitbit records your activity on a minute-by-minute basis. You will get very active minutes (VAMs) even for just two minutes of activity, provided it was intense enough.   Biking is the kind of activity Fitbit devices can't track properly, since it's not step-based:   https://help.fitbit.com/customer/portal/articles/413311-how-do-i-log-or-record-an-activity-   Running, on the other hand, is an activity for which you will (or at least should) definitely earn VAMs, except perhaps if you were running on the moon (the number of steps per minute would be too low). ... View more

Active minutes are split into three different levels: moderately active, fairly active and very active. Walking should get you into one of these, but for the most intense activity level, you need to walk fast enough. For me, it's at least 4.2 mph.   As to calories, you should burn them all the time, even if you don't get off your couch. ... View more

@GerriD wrote: I have heard the fitbit tracks swimming is that true? I have never used it for biking, but that is disappointing it does not track spinning. It makes sense I guess because your foot is not hitting anything.   So what about swimming? Assuming your Fitbit is one of the waterproof models and you wear it while in the water, it will detect your hands' movements. However, it will have no idea about the water resistance, which means it will grant you similar calories as if you were doing similar movements with your hands on the ground. This means the only benefit is it will deem you active when swimming, whereas if you left it in the locker, it would deem you sedentary during that time.   You would therefore want to log your swimming, as explained here:   https://help.fitbit.com/customer/portal/articles/413311-how-do-i-log-or-record-an-activity-   Also see the following link explaining why activities that are not step-based should be logged:   https://help.fitbit.com/customer/portal/articles/1020095-what-are-%22very-active-minutes%22- ... View more

If you were running at full speed, 190 after a couple of minutes wouldn't be abnormally high for your age, but if you are only jogging at a moderate pace, your pulse shouldn't go that high. It's better to listen to your body rather than to follow some generic plan to the letter.   You said your heart was checked as a teenager. You also lost 80 lbs down to your current weight of 192 lbs, which means you were considerably overweight. If you were at that weight for a number of years in your adult life, this could have put a lot of stress on your cardio-vascular system, which is why a new check wouldn't be a bad idea. ... View more

@AlysiaBrooks wrote: I have an annual physical where my blood work, blood pressure, everything is normal  I would consult with a cardiologist. You may have a heart condition that wouldn't show during your annual checkup. You would need an echocardiography and an effort test for that. ... View more

Different Fitbit trackers grant very active minutes differently. The One is the stingiest and the Zip the most generous. The Flex and Force fit somewhere in between. Merely walking isn't sufficient to get VAMs, you need to walk fast enough, or more precisely have a pace (number of steps per minute) high enough (in case you are overstriding). ... View more

I'm not familiar with Appelbees (I'm not in the US), but the mere name "Quesadilla Burger" makes me think the easiest way to solve your problem (finding info about it) is not to eat it in the first place. If you want to eat healthily, I'm sure there are plenty of other options than "Applebees Quesadilla Burgers" that are just as tasty. ... View more

I agree with @SunsetRunner you pay for the convenience of having your weight and body fat data automatically uploaded to your account. You can achieve the same with the Withings scales, but they are equally expensive. Some people seem to have problems setting up the Aria and/or adding people to it, but although I was a bit frightened by the horror stories I had read prior to buying one, setting it up was surprisingly painless for me. Other people complain about huge variations and/or lack of accuracy in body fat measurements. My own experience is that body fat % is very consistent if measured in the same conditions and at the same time of the day. ... View more

@AZmojo wrote: Are there any reliable arm band monitors that you would recomend?  The chest strap is difficult for me to use. As I said in a previous post in this thread, the Mio Alpha works great for me. Granted, it's not cheap. You do have to wear it tight, but I find it perfectly bearable (in fact, I often forget to take it off after workouts). In terms of reliability, it's on par with the Polar H7 chest strap, which is usually highly regarded. I know because I've been using them side-by-side. ... View more

@Mary wrote: Can people use some HRMs with sites like Runkeeper or Endomondo and then synch that data to here?  Well, that calorie data?   Yes, it's what @gerrymcd is doing with Digifit iCardio, as explained (and illustrated) in the post above. ... View more

Of course, counting calories is only one possible use for a HRM, and losing weight only one possible use for an activity tracker like a Fitbit. I personally don't use my HRM to count calories, nor my Fitbit to lose weight. ... View more

I believe it's well established sleeping longer (eg. 8-9 hours instead of 6-7) has many beneficial effects on your health, so it would be a good idea to sleep longer even if there were no need for weight loss. Actually, one thing I like about my Fitbit One is it makes me aware of the need to sleep longer. ... View more

@gerrymcd wrote: I use a Bluetooth HRM (Polar or Wahoo) linked to my iphone via using digifit app.  This automatically sends heart rate data to my fitbit dashboard at the end of a workout.  Just curious: what specific HR data (average, max. etc.) gets sent to Fitbit, and where? ... View more

@VLG wrote: Fitbit needs to make a device that includes a HRM!  Why? It would either be a gimmick like the Withing Pulse (only capable of measuring instant heart rate), or a bulky and expensive device like the Basis B1, which is not capable of continuously measuring your heart rate during effort. ... View more

@gerrymcd wrote: Even then, most wrist HRMs are prone to errors, and have to be worn tight on the wrist to be remotely reliable.  There aren't many wrist-mounted HRM's capable of continuous monitoring, but all I can say (based on more than six months of daily use) is that the particular model I'm using (Mio Alpha) is extremely reliable. I have been using it side-by-side with a Polar H7 chest strap and both gave exactly the same results. It is true it has to be worn relatively tight on the wrist. Here is what my wrist area looks like right after I take the Mio Alpha off it:     Some marks are still visible after a couple of hours.   Otherwise I agree there is no point in integrating continuous heart rate monitoring into a Fitbit activity tracker at this point. Integration of heart rate data from third-party apps into the Fitbit account would be welcome, however. ... View more

I guess it depends to a large extent on how much and what you eat. As many people have written before, you can't out-exercise a bad diet. 10 pounds in a week does sound a lot. Why are you in such a hurry? ... View more

You had 3167 steps on Feb. 25 and 14,334 steps on Mar. 2. What were your calorie burns for those two days? You should definitely see a significant difference, assuming you were wearing your Fitbit all the time.   If you look at my calorie burn and my steps for the same period (last 30 days), you can see they are directly correlated:     I had a foot injury and was resting for a week (Feb 21 to 28). During that period (step count ranging from 3300 to 7900), I had a much lower calorie burn (1879 to 2305) than usual (2600 to 3300). I'm using a Fitbit One, which I wear 24/7 (except when showering and when recharging it). ... View more

Can't say about compatibility with Windows Phone 8, but no heart rate monitor syncs with Fitbit AFAIK. Heart rate data in Fitbit has to be logged manually. It's not very versatile anyway, so you would probably want to log it via a mobile app compatible with your phone (if there is one). There are plenty of iOS and Android apps that can "talk" to Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) heart rate monitors, but probably far less for Windows phones.   One app you may want to have a look at is Sports Tracker. It has strong historical links with Nokia (it's also from Finland) and there is a Windows Phone 8 version of the app. They also sell their own Bluetooth heart rate monitor. ... View more

@Mary wrote: Scales are accurate at measuring total weight.  Body fat, not so much.  Your body fat doesn't vary 4% day to day, like your scale suggests.  It is true body fat doesn't vary that much from day to day. You can obtain consistent body fat measurements with the Aria (at least in my experience), provided you always use it at the same time of the day and in the same conditions.   Here is my own measurement history for the past 17 days, everything is between 15.4 and 16.8%:     The hydration level of my body is at its lowest in the morning, as I don't drink at night and use the bathroom right after waking up. ... View more

@JaySD wrote: just run a marathon and get 50,000 Only if you have short legs! Even though I'm not particular tall, my running stride is 0.95 m, so a marathon would "only" get me 42,195 / 0.95 = 44,416 steps. ... View more

What update? What is it supposed to address? ... View more

@gerrymcd wrote: If you focus on strength wokouts you will build muscles, and burn fat at the same time.  A lot of cardio, on the other hand, won't build muscle.  I'm not sure why strength training and cardio training are viewed as mutually exclusive in this thread. If @laraking wants to lose fat and gain muscle at the same time, a balanced mix of cardio and strength training is great. Besides, cardio has other benefits than merely burning fat, the kind that can come handy in her job as a first responder. Mister Universe would likely make a poor and inefficient first responder.   ... View more

@Naomi94 wrote: Running does not build muscle.  This doesn't mean it's useless. @laraking said she wants to gain muscle and lose fat. Running (and any other cardio activity) is excellent for burning calories and losing extra fat everywhere. Burning more calories also makes you eat more and stimulates your metabolism. ... View more

@qiskis wrote: the weird thing is it registered the raised heartrate from sitting in a steamroom but not yoga It didn't register your raised heart rate. You must have moved your arm in the steamroom, this is what the Flex would register. It's like with sleep patterns: it has no idea whether you're actually sleeping or not, there's just a clever algorithm guessing based on your arm movements. ... View more

Keep in mind a Fitbit tracker is basically a pedometer, ie. a device designed to count your steps. Any more or less stationary activity in which there's no or little impact on the ground won't be accounted for, no matter how you sweat and/or elevate your heart rate. Your Fitbit flex has no way to measure your sweat or your heart rate. Also see:   https://help.fitbit.com/customer/portal/articles/1020095-what-are-%22very-active-minutes%22- ... View more

@jaredt82 wrote: Ok but what about the HRM and HIIT I feel like the fitbit couldnt keep up with what I am doing. The HRM should be quite good with HIIT. However, you may be disappointed by the total number of calories burned during your HIIT workout. This is purely because of duration: if it's very intense (as it should be), you probably won't be able to sustain it for very long (especially if you're new to it). Even 5 minutes of HIIT (including recovery pauses) can seem like an eternity. And there are only so many calories you can burn in 5 minutes, no matter how hard you try. There may be many other benefits in HIIT, but strictly from a calorie burn point of view, you'll certainly burn more in absolute terms by power-walking at a steady pace for one hour. ... View more

@jaredt82 wrote: Do you think the HRM will be somewhat accurate when coming to strength training? The HRM is suppose to be very accurate according to the reviews when doing HIIT.  The HRM is probably going to be better with calories than your Fitbit (with strength training), but it will probably underestimate them. This is because strength training doesn't elevate your HR that much compared to the effort being produced. ... View more

@jaredt82 wrote: Yes I am going by the fitbit to determine my calories burned. Not sure how else to determine what I burned from HIIT and strength training. Any ideas?  For HIIT, a heart rate monitor would probably be the most convenient way to do it (though it wouldn't account for the alleged "after-burn", but you can always add it manually ). For strength training, search the internet for tables that give you estimates based on intensity, length etc. I seem to remember @JenniLacey was quite knowledgeable about this. I personally don't care too much about calories, so I wouldn't know the details. ... View more

@Naomi94 wrote: I did read your response above that you will continue with the slow and steady approach on the treadmill. This is a mistake. I recommend that you do not continue slow walking. Here is a divergent point of view @jaredt82 may want to consider:   http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/going-steady-5-reasons-to-do-steady-state-cardio.html   Many people have achieved great results (lost fat, improved fitness etc.) with steady-state cardio, which is basically what Fitbit promotes with the standard goal of 10,000 daily steps. ... View more

@WendyB wrote: A HRM is meant for real exercise. Why would wear it to bed??? I worn mine on a couple of occasions, and recorded my HR with two separate apps. I compared the results with the sleep pattern obtained with my Fitbit One. You can read about this experiment in this post.   I wouldn't do this every night, tough   The Basis B1 is an activity tracker that has an integrated HRM. It's designed to be worn 24 hours a day. Maybe it's what @stacer is using? ... View more

@jaredt82 wrote: Finished my workout today I did strength training dead lifts, free weights, bench press, and shoulder press? I then went on the treadmill ran 8 mph for 60 seconds two times then 9 mph 60 seconds 3 times. I then tried jogging with 2-3.5% incline it was hell I couldnt make it to .5 mile 😞 I was starting to get a side ache. I am burned out right now but I have a problem I havent burned as many calories today compared to yesterday. What did you use to determine your calories burned? Your Fitbit? If so, it will give you very little credit for your weight lifting. Same with the HIIT stuff, it's too short for Fitbit, which won't capture its intensity. Fitbit is quite accurate at counting calories burned during longer, step-based steady-state cardio activities. For anything other than that, you'll have to get the calories in another way. ... View more

See this post by @MatthewFitbit (Fitbit staffer) about consistency vs. accuracy.   As to your body fat %, 14-18% would put you in the Athletes category:   ... View more

Zlatan Ibrahimović is 32 and he doesn't strike me as someone with a slow metabolism <lol>.   You can't target fat loss, but if your belly is the only place where you have it, then your body won't have to spend too much time deciding where to take it from.   You want to spend long enough periods of time in your fat burning zone. Jogging may put you in the aerobic zone, where you burn less fat and more carbs.   Here you can see a 9.7 km run (60 minutes, average heart rate:135 bpm):     and here the same distance, but walking (80 minutes, average heart rate: 117 bpm):     As you can see, same distance, but I spent 58 minutes in the fat burning zone when walking, against only 10 minutes when running. So from a fat burning point of view, (brisk) walking is more efficient than running.   A heart rate monitor can be useful if you're not sure about the HR zones you're exercising in. The above graphs and data are from the Runtastic app, which I use on my Nexus 4 phone and in connection with my Mio Alpha HRM. ... View more

@SunsetRunner wrote: I personally just ignore the active and very active minutes .. as they are never what you think they should be. I personally find VAMs very useful, and it's one of my main motivators nowadays. They help me go the extra mile when walking, or rather go the extra mph. If a lot of what you do is stationary and/or non-step-based, then your Fitbit indeed won't be good at recognizing the intensity of such activities. In the end, it's just a pedometer.   ... View more