About Dominique

I started fitbit flex last month. i achieved twice. i think i can't remember whether it vibrates or not, but for sure there will be 5 lights blinking when you had reached 10,000 steps and it's like dancing with those light movement.  ... View more

The quality and shape of your pillow also has a lot to do with the quality of your sleep.  If it doesn't support your neck the right way, you will get all bent out of position and your airway will not be wide open and you just won't get as good a night's sleep.  If you have a clock near your bed, position it so that you cannot see it while you are in bed as watching the time tick by actually causes a great deal of stress and prevents you from falling asleep.  The regular use of sleeping pills will actually decrease the quality of your sleep overall as they are not meant to be used all the time and will quickly leave you feeling strung out.   If you have done all these things, it may be time to talk to your doctor and to have a proper sleep study done.  You may have restless leg syndrome or some other medical condition that keeps you from getting proper sleep.  Your fitbit only monitors movement; it doesn't monitor what's going on in your brain.  A full sleep study monitors both and will help target treatment on the correct part of the body.  Maybe you need a mild muscle relaxant instead of sleeping meds?   If it makes you feel any better, my bit tells me I have a sleep efficiency upwards of 95%... of the whole 4 hours of sleep I get a day.  And that's with sleeping medications.  I'm just not a squirmer so my bit thinks I'm sleeping soundly.  When I had a full sleep study done, almost none of that was proper sleep.  I may be unconscious, but I'm not in restorative sleep and I too feel awful most of the day and I fall asleep at my desk.  When the doctor got results he was shocked I managed to make it to the appointment, never mind keep a full time job.  The number your fitbit spits out at you is not everything so don't get too hung up on it. ... View more

@J_adoreDior_ wrote: I guess this is the stage I'm in I know im hitting my deficit ... but the scale isn't moving after my 30lbs loss. Guess it's just going to take some time. . On the positive side, you haven't regained, which means your calories in/out is OK. You could perhaps try to make small adjustments to your exercising routine and to your diet. For instance, walking a little bit faster (should be easier now you are 30 lbs lighter), or even introducing a little bit of running, doing some strength training etc. As to your diet, that could be increasing proteins and veggies, reducing processed food etc. I personally found additional motivation by switching my focus from weight to body fat % (I've got the Fitbit Aria). You may also want to track body measurements instead of just weight. ... View more

@1348gt wrote: Also, does the FLEX calculate steps for the eliptical machines? No (at least not the full amount), because there is no impact. See:   https://help.fitbit.com/customer/portal/articles/1020095-what-are-%22very-active-minutes%22- ... View more

I reset my fitbit to factory settings and looks like the problem is solved. I appreciate that one can have 14K steps without any active minutes, but my husband and I fast-paced walked a good deal of distance yesterday, something that previously recorded as very active minutes (previous day, pretty much same walk and recorded > 60 active minutes), hence my question. Odd thing, the calories estimation came back once I reset but not the active minutes. Thank you for your feedback. Dr. Margaret Fitzgerald, DNP, FNP-BC, NP-C, FAANP, CSP, FAAN, DCC President, Fitzgerald Health Education Associates, Inc. North Andover, MA www.fhea.com 978.794.8366 Family NP, Greater Lawrence (MA) Family Health Center ... View more

I am on the NuLean cleans weight loss system.  On Day 6 with 9 pounds gone.  Is it easy -- nope, but doable.  Go0gle it.  It is sold mostly at chiropractic offices.  All natural and according to my Dr. it is all the toxins in your system that allows the weight gain to return so quickly after any weight loss system.  NuLean is all natural -- no drugs and it is working for me.  He claims getting the toxins out is crucial to initial and lasting weight loss.  ... View more

@Dominique wrote: 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? It keeps plateauing if I go to slow on the weight-loss.. ... View more

thx, yes, makes sence, noticed that having my new firend 🙂 makes me more aware about my sleeping habbit ... ... View more

lost 40 pounds with a burn of 2500 calories each day - weight fell off me - combined with counting Weight Watchers points - very successful with my buddies - kept me accountable ... 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

The update for app showing live steps and tracker for battery life trying to notify the battery life from the 5 LED lights showing the persentage ... View more

@Dominique wrote: @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. At what pace do you thing is good for walking? I was doing 4mph seemed pretty slow. I was thinking about strength training first then HIIT followed by walking what you think? ... View more

  When it comes to nutrition articles my first thought is 'are they selling something'.  If the answer is yes, then I move on.   Look hard enough and you can find 'scientific evidence' to support any kind of nutritional recommendation.  For the most part the 'evidence' is junk science carried out on a few subjects, and frequently relies on anacedoatal/subjective statements like  'I felt less hungry taking supplement x'.   My parents lived until their late 80s.  Never took supplements.  Never dieted in their lives. Never seen the inside of gym. But they were always lean and healthy, even well into their old age.  Their 'secret'? They only ate at mealtimes.  And they never owned a car, so they walked several miles a day, even when they were 80+.   The idea of high-fat low carb......low carb-high protein.... would have provoked the response 'why don't you just eat 'properly'.  ... 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

Del, I feel your pain. I am stuck here 'round the 1200 cal/ day unless I significantly increase my exercise and I am 5'6". Blame it on age, slow metabolism, TS, hormones,  whatever, but I try to look on the bright side... I need less food, that is good, right? I sent you a friend request, my food log is visible to friends if you want to see what I log every day. ... View more

Wow... this happens to me too!  If I wear long tights, something that compresses my legs a bit, then it doesn't happen.  Must be a circulation thing, hmmmm ... View more

Thanks both, that's really helpful - just wondering if that script can be edited for between say certain times of day then, as a means to get a better picture of activities?  Anyone tried that, or have recommendations on how to do it?!  ... View more

the scale never tells the whole story.  while you might not be losing weight, you could be replacing fat with muscle.  you should also take body measurements like waist, hips, arms etc.  that will tell you a whole lot more than just a scale. ... View more

@Auden wrote: I have a Fitbit Flex which seems relatively accurate when walking normally but when I am walking briskly ( around 4 mph) over known distances it under reports both my number of steps and distance by around 30%. Why? Is there anything I can do to correct it? Auden, I have a One so it is different than the Flex. I find my One does better with brisk walking than slower walking. Though when I have tested it it is fine with just about any walking where I am traveling. I have done activities where it doesn't count all the steps--in my case usually dancing that involves soft, fluid movements where you isolate the impact to the legs (usually with bent knees). I think impact is a factor, as my fitbit does consistently credit higher for impact activities than non-impact. And it sometimes misses steps with non-impact or isolated impact movements. It could be your brisker walking is softer or more fluid--it is opposite for me though. So how to you know it is undercounting your steps with brisk walking? As far as the distance, the main thing is to calibrate your stride settings--both walking and running. If you don't run often (or at all) you may prefer to use your brisk walking as the "running stride". If you already calibrated, you set your stride too short. This is a common error, you want the average amount of distance you cover per footfall as your stride. Sometimes people measure their inseam, sometimes they count both right and left footfall as a stride, etc. The easiest way to calibrate (in my opinion after trying several methods) is to walk then run (or briskly walk) a measured, flat, known distance like a track. If your fitbit has a timer (all that sleep track do--using the same method) use it. Start the timer while standing still before your first step and stop it while still after the last step. There are a few different formulas (depending on whether you want metric or imperial measures) where you plug the distance covered and your fitbit counted steps to see your "average stride length". ... View more

Regarding weight, have a look at your BMI (it's calculated for you in your Dashboard). The "normal" range is 18.5 to 24.9:   http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/heart/obesity/lose_wt/risk.htm   Note what they say if you are very athletic etc. Though not directly related to weight, waist circumference (one of the body measurements you can track in your Fitbit account) is also important.   As to body fat, here is the reference table you can find in your Dashboard:   It's not obvious to find it: there's a link labeled See guidelines for body fat when you edit your body fat % goal.     ... View more

Montel Williams infomercial got me started.  (you should read his book).  Bought his blender, poor quality, broke down twice in 6 months.  Thrashed it.  Got a viatmix.  Using it 3 yrs.  Pitcher leaked, they replaced it quickly, under warranty.  Using it for 3 yrs and cram it with fruits, seeds, nuts, vegetables daily.  It's like a Mack truck.  When I'm thinking of it, I think 'nutrition' therapy, like psychotherapy, physical therapy.  It's not my Happy Meal (breakfeast, lunch, dinner)  it's my medicine.  When I started I drank 2 quarts a day (half of it is water), now my stomach seems to have shrunk.  I can only drink a quart a day.  Plus, of course, a sensible diet along with it.   My meal plan is for 5-8 servings of veggies, 5 servings of fruits, seeds/nuts, whole grains, low fat/fat free dairy, lean meats.  A balanced diet.   Get a vitamix (or any good quality blender), some good tasting recipes, and you'll be hooked.  Slapped a fitbit to your belt, and in no time, your hips will be wiggling.   I would strongly recommend you watch the movie, "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead".  You can easily find it on Youtube. ... View more

I am actually in pretty good condition for my age and 10,000 steps are fine if I have the time. I was curious what goals to work toward. (my competitive side lol ) Thanks for answering. The advice is very good! ... View more

You're welcome  The goal is to burn more calories that you eat.  To lose 1 lb of fat in one week you need to burn a deficit of 3500 calories during the week, which would mean you would need to keep a daily buffer of 500 calories between what you burn and what you eat. I've lost 50 lbs, so I know this works. ... View more

It should be regular. When fast walking (like 4.2 mph or more), Fitbit will be using your running stride. If you both power walk and run, you will never get distances (and calories) right for both, at least in my experience. ... View more

Omega 3 fish oil, calcium, Vitamin D and a multivitamin ... View more

I don't know what time of day it is there but 2275 would be huge for me, even at midnight.  Cooking, driving, office work and showering aren't big calorie burners.  There's not really any reason to log them.     Are you trying to lose weight?  It takes a long time.  It's much faster to restrict 500 calories by eating less than trying to burn up 500 more a day.  Skipping dessert might be equivalent to walking 5 miles.   ... View more

@Cybertekkno wrote: Did you set your stride length in your Fitbit settings? If not, then your Fitbit may not be correctly counting your steps. Actually,. I believe your stride length affects distances (and possibly calories + VAM's), not your steps. Your steps are what they are, after all your Fitbit is a pedometer. They are mostly affected by the location of your Fitbit, which should be worn where and as intended. For instance, you would get an incorrect step count if you wore a Fitbit One on your wrist or your ankle (it is intended to be worn against your torso or on your waist). ... View more

@Strategic wrote: Does anyone know how the Aria™ Wi-Fi Smart Scale actually calculates % body fat? As @SunsetRunner wrote, the Aria calculates body fat % with the bioelectrical impedance method.   All I can say is my Aria doesn't exhibit the huge variation in body fat % reported by some people. Here is the measurement history (daily morning values) from Jan-9 to date:       ... View more

@JenniLacey wrote: Does natural peanut butter count? I eat probably about 2-3 tablespoons of that. I also add about 10-15g to my salads. My fat intake is roughly 30-35% from mostly plant-based oils with the exception of fish, some cheese/yogurt and eggs. Except, peanuts aren't nuts! ... View more

That's ok. Thanks. I thought maybe I had my settings wrong. ... View more

C'est quoi, la fonction "menu"? Je n'ai jamais consulté de guide pour cette appli, mais elle me semble entièrement fonctionnelle en l'état. En cliquant sur "Dashboard", je peux accéder à l'option "Friends", et en cliquant sur les trois points verticaux en haut à droite, j'ai accès aux options "Edit alarms", "Devices", "Settings", "Help", "Log out". En cliquant n'importe où dans l'écran "Dashboard", j'ai accès à l'option "Activity" et en balayant vers la gauche, je passe au jour précédent. De quoi d'autre a-t-on besoin dans cette appli?! ... View more

Just adding, I don't log walking. I just let Fitbit track it. Sometimes if I do fitness walking I will wear a hrm and use a GPS/HRM app that automatically logs to Fitbit. I actually usually end up deleting the Fitbt entry because it alters my steps and the fitbit calorie burn was pretty similar to my HRM's anyway. I mainly use the HRM app for non-walking activities but sometimes for walking just because I like having a record of the route and my heart rate during the walk. ... View more

What you see on your Dashboard are very active minutes. These are harder to earn: merely walking is not enough, you have to walk fast enough. If you click on the + button of the VAM tile, you will see your active minutes split between: very, moderate and light. You need to select the ALL tab: ... View more

At least, you're probably standing a lot more than people who sit all day in front of a computer (that would be me) and also get some light activity registered on your Fitbit.   I would personally find getting 10K steps at the gym (treadmill) very boring, but I'm blessed with the possibility to walk & run outdoors year-round, even when it's -13°C (+3°F), like today (9355 steps, 55 minutes, 8.9 km).         ... View more

I'd be very interested to know that, but why are you asking under What's Cooking?  ... View more

It depends on many factors, for instance your age. Duration isn't the only factor either, quality matters too. How do you feel in the morning? Do you have enough "juice" to go through the entire day, without feeling sleepy at some point? ... View more

I think your question is since the Force is on the wrist, will holding a hand weight make it undercount your (non-weights) activity during that time?  These are like Leslie Sansone type 'walking with weights' videos or something?  I don't know, it might.  Maybe do the workout one day without and one day with and compare.   ... View more

Dans ce cas, le mieux est sans doute de contacter l'assistance technique de Fitbit: http://contact.fitbit.com   Il faudra sans doute le faire en anglais. ... View more

Dominique   Now that our heat wave has "gone", yesterday I purchased the Zip after posting on the treadmill Zip calories. I will test all three Ultra, One and Zip and see what happens. I'm like you, I battle to get any VAM under 4.2 mph and 135 steps/minute. ... View more