It has now been over six months since I bought my Fitbit Charge, and apart from the odd hour or two when I forget to put it back on after a shower or charging, it has been on my wrist ever since!
So what does my Fitbit Charge tell me….
It seems I do between 3 to 4km on day on average, with much more on weekends when we are out and about.
I have left the daily goal at 10,000 steps…still jump a bit when the band starts vibrating to tell me I have reached it!
The most I have done since starting was 15km (about 23,000 steps)…not surprisingly, this happened when we were on holiday in Sydney at Easter, and we sure did heaps of walking.
My husband who is a fitness freak, now asks me how far we have walked when we are out, and reminds me that I should try and reach my daily goal when I start to slow down!
The most number of floors I have climbed is 30…on average its usually between 10 and 15 if I am at work, and 1 or 2 when I am at home, because we don’t have stairs.
My totals starting on 31st Dec 2014 until today are as follows…1,424,151 steps….1218 floors…912.4km!
The only other data that interests me is Sleep…I always feel like I never get enough sleep, but somehow it helps mentally to see just how much I actually have.
And it turns out I usually have between 8 and 9 hours sleep which is more then the average person of my age gets.
The most I have had was a night back in March…10 hours and 12 minutes!
It also tells me how restless I have been…which is usually how many times our younger furkid jumps off the bed, and then wants back up again!
The worst night for that was ironically Monday night…19 times I was awakened!
There is so much more I could use the Fitbit Charge for…tracking exercise, calories eaten, food plans, weight etc but at the moment, I am happy with the steps, distance, stairs and sleep.
Although there is one other I might start using, and that is the amount of water consumed…I never drink enough water…plenty of tea though!
The battery life is good…I don’t have to charge it often and when I do, I just have it charging alongside my iGadgets using the docking station beside my bed.
There has been no sign of wear and tear, although I have learned not to do the band up on the tightest one as it pulls the inside out of the band, and it is not easy to get off.
I just sync my Fitbit to my iphone when I remember, which is usually once every few days…I turned off the All-Day Sync as I found it did flatten my battery.
And I get a weekly summary sent via email, giving me my stats for the previous week.
I have to be honest and admit the one feature I absolutely love about the Fitbit Charge has actually nothing to do with fitness…it is the way the Fitbit Charge vibrates when my phone rings, and tells me who is ringing on it’s little screen.
This is a godsend for someone like me who usually leaves her phone on silent…in her bag!
So all in all, this is a good gadget that I will continue to wear and use…just wished you could change the band like you can the Fitbit Flex…then it would be just perfect!
Do you use a Fitbit? Has it helped you to get moving?
Great review Sarah. It’s great you are reaching your walking goals.
Thanks for sharing this Sarah – we got one free with a phone upgrade and I was going to sell it on ebay, but now thinking I might start using it! My key areas would be steps and sleep too. Also the incoming calls as I always have my phone in my bag on silent too!
Thanks Rebecca! Give it a try…I am actually surprised at how useful I am finding it, and although it isn’t making me super fit or anything, it is getting me up and moving and that’s good! And the call feature is just brilliant! 🙂
Sometimes I think I live under a rock in my rural nowhere land but I have never heard of a Fitbit. Is it a phone as well? I like the idea of keeping track of my steps and sleep (I average about 6-7 hours a night and wonder why I’m always so tired) and yes it would be handy to know how little water I drink. Surely tea counts as water. That’s what I tell myself anyway. Thanks for this review. I’m off to research now.
Thanks Deb! No, it’s not a phone although it can do just about everything else! Let me know if you end up getting one. And I am the same as you…plenty of tea, not water! 🙂
This sounds so interesting! I would really be interested to know how much (or little) sleep I’m getting. Great post!
Thanks Dawn! The beauty of the Fibit is you can customise it for whichever features interest you most. I will never be entering the diet and calorie info for example, but it’s great for sleep, steps, and distance! 🙂
My husband bought me one, bless him. Unfortunately it is faulty & only stays charged for about half a day;( I should have taken it back. He loves his, I’m not sure it has improved his fitness, but he loves the data & i think it is great to be keeping an eye on things.