Hello Beautiful People!
Whether you are new to exercise or have been active for many years, the key to achieving a healthy lifestyle is setting and achieving fitness goals. With so much information out there about fitness and nutrition, it may be overwhelming to the beginner. Without the help of a personal trainer, you may not know how to get started. Working with a personal trainer can be have its benefits, but at a price that may be out of reach for many people.
Instead of investing in a trainer, there are other options available. You may want to purchase a fitness tracker that can guide you in the right direction. The popularity of fitness trackers have taken off in the last few years because so many more people are taking charge of their own health. Recently, Verizon Wireless provided BubbingwithEleganceandGrace.com with an opportunity to sample one of these fitness tracker – the Fitbit Charge HR. After trying the Fitbit for twenty-one days, I would recommend it to anyone who wants a better understanding of their current fitness level and how to take it to a higher level.
Getting Started
Setting up and getting started with the Fitbit couldn’t be any easier. Firstly, I downloaded the Fitbit app to my smartphone and created an account. Once I created the account and signed in, I followed the step-by-step instructions on my phone on how to to sync the Fitbit with my phone and how to get started. In only a couple of minutes, I was ready to go. Out of the box, my Fitbit needed to be charged. Included with the Fitbit is a charger that connects to my computer. Charge time is one to two hours, depending on how low the battery is. A fully-charged battery will last about five days. One great feature of the Fitbit is that you will get a notification on your phone and via email when the battery is low and needs to be charged.
Jay using the Fitbit Charge HR while doing P90.
Use for the Fitbit Charge HR
Fitbit offers several choices when selecting the tracker that is right for you. Each type of Fitbit monitors steps taken per day and miles walked; but I wanted one that would also monitor my heart rate; so I selected the Fitbit Charge HR. The Charge HR also monitors the quality of my sleep and allows me to add my daily water intake and weight change. Also, the HR ensures that my heart rate was within the acceptable levels while at rest and that it was elevated enough during my workouts.
Fitness experts agree that an active lifestyle leads to a healthy lifestyle. Being active means walking at least a minimum of 10,000 steps each day. With the Fitbit, its easy to see if you are on track with this number. With just a glance at the FitBit, the display monitor lets you know how many steps you have taken for the current day. Depending on how active you are, this goal may seem to easy to achieve or difficult to reach. After using the FitBit for a week, I realized that I was not getting to the 10,000 level of steps on a consistent basis and the FitBit motivated me to reach that level. I made sure that I was active throughout my day, at home and at work because I wanted to make sure that I met that goal. You can monitor the number of steps on the FitBit or on your smartphone using the app.
Screenshot of the FitBit app showing my daily progress.
A second feature that I like about the FitBit Charge HR is that it monitors my heart rate throughout the day and while I am exercising. Having your heart rate in the right zone, whether at rest or while exercising, is key to a healthy lifestyle. I recommend checking with your doctor to see what your passive heart rate should be and then use the FitBit to ensure that it stays within this level. You can also take the information gathered by the FitBit and give it to your doctor who can determine any additional monitoring is needed.
Heart rate monitored throughout the day.
While exercising, your heart rate needs to be elevated to a certain level to be considered in a fat-burning stage or a cardio stage. When setting up the FitBit, these levels are determined by your age. Once your rates are established, the FitBit will tell you if you are in the right zone when exercising. One of my regular exercise routines is the stationary bicycle. The first time I rode for 30 minutes and realized that my heart rate was not elevated high enough to be considered a good fat-burning exercise. I needed to increase the speed on the bike and then found the rate zone that I needed to be at to be the most effective for me.
Heart rate during a P90 cardio workout.
The image above shows my heart rate during a 40 minute cardio workout. Without the FitBit, I would not have known if I was in the right zone or if my exercise was effective. Based on this information, I could increase the intensity to have better overall effects.
Thought out the day, the FitBit will send notifications to your smartphone or to your email, letting you know if you have achieved a goal, or if the battery needs to be charged. This provides great motivation to keep using the FitBit and working towards a healthy lifestyle.
Smartphone notification after achieving the 10,000 step goal.
After trying the FitBit Charge HR for 21 days and seeing what it can offer, I would recommend it to any one who would be interested in taking charge of their health and making some healthier adjustments. I found out that I was not as active as I had originally thought and that I needed to increase my cardio workouts in order to achieve a fat-burning heart rate. Without the FitBit, I would have not known these things. In addition, after talking with a friend at work about what this FitBit can do, it motivated her to purchase one of her own. Being healthy is such a key to enjoying and having a long productive life. And if a small device that you wear on your wrist can help with that, I would highly recommend it. Don’t wait until the new year to make any changes, start now. Your body will thank you.
DISCLAIMERS:
Verizon Wireless gave BubblingWithEleganceAndGrace.com the FitBit Charge HR to demo for 21 days, after which I returned it back to Verizon. I did not receive any monetary compensation to write this review. All opinions and comments are strictly my own.
With diet and exercise, always consult with your doctor or your health professional before using a fitness tracking device, starting any new exercise routines or if you have any medical issues that would prevent you from exercising.
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