Cycle or die?

[Deleted member 4366]

This is all a bit too techy for me. I have no idea about the accuracy of the pulse measurements on sports bands. However, last year a Swedish sudy found major errors in calculations by activity watches/bands. With an error of between 20 and 50 percent when it came to energy consumption. Dr Mikael Mattsson at The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences saw possible negative consequences....

"For example, if you try to lose weight and trust too much on these numbers, you might eat 50 percent more than you should because the bracelet says you've made 50 percent more energy than you actually done"

I love it. You can prove anything if you do the right tests and use the right statistics. Which foods did they test over which time? How did they choose them? Do you think anybody uses a Fitbit to calculate how many calories they've eaten or burned?

What you can see is an average of about 2000 calories burned on a rainy day, when you sit in and watch TV and play on your PC all day after a lie-in. That's plausible and ties up with what I'd expect. when I go out for a three hour ride on my road bike, it tells me that I burned about 4000 calories during the day. That also sounds about right to me. All the other daily results seem to me to be plausible. It doesn't matter to me if it uses the wrong algorithm to calculate those values.

Nearly everything is calculated by differences from your resting heart rate. that might be right or wrong. what you can see is whether you had an active day or not, but you know that anyway. what's more interesting is how your heartbeat change during the day and during the various activities. you can see changes in recovery rates, resting rates, etc, which are indicators of your fitness.

These things are only gimmicks, but interesting nevertheless. As I said before, they're a lot of fun and the natural result of seeing results, right or wrong, is that you want to improve them. I play computer games, they're completely fictitious and there's lots of results and values in them. It's still fun to play them and to try and improve those values and scores.

 

[VictoryV]

So, bypassing the frivolous albeit humorous comments here...


d8veh's resting heartrate is 53bpm. My resting heartrate is 96bpm. At what point am I supposed to work my heartrate up to before I suffer cardiac arrest given my current grossly unfit state if I were to rely solely on the known/proven inaccuracy of FitBit?

The direction on my computer controlled exercise bike is your maximal heartbeat rate is 220 minus your age in years. Thus, at 70, my maximal HR is 150. It has a profile where you can input your age, decide what percentage of maximal HR you want and it takes you there (you have to pedal of course) but will adjust the loading automatically so you do not exceed the threshold HR you have set. If you lie about your age then its your own fault if you blow a blood vessel!

 

[flecc]

I was 105kg at Xmas!

I was 115kg at Christmas

At Christmas I was and still am a smug 63 kilos.

By the way both of you, were those weights before or after Christmas dinner?
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[cyclebuddy]

At Christmas I was and still am a smug 63 kilos.

By the way both of you, were those weights before or after Christmas dinner?
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I'm always 115kg whatever I do. d8veh seems to be adopting a "lies. damn lies, and statistics" retort to Gubbe's post. So it's a circular argument... we could be here for ages proving nothing. I maintain FitBits are s**t and tell you nothing of value whatever anybody says! I'm leaving now...

 

[flecc]

I maintain FitBits are s**t and tell you nothing of value whatever anybody says!

I can't offer an opinion on fitness gadgets, I'm just not into gadgets unless they offer a very valuable and important service, such as SatNav.
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[Tabs]

Can anyone recommend a cheaper version of a fitbit? Had a wee look online and seen a few around £20 just wondering if it's worth a punt at that price?

 

[LeighPing]

Can anyone recommend a cheaper version of a fitbit?

 

[flecc]

View attachment 20968

Infallible, can't beat keeping it simple.

Worried about BPH and prostate health? Just see how high you can pee up the urinal wall. Chin height and you're ok.
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[Pylon37]

Pylon37 do you cycle up the locks at maryhill?

No I go the other way at Stockingfield heading to kirkintilloch.

 

[Tabs]

No I go the other way at Stockingfield heading to kirkintilloch.

I go towards clydebank from stockingfield junction, am looking forward to when they eventually get round to building the bridge at the junction.

 

[Pylon37]

Each to their own -I don't consider myself deluded and am perfectly aware of the limitations of the fitbit and indeed any other tracker.
To be honest all I'm looking for a from a fitbit is something that tells the time, alerts me to my phone and notes the periods when I do some exercise rather than none. It performs all 3 functions admirably and are all of considerable value to me.

 

[Gaz]

100 yards puts you in the blue badge camp I believe. If there isn't a medical condition limiting you have you seeked some help to build up walking stamina? You don't sound like an inactive stereotype and it is surprising to hear what you say your limit is.

100yds doesn't put anyone in the Blue Badge camp (I work about 20' away from the local BB team), but I do have a Blue Badge. I have a disability, technical term Right Sided Hemi-Paresis (looks a bit like cerebral palsy, but isn't), which impacts on my walking ability. I do need to improve my walking stamina, but I need to have a care about how I do it - a displaced gluteal some years ago wasn't funny and now I'm a bit stuck in a mindset, making excuses to not walk. I've recently considered hypnotherapy, to see if that'd help me get over the hurdle, but haven't bitten the bullet yet. Cycling at least keeps things moving.

Gaz

 

[BornAgainCyclist]

I had a fairly long recovery at one stage that involved building up walking stamina. Nice and slow over several weeks increasing the distances gently did the trick for me. That was on the advice of a physio who started me off doing basic strength and flexibility work and some time gently walking on a treadmill before sending me outside and yup I was needing the close by spaces everywhere I needed to go. Might be worth speaking to your gp and asking for a referral as having that someone to guide me through the chalkenging task really helped me in both regards.

Hope you get there soon.

 

[Streethawk]

I have a fitbit, and I have a Garmin Edge 1000 with a heart rate strap, and a Polar heart rate monitor watch with a strap. They all give the same reading (within 5bpm)so I'm happy they're all accurate enough. If you have high body fat it may make it difficult for the sensor to get an accurate reading, particularly for the optical system a fitbit uses.

 

[russmcp]

I love my Apple Watch. It's the 2nd model so I use it to help me tell me how many lengths I've done. Believe me I forget so for that feature alone I love it. I walk about 5 miles a day most days which equates to about 10000 steps. I swim 4 times a week, roughly 60 lengths, and I'm still bloody fat.

Cutting back on the alcohol has helped, problem is holidays and family celebrations tend to get in the way and I fall off the wagon again.....

I like my gadgets, it's recording my movements and since July has pushed me to hit my targets each and every day. That alone is spuring me on, I really feel I've got the fitness bug back now..

Today I'm off out on the ebike, I'll be putting the effort in as usual but knowing I can get up those bloody steep hills with a bit of help.

 

[Pylon37]

I go towards clydebank from stockingfield junction, am looking forward to when they eventually get round to building the bridge at the junction.

yes a bridge would be good - don't see it happening any time soon however.

 

[flecc]

I swim 4 times a week, roughly 60 lengths, and I'm still bloody fat.

Trouble is when swimming you're not carrying your weight, so reducing the effect of the exercise.

However, for serious weight loss more exercise is ineffective and very slow acting.

The solution is less exercise and activity, meaning less chewing, swallowing and digesting. That's where the effective control of body mass exists.
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[Tabs]

yes a bridge would be good - don't see it happening any time soon however.

It's in the pipeline apparently,they had a model of it at the canal festival a few years ago(it's called the big man) but I heard the original design wouldn't work so it's been redesigned and is still on going,it's being designed by the same guy that done the kelpies.

 

[russmcp]

Trouble is when swimming you're not carrying your weight, so reducing the effect of the exercise.

However, for serious weight loss more exercise is ineffective and very slow acting.

The solution is less exercise and activity, meaning less chewing, swallowing and digesting. That's where the effective control of body mass exists.
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Utterly correct, which is why in 10 weeks of doing swimming I've weighed in this morning and lost one and a half stone.....

What works for some doesn't for others. I'm happy with the swimming, biking, walking and cutting back a little bit on the treats, beer etc.

 

[anotherkiwi]

I ride 40km on an unpowered bike for the first time in about 30 years the day before yesterday and surprised to have no real pain.