Fitbit

Technology can be pretty amazing sometimes.  For anyone with a continuing quest to lose weight, I have run across a nifty little device that does everything but audibly speak to you.  (Well, it does give you typed motivational messages to encourage you in your efforts on its miniature screen.)  It is called a Fitbit.  This computerized pedometer is sold at Brookstone and Jim’s sister introduced us to it.  She’s been using Fitbit for some time and swears by its tracking abilities.  She’s also lost over twenty pounds.

So what does it do?  Fitbit measures steps taken, calories burned, distance covered and stairs climbed.  Tell it when you go to bed and wake up and it will tell you when you fell asleep, how many times you awoke during the night and the quality of your sleep versus times when you were restless.  If that isn’t enough, there is still more!  You can input the food you eat and it will calculate the calories you’ve consumed.  It gives you the amount of calories left over that you can still eat for the remainder of the day or warns you if you have gone over your calorie allotment for the day.

Best of all by tracking how much I am moving and eating, I am more motivated to keep both in line.  Now in just two days I have not lost a pound and probably not even an ounce, BUT I am certainly more aware of what I’m eating and how much I am exercising.  I have adjusted both to get results I want sooner rather than later. 

Shown above, the Fitbit is only about two inches long and fits in a rubber case that clips to a pocket or shirt or bra.  You wear it on your wrist at night in a clever pouch that holds it in place in a bracelet -like band.  It "talks" to your computer to track your statistics via another USB type of connection whenever you pass within 20 feet of your computer.  All and all it is very simple and fun to use.  So, check it out the next time you are in Brookstone at the Mall.  You'll be amazed and even happier if you make the investment in yourself and start tracking what you are doing.  I figure it is cheaper than prescriptions or doctors in the long haul.