Top 6 Activity Trackers for Everyday Use | Fitness Tracker Buying Guide
Why do you need a fitness tracker?
Fitness tracker is an easy way to monitor your daily steps, calories burned, heart rate, water intake, sleep etc and presents it in colorful graphs and charts for easy understanding. An activity tracker can make you more aware of your activity. Believe me; once you start using an activity tracker, you will be amazed to find out how lazy you are (no offence) :)
First, live your normal life for 1 week with a fitness tracker to get an idea about your lifestyle. Then determine how much more calories should be burned or how many more steps should you take to achieve healthy and fit body.
There are two types of people. Those who love exercise and those who avoid it at any cost. Both can utilize a fitness tracker, in fact the non-exercising group benefit more. One of the many advantages of a fitness tracker is motivation. At first, you are below average on fitness and activity and then seeing these numbers rising day by day would surely encourage you to work more. Some of these gadgets often provide virtual badges to achieve specific goals. It is fun and interesting to achieve these accolades along with maintaining fitness.
In short, a fitness tracker is a relatively inexpensive wearable gadget which helps you to know yourself better. By monitoring yourself, you can make adjustments to lifestyle, diet and activity according to your goal.
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Activity tracker benefits
Motivation
You will get a feeling that you are working out, doing good by watching those data daily.
Planning
If you want to set goals, you must know the current level of fitness and how good is your lifestyle and habits.
Consistency
Consistency is the key to reaching your goals. To know whether you are in the right track, you will need a fitness tracker.
Ease of Use
Fitness trackers are simple and really easy to use. Just wear it and in a snap, you are ready to track.
How to buy a fitness tracker?
If you are planning to buy a fitness tracker, consider these factors.
Tracking features
Step counter, distance tracker, heart rate monitor, calorie counter, speed, sleep monitor and more.
Design
Since you need to wear it all the time, the device should be eye catchy and trendy. Also look for a light weight tracker as it is convenient to use. A fitness tracker should be versatile and should not hinder your daily activity.
User Friendly Interface
This one is important. It will be very annoying if the tracker is cluttered and difficult to use. You should be able to check the readings at a glance. Backlight, large display etc can be considered.
Apps and accessories
The fitness tracker should be compatible with your OS whether it be Android or iOS. It will be an added bonus if useful apps are included in the package.
Warranty
All electronic items are prone to damage. So product with good warranty is always the better choice.
Price
Last but not least, figure out your maximum budget and choose the best within.
To make it simpler, here is a list of the best fitness trackers on the market. Read the specs and choose the best fit for your need.
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Misfit Flash
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeCheap & Best Fitness tracker for Swimming: Misfit Flash
- Waterproof up to 30m
- Comes in 4 different colors
- Tracks steps taken, calories burned, distance travelled, hours slept and more
- 12 LED lights display to notify how intense your activities are
- Tracks walking, running, swimming, cycling, soccer, tennis, basketball and more
- Just like Garmin Vivofit, Misfit Flash uses replaceable battery which lasts for 6 months
- User friendly app converts all the data into colorful charts
- Extremely durable, suitable for rough use
- Automatic wireless synching to PC or Mac
- Flash syncs with fitness and health apps like LoseIt!, Runkeeper, MapMyFitness, MyFitnessPal and IFTTT.
- Also functions as wrist watch
Read User Reviews
Withings Pulse
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeBest Fitness Tracker for Hikers and Mountaineers: Withings Pulse
- Tracks daily activity, sleep heart rate and blood oxygen level
- Suitable for hikers, mountain climbers and athletes
- Highly versatile
- Suitable for runners as it can tracks running also
- Sleep quality indicator
- Compatible with IOS and Android
- Virtual milestones and badges
- Automatic wireless uploading to online account
- Large OLED screen
- Battery life: One charge lasts for 2 weeks
- Lightweight
Read User Reviews
Fitbit Flex Wireless Activity + Sleep Wristband
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeFitbit Flex: Flexible, lightweight and accurate
- Small and large wristband fits for everyone
- One charge lasts for a week
- 5 LED indicators which represents equal percentage of daily goals
- Tracks daily activity, sleep, food and water intake
- Suitable for runners also
- Fitbit connect app is easy to use and effective
- Accolades and milestones to keep you motivated
- Compatible with IOS and Android
- Automatic synching
- Attractive design
- The only drawback is it does not have any display
User reviews Pictures and FAQ
UP 24 by Jawbone
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeJawbone UP24: Best Bluetooth enabled fitness tracker
- Minimalist design
- USB power adapter for charging
- Compatible with IOS and Android
- Battery lasts for a week
- Splash resistant
- Easy to use, brilliant app
- Connect with hundreds of fitness apps online
- Smart Coach feature to advice you on how to stay fit
- Simplicity and high performance combined
Fitbit Charge Wireless Activity Wristband
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeFitbit Charge : Latest addition in Fitness trackers
- Flexible and durable
- Comes in 3 different sizes and 4 colors
- Beautiful OLED display which displays incoming caller ID
- PurePulse technology to measure heart rate (in FitBit Charge HR)
- Silent vibration alarm and sleep monitor
- Automatic synching
- Compatible with IOS, Android and Windows
- Splash resistant
- Battery lasts for a week
Read User Reviews
Garmin Vivofit Fitness Band
Click thumbnail to view full-sizeFitness tracker with longest battery life: Garmin Vivofit
- 1 year battery life, replaceable battery
- Waterproof
- Can display heart rate with ANT+ wireless HRM sold separately
- Inactivity indicator: A red bar appears if you sit for an hour which tempts you to walk a little
- Rubberized design
- Always on display
- Easy to use
- User friendly app : Garmin connect