I need a device for my fitness.

[MacGurl111]

I want to track my miles, heartbeat, as well as have easy access to my music. My iPhone 6 plus isn't working. It's too bulky while I'm running. Any suggestions? I was looking at the Apple Sport watch but don't know much about them.

Update: Picked up the Apple Sport Watch. Was worth the extra cost instead of getting the Fitbit.

I went out to purchase the Apple Sport Watch. I've had it for about a week and have been able to use it without my phone. I get to monitor my heart rate, activities such as standing, moving, exercise and calories. It's been working so far!
I was going to give Fitbit a try but at the price they were going for I'd rather spend a little more and get the watch. I was washing dishes, and answered the phone with my watch. Pretty cool!
I synced my Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars playlist music to my watch and I can actually listen without my phone.

 

[LiveM]

Fitbit seems to be the leader in this area, but I would personally be more interested in seeing the Apple Watch 2 before making the call.

 

[smirking]

Fitbit seems to be the leader in this area, but I would personally be more interested in seeing the Apple Watch 2 before making the call.

All of the wrist monitors suck if you need serious heart rate monitoring. If you just want something that's mostly right because you want some general stats, they'll be ok. I have the FitBit Blaze. It ain't bad, but there's lag and it's not good for precise tracking for intense exercise.

It's not expensive in comparison to an Apple Watch and the battery life is up to 5 days.

If you're looking for a serious fitness tracker, you'll need to get one with a chest strap. If you want something that's mostly right and you want to wear it on a run without a phone, make sure you get something that's labeled as having GPS built in. Some of them will also allow you to store some music on it. Garmin seems to be the big name for the hardcore trackers, but be prepared to back up the Brinks truck. Some of those make the price on the Apple Watch look cheap.

 

[maflynn]

I want to track my miles, heartbeat, as well as have easy access to my music. My iPhone 6 plus isn't working. It's too bulky while I'm running. Any suggestions? I was looking at the Apple Sport watch but don't know much about them.

Fibit Charge HR is a nice option because it will measure your heart rate and steps and its battery will last a few days.

AppleWatch is nice, but its an extension of your iPhone, so if you don't want to carry your iPhone then it loses some ability, i.e., notifications. To put it another way, the Applewatch is not just a fitness device but an all around smart watch.

For running, I'd look for the FitBit Surge, it does everything the Fitbit Charge does, but it also includes a GPS, so it can accurately measure and track your runs.

If you don't need the smart watch features that that apple watch offers, then I'd go with the Fitbit Surge.

One side note, for your phone, check our armpocket, it puts your phone in a water proof arm band. I use that for my running. That with the Apple Watch provides a nice well rounded set of metrics.

 

[S.B.G]

Here is another vote for the Fitbit. I've had the Charge HR and just a few weeks ago upgraded to the Surge. I find them to be accurate and very helpful in tracking and keeping me on the right track with my fitness and nutrition. The Surge, as Mike points out, adds GPS tracking over the HR, but also adds the ability to control music on your phone from it as well as read incoming texts and see who's calling.

Also, if you go for the Fitbit, check out eBay for them. The Surge retails for $250, but I found mine on eBay, brand new in the retail box for $189.

 

[zhenya]

The Fitbits don't do music stand alone, do they?

Not a lot of options that do right now. The AW will do a limited amount, but it doesn't have gps without the phone. If music is essential, you might be best off buying a good fitness watch and a tiny iPod.

I like Garmin devices for fitness, but they tend to be on the more serious end of the fitness spectrum. I would consider their Vivoactive HR.

 

[S.B.G]

The Fitbits don't do music stand alone, do they?

No they don't, but some models can control the music on an iPhone, and presumably Android, from the device.

 

[push/pull]

For your music you could get these:

http://www.amazon.com/Wisetiger®-Bl..._UL160_SR160,160_&refRID=06S42T5ACZ1QZD6RT9FB

Bluetooth Headphones with a micro SD slot. I haven't used them. They seem to fill the gap between your fitness tracker and audio needs.

 

[imanidiot]

What did people do to keep fit before iDevices? However did they do it? What a perplexing mystery. Thank God Tim Cook and the New Apple came riding to the rescue! In fact, how did people manage to survive without Apple? We will never know.

 

[RIZZO124]

How about the Microsoft band 2. If you look at the specs and features, it seems like a very capable device and does more than the Fitbit which I think is overpriced for what it does. And you can up a Microsoft band 2 for $175.

 

[Starfia]

(Not a serious athlete here, but a health-conscious layperson.)

I've possibly appreciated the Apple Watch Sport for its health metrics more than anything. Without buying or installing anything from the App Store, there are three main fitness-related ways it tracks and presents data:

"Activity" metrics – that three-ring illustration you might have seen in the ads and stuff. The rings represent time spent moving actively, calories burned, and non-sedentary hours. You can try to "fill" these each day, and they're logged to the phone and optionally displayed in the Health app. It may not be precise enough for virtuosos, but it's an incredibly simple and useful alternative to nothing.

Heart rate logging – again, not the most constant or thorough, but the watch checks your pulse every ten minutes or so by default and keeps track of that automatically. Also synced to the Health app by default. Also, since the phone can know where you are at most times, it does what it can to log your daily distance and steps taken.

"Workout" app – for goal-based dedicated periods of activity during which the phone and watch measure everything they can. These include walks, indoor and outdoor walks, rows, and more.

Aside from these built-in things, there are a bunch of more specialized third-party apps.

 

[\-V-/]

I use the FitBit Charge HR every time I do cardio and it works great. I also sleep with it so I can get a good idea of what my real resting heart rate is. You don't need a phone to sync the data, you can use your computer. The data is stored on the device and then that data is transferred once it's synced to whatever device you prefer. It's a pretty minimal fitness watch, but it's great at detecting heart rate. A lot more convenient than the chest strap thing I was using before.

 

[MacGurl111]

(Not a serious athlete here, but a health-conscious layperson.)

I've possibly appreciated the Apple Watch Sport for its health metrics more than anything. Without buying or installing anything from the App Store, there are three main fitness-related ways it tracks and presents data:

"Activity" metrics – that three-ring illustration you might have seen in the ads and stuff. The rings represent time spent moving actively, calories burned, and non-sedentary hours. You can try to "fill" these each day, and they're logged to the phone and optionally displayed in the Health app. It may not be precise enough for virtuosos, but it's an incredibly simple and useful alternative to nothing.

Heart rate logging – again, not the most constant or thorough, but the watch checks your pulse every ten minutes or so by default and keeps track of that automatically. Also synced to the Health app by default. Also, since the phone can know where you are at most times, it does what it can to log your daily distance and steps taken.

"Workout" app – for goal-based dedicated periods of activity during which the phone and watch measure everything they can. These include walks, indoor and outdoor walks, rows, and more.

Aside from these built-in things, there are a bunch of more specialized third-party apps.

I agree. I went out to purchase the Apple Sport Watch. I've had it for about a week and have been able to use it without my phone. I get to monitor my heart rate, activities such as standing, moving, exercise and calories. It's been working so far!
I was going to give Fitbit a try but at the price they were going for I'd rather spend a little more and get the watch. I was washing dishes, and answered the phone with my watch. Pretty cool!
I synced my Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars playlist music to my watch and I can actually listen without my phone.