Do you want a Fitbit or are you able to merely belief a pedometer app in your smartphone to let you know how a lot you’re shifting all through the day? College of Pennsylvania researchers put them to the check side-by-side counting steps strolling on a treadmill at three miles per hour.
Smartphone Pedometer and Exercise Apps
The most recent era of smartphones has refined accelerometer chips that work within the background. They’re sensing motion all day and that knowledge might be accessed by apps and transformed into all-day step counts, train monitoring and sleep monitoring. The researchers used a Samsung Galaxy S4 and an iPhone 5s operating the Strikes app on every, and the Fitbit app and Withings Well being Mate app on the iPhone. For the check, the smartphones had been carried in pants pockets whereas the themes walked on a treadmill at three miles per hour.
Wearable Health Bands and Hip Pedometers Examined
On their wrists, the check topic wore the three hottest health bands: Fitbit Flex, Jawbone UP24, and Nike FuelBand. On their waistbands, they wore the Yamax Digi-Walker SW-200, which has been utilized in many pedometer research and is considered as extremely correct for analysis. In addition they wore the Fitbit One and Fitbit Zip on their waistbands.
Treadmill Take a look at: Strolling 500 and 1500 Steps
Loaded up and sporting all of those units on the similar time, every of 14 topics then walked on a treadmill at three miles per hour whereas researchers visually counted their steps. They walked a set of 500 steps and a set of 1500 steps, and the depend on the apps, health bands and pedometers had been recorded.
Outcomes
- The waistband pedometers had the most effective accuracy, various just one %
- The Nike FuelBand was the least correct, with extremely variable outcomes and normally undercounting steps by as a lot as 22 %
- The Fitbit Flex and Jawbone UP24 health bands on the wrist had a wider vary of variation than the hip pedometers however on common got here near the noticed step depend. The Flex was extra prone to barely undercount steps.
- The apps different by +/- six % and had been largely constant between the five hundred and 1500 step assessments.
The underside line is that the apps had been fairly good at counting steps while you carry your smartphone in your pocket whereas strolling for a gentle bout. However the research didn’t check how effectively the units and apps in contrast for all-day exercise, resembling a objective of 10,000 steps in different situations.
I’ve worn and used all these similar health bands, pedometers, and apps for all-day knowledge. My private expertise is that the step depend on the Nike FuelBand SE is certainly 10-20 % lower than that of any Fitbit. That mentioned, I proceed to put on it as I discover it very motivational for reaching my Nike Gas objective every day.
The issue with utilizing solely a smartphone app is that you could be not carry your cellphone with you constantly throughout the day. The step depend is prone to be lower than a health band or hip pedometer you put on constantly. For those who do not care about lacking out on a few of these “life-style steps,” that’s acceptable.
Price Issue
If you have already got a smartphone, apps are free or almost free. All it takes is constantly checking it and utilizing any built-in motivational options.
Hip-worn pedometers are far inexpensive, and the Fitbit Zip will not be solely below $60 however it’s also possible to view your steps all through the day each on the machine and on the Fitbit app. The Yamax Digi-Walker SW-200 at below $20 is a stand-alone machine and would not hook up with a pc or app.
Wearable health bands are very talked-about however value $90-$150. Even with the excessive value and limitations of accuracy, many individuals discover them motivating. They hyperlink to apps and on-line dashboards to trace a wide range of train and exercise info, sleep, inactivity, and food plan.
Motivation From Health Bands and Apps
The research authors beforehand wrote concerning the challenges that wearable units face in really motivating and altering our well being habits:
- The person should need to put on it and be capable to afford it.
- The person should keep in mind to put on it and recharge it.
- The wearable machine have to be correct in monitoring its focused habits.
- The knowledge show have to be simple to know, inspire motion and maintain the motivation. The authors word that particular person encouragement (resembling badges for milestones), social competitors and collaboration (competing with mates or being on a workforce with these with the identical machine/app) and efficient suggestions loops are finest for driving habits change.
