Fitbit poser? Or a Fibit Judger?

I don't review products. But I do want to propose something to you. Do you like to keep track of your exercise? Did you ever use a pedometer? Do you want a Fitbit?

Fitbit

Let's discuss this for a minute. When you're dieting, do you check your weight more than once a week? I do. I even tend to judge myself by that number. 

And that's so incredibly wrong. That's why I am approaching this issue from a different angle.

In that context, do you want a Fitbit? I've read a number of reviews for it and listened to TV reports on it, also. It looks like a nice little rig. Most love it, and they check all the stuff they need to - diet, exercise, sleep. Not all the reviews are glowing, however. It won't sync sometimes, or quits unexpectedly or, like that pedometer you once attached to your belt, can record exercise when you're not exercising. 

But let's face it. It's cool. It's unobtrusive, and yet, shows the world you're tracking your exercising. Good for you! It can come in nice colours with pretty little fasteners. No one wants to be seen with a nerdy pedometer on their belt anymore. 

It's also great for posers. They like to show off. It's great for keeners, too. They can really micromanage their regime.

But here's a warning. Just don't wear it only to show off. And don't wear it to micromanage your life. In fact, I challenge you to wear it only to confirm what your sweat (or lack thereof) is telling you. 

Don't allow it to judge you, either. Fitness is a long term goal, a lifestyle, a means to have quality of life. Fitbits are tools to help, not to 'fit' into the crowd, or keep you busy during your break when you should be walking away from your iphone and going outside to enjoy life.

So stop reading my blog and get out there! 

Very Much Fat

I have bought a pedometer. Our treadmill is on its last legs and I can't stand the noise the motor is making. The pedometer was on sale, and since I work in a school, I always wanted to know just how many steps/miles/kilometres/calories I took/used up/burned. So I attached it to my belt and headed into the classroom.
I also told the kids that if they acted up, all I had to do was touch one button and they were zapped into another universe.
One kid believed me, and one said I'd been watching too much Star Trek.
Oh well.
But this pedometer was a bit different. It measures fat too.

Okay, here goes. After several hours of tinkering with it, trying to take the alarm off, that I had accidentally set on, I was ready to press my thumbs to the sides, hold my breath, and pray the thing had even an ounce of mercy in it.
The stupid thing doesn't.
It regisitered me as not just fat, but in its Chinese-interpreted English, it said I was 'very much fat'.
Immediately, I returned to the instruction book, hoping to discover how I had accidentally done something wrong. Apparently, it uses some kind of electrical impulse through your arms, across your chest etc.
Well, there's the problem! Every woman knows how much fat she has across her chest. This needs to be done with the toes, just for a more accurate reading.
Besides the fact that it's extremely hard to press your toes down on the sides of the pedometer in order to get the proper reading.

Still the same stupid, idiotic number.
Oops. I just remembered something.
The electrical impulse gets sent through the chest when using the thumbs. So where does it meet when using the toes?
You betcha. The rear end. The largest part on most women.
Flustered, I sat down, suddenly too pouty, and obviously too fat to move anywhere.
I flipped the pedometer over.
Made In China.
Well, that's the problem! Where I live there is a large Asian population, and most Asian women are small-boned, petite, thin and delicate.
I must look like Zena's older, fatter sister (or aunt) to them, an Amazonian whose build exceeded even Anna Swan's in her heyday.
Of course, I'm 'very much fat' compared to them. Which means there is no way I can get a true reading of my body fat. Nor can I ever reach those unattainable goals.
Mind you, what I can do is get off my pouty, disappointed butt and actually do something just for me. I paid $3.99 for this pedometer, and I am not going to waste it.
And for those of you interested, I walked 2.8 miles, used 218 calories, and took 6670 steps yesterday in school.
Though I am still very much fat.
Barbara Phinney
author of Love Inspired Suspense books that feature normal woman with fat in all the proper places.