In general, the researchers found that most fitness trackers could measure heart rate quite accurately, but they misestimated the number of calories burned. Of the seven fitness trackers, the Apple Watch performed the best, while the Samsung Gear S2 had the biggest errors in measuring heart rate and calories burned. Researchers at Ball State concluded that activity trackers are not accurate enough to reliably determine calories burned. Commercial fitness trackers are used for all kinds of things other than step tracking.
Measure heart rate, track sleep patterns, and calculate basal metabolic rate and calories burned. They are used in clinical trials, research laboratories and in insurance companies and corporate wellness programs. However, to keep in mind, everything your body does uses energy, including breathing or blinking your eyes. But the problem is that they can't be counted without a computer connected to our bodies.
Therefore, those basic calculators only ask for physical activities such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, dancing, active work, playing outdoors, etc. However, this is not the case with the smartwatch, as it can detect the heart rate. Smartwatches use their built-in accelerometer to measure your movements. They will also use your heart rate monitor to see how fast your heart is beating.
The concept is that the faster your heart rate, the more calories you burn. Fitness trackers can help users learn about themselves, recognize patterns, and reflect on their behavior, but the data provided by these devices should not be taken as gospel truth. But the smartwatch or fitness tracker can help you know how much energy you consumed in an entire day or after any physical activity. Understanding the strengths and limitations of current fitness trackers can help you decide whether or not to base your health goals on the data they provide.
Fitness trackers come in all shapes and sizes and include various sensors and functions depending on the brand. It's possible that the real secret to impressive weight loss is to be more energetic and active throughout the day, and your fitness tracker has no way to effectively track this. While fitness trackers can serve as a fun reminder to move more, the information they provide should be taken with a grain of salt. Of course, fitness trackers also do much more than count calories and steps that are useful for training in heart rate zones (see my post on seven-minute workouts) and provide sleep tracking, meditation modes, and much more.
And considering the uncertain accuracy of devices across demographics, anyone considering using commercial fitness trackers to monitor health or compare people's performance should think twice. However, several studies show that smartwatches and fitness trackers don't do such a good job of calculating calorie burn during activity and can decrease between 40% and 80% of your actual energy expenditure. Most historical data is stored in the mobile phone application (application) with which the smartwatch or fitness tracker is linked. Accelerometers use electromagnetic sensors to detect movement, and fitness trackers interpret that information using an algorithm that trains devices to recognize what counts as a step.
A fitness tracker should help you lose weight, improve your fitness and adopt healthier habits for sleeping, eating, exercising and moving. Whether fitness trackers work really depends on whether you're a runner or weightlifter or if you want to lose weight during the day or just during your workouts. The best fitness trackers use complex algorithms that analyze movement to determine what activities you do and alter your heart rate interpretation accordingly. .
