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Hockey Dad Fitbit

Fitbitting: It’s All The Rage

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Seriously, if I had to hear one more thing about Fitbit and how everyone has one of these things, I was going to lose it! As if I had the time to wear a clunky man bracelet all day long so I can care about how many steps I was taking. If I wanted to count steps I could just guesstimate based on what I had accomplished that day.

This was me about 2 months ago before I got my first Fitbit Activity Tracker. I started with the Fitbit Charge and, well, you guys know what happened there… What I didn’t share in my last story is that I only lasted 2 days without a Fitbit before I went back to Best Buy and purchased the more expensive Fitbit Charge HR, which comes with a watch wristband that makes it practically unlosable.

For anyone who doesn’t understand the fuss over the Fitbit, let me try to explain it. Imagine everywhere you go there is a giant scoreboard in the sky with all your friends listed on it and the scores posted are how many steps you have taken that day. Even the least competitive person will have a hard time looking at the scores without feeling the need to move around a little, so you can imagine what it does to someone like me who has played competitive sports his whole life.

As my wife will corroborate I have gone from lazy, sleeping in all the time couch potato, to annoying “Let’s go for a walk!” guy. Where I used to lie on the couch to play video games, now I stand and march while I play, which is tough at first but you get the hang of it. The funny thing about it is that while I love competing in the weekly challenges against my friends, the need to do physical activity has actually overtaken my desire to win, which is just the best. That said, I still get miserable when I forget my Fitbit on the charger for the day… Baby steps, people.

Being open to, and loving, the Fitbit hype has allowed me to open my mind to the other fitness aid options out there. When Best Buy reached out to me about their fitness options, I was surprised at how much they had to offer in both tech and non-tech gear. They have asked me to go through their online fitness catalogue and share a few items that caught my eye, so here are just a few things I would love to work with.

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Fitbit Charge HR Fitness Tracker

1. Fitbit Charge HR Fitness Tracker

I had to lead off with the star of today’s show, the Fitbit Charge HR. I have now tried the Flex and the Charge and recommend this particular Fitbit solely for the watch band that it comes with. I found the other versions easy to knock off my wrist and feel safer knowing this one is staying put.

Check out the Fitbit Charge HR for yourself on the Best Buy website.
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Breville Juice Fountain Plus Centrifugal Juicer 2. Breville Juice Fountain Plus Centrifugal Juicer

Ever since I discovered Booster Juice a few weeks ago I have been fascinated with the idea of creating my own healthy concoctions from the comfort of my own home. While I haven’t tried this juicer yet, Breville is a company I trust to make a quality product.

Here is a link to check out the Breville Juice Fountain Plus Centrifugal Juicer over at Best Buy.
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JayBird X2 In-Ear Sound Isolating Bluetooth Headphones

3. JayBird X2 In-Ear Bluetooth Headphones

If you’ve been reading my blog for any reasonable amount of time you will know that I am a headphones junkie. Seriously, I love headphones, mostly because they provide my ears with the gift of music, but also because I love the different feel and designs they offer. These look like they would be perfect for running with.

Here is more info on the JayBird X2 In-Ear Bluetooth Headphones!
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Weider Pro Power Cage

4. Weider Pro Power Cage

While this purchase seems a little out of character for me, I have recebtly started weight training and I love how compact this system is. That and the fact that compared to some others I have seen, this one is way more affordable for the average person.

Here is a little more info on the Weider Pro Power Cage.

Fitbit Charge

Lost Fitbits and the Mysteries of the Mind

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The mind is a strange thing, isn’t it? For instance, I know that McDonald’s is extremely unhealthy yet I will still stop in for a Happy Meal whenever the mood strikes. I’ve been finding my battle with exercise to be equally as mystifying even though it should be pretty straight forward. It seems I get bursts of motivation and then slowly watch it fade away.

As an example, earlier this year I partnered with GoodLife Fitness and they even brought a camera crew to my house so I could share the story of my fitness issues. After that I started going to my local GoodLife on a regular basis but in recent months have seen that slip down to about once every couple of weeks. What happened, you ask? The truth is that I have no earthly idea. I loved going to the gym, with my music blasting and sweat pouring down my face. It gave me a new confidence that I had been sorely lacking but now I’ve let that feeling slip away for no good reason.

Then last week I purchased a Fitbit Charge in hopes of giving myself a boost and lo and behold I was exercising more than I ever had before. I joined a bunch of step challenges with my friends and the motivation to out-step everyone had me outside or at the gym walking at every free moment. What is that about? Does my brain really need competition in order to convince me to get off the couch? Is being healthy for my family not enough?

Just when I had finally convinced myself to stop beating myself up over matters of the brain that I could not comprehend, the unthinkable happened. My precious new Fitbit fell right off my wrist while I was out, never to be found again. I was definitely disappointed but wasn’t prepared for what came next. For the next two days I barely lifted a finger and was feeling really depressed about my loss. I’m admitting this to you all because even I found it completely ridiculous that a tiny black band that simply told me how many steps I did that day could cause such an emotional roller coaster in my brain.

I tried to contact support to see if anything could be done but apparently their warranty doesn’t cover stupidity so I did they only thing I could think of to do. I dropped $170 on a brand new Fitbit with a watch band this time instead of the band with the snaps, which, had I researched first, I would have seen a number of people having the same issue with them falling off. Oh yeah, because I was so emotionally distraught, I also got irrationally upset that Fitbit wouldn’t replace the band that “I” lost. Oh brain, you crazy kat!

The lesson here, people, is that the brain is a powerful thing and sometimes you need to give in to its craziness in order to get yourself on the right path. Am I happy to have wasted almost $150? Absolutely not. Am I going to walk, instead of drive, my butt all the way to GoodLife this afternoon to get a workout in? You bet your ass I am!!

Fitbit Flex Review & Giveaway {Canada Only}

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I recently took part in the #RFitChallenge from Rogers and it required me to try out the Fitbit Flex for a period of a couple weeks to see if it would help with my new found love for not being overweight and tired.

Right off the bat I liked the design of the Fitbit Flex because it was a small black wristband that, after wearing it for a couple hours, you forgot you even had on. My goal was to make it to 10,000 steps a day and because the tracker syncs automatically with my smartphone and computer, I would get updates through the day that helped motivate to get moving a little bit more. I especially liked the badges for attaining certain goals because I am a big fan of shiny things and awards.

My favourite feature about the Fitbit Flex was definitely the sleep tracker. With just a couple taps on the tracker, you set the Flex into sleep mode and it tracks how restless you are in your sleep. In my case, I found that I was only having a good sleep about 1 every 5 nights, which obviously isn’t good. I have since been taking steps to try to create a more peaceful bed time by cutting out TV and snacks right before bed. It even has a silent alarm to help wake you up.

I also appreciated that the Flex was water resistant, so I could wear it in the shower. It sounds trivial but if I had to take that thing off every morning, I guarantee I would leave it on the counter half the time. I also loved all of the options on my personal Fitbit web page. From food intake to weight and heart rate monitoring, they have thought of almost everything here. Combined with my weight watchers program, I am going to be unstoppable!

There were a couple things that could use some work with the Flex. I found the clasp tough to latch on and the battery died a little quicker than I would have liked (every 3-4 days). I also noticed that while on the elliptical machine, it was having a hard time tracking steps but overall I loved the Fitbit Flex and definitely recommend it for beginner and advanced fitness buffs.

FITBIT FLEX GIVEAWAY!

What? You want one of these? Okay, you got it! To enter to win a Fitbit Flex of your very own, all you have to do is leave a comment here telling me one thing you would like to change about yourself in order to live a healthier lifestyle.

Contest is open to residents of Canada, excluding Quebec, and will close at noon on October 13th. Good Luck!

Congratulations to the winner of the Fitbit Flex, Andrea B!

Disclosure: I received the Fitbit Flex from Rogers to facilitate this review. I wouldn’t be giving one away to you guys if I thought it was no good, so it has my official stamp of approval!