Fitbit comes with a lot of sensors, and one of them is the three-axis Accelerometer, which basically helps the Fitbit to track your steps, but today’s question is: Does Fitbit Count Steps if arms aren’t moving? Let’s find out.
Fitbit Fitness devices come with tons of sensors, and one of them is three-axis Accelerometer. The function of this sensor is to tell the watch that you are moving, and then it feeds that information to Algorithm, which calculates your step count.
The wrist-based Accelerometer can track your step count accurately only when your arm is moving. If your arm isn’t moving, Fitbit will track your steps, but the count won’t be accurate.
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Does Fitbit Count Steps If My Arms Aren’t Moving?
The doctors recommend the 10,000 of daily steps because it offers long-term health benefits, and that’s why many of us use the Fitbit and other trackers to track our steps and other fitness activities.
Fitbit comes with a lot of sensors such as Heart-rate tracker, GPS (some trackers), Accelerometer, and many more. The one sensor which helps the Fitbit with detecting your movement and step counts is the Accelerometer. It can basically track your movement in any direction.
When we start moving, we also start moving our arms to balance our body, and Accelerometer uses the stride to detect whether we are walking or running.
When we go shopping or travel in a vehicle, we usually don’t move our arm, which makes it difficult for Accelerometer to detect whether we are walking, running, or sitting.
It will be able to detect some of our movements, and it may track some steps as well, but the step count won’t be accurate. So, the answer to this question is very simple. Fitbit may be able to track your step counts when your arms aren’t moving, but the step count won’t be accurate.
Does Fitbit Count Steps Accurately?
Back in the days, Fitbit and other tracking devices weren’t very accurate, but over the years, we have seen a lot of improvement in tracking.
Fitbit trackers come with the 3-axis Accelerometer, which can track your arm movement in any direction, which allows the tracker to track your step counts with great accuracy.
Fitbit trackers also use the advanced Algorithm, which helps the device to identify false steps and remove them, but still, there are some cases where it doesn’t work well.
For example, if you are pushing a stroller or shopping cart and your arms aren’t moving, in this case, Fitbit may track some steps, but it won’t be accurate because your arms aren’t moving.
Read my related article – Fitbit VS simple pedometer for step count.
Does Fitbit work if you are pushing a Stroller?
Yes, there is a possibility that Fitbit may track your step count when you are pushing a stroller, but the step count won’t be accurate. So, what you can do to improve its accuracy. There are two handy ways which you can use to improve the accuracy of Fitbit when you are pushing a stroller.
But remember – Fitbit was designed to be worn the wrist, any other placement will make it less accurate.
- The first way is to put the tracker in your pocket, it will change the reference point for Accelerometer, and it will be able to track your step counts(less accurate than on the wrist).
- The second way is to put the tracker on your Ankle, or in the pocket near your knee. This method works ok, and it will allow the tracker to track your step counts. This method is also more accurate than the first one.
Read my related article which covers the topic of fitness trackers on the ankle in detail.
Can I Wear Fitbit on Ankle?
Yes, you can wear your Fitbit on your Ankle If you want to do it. Doing it will improve pedometer accuracy, especially when you are pushing a stroller or shopping cart. However, if you put the Fitbit on Ankle, the device won’t be able to track your heart rate.
Remember that Fitbit’s official guidelines are to wear it on the wrist, However, there are special ankle bands, these bands are not Fitbit’s official bands and the results are varied.
How to Improve the Accuracy of Step Counts on my Fitbit?
If you think that your Fitbit is not accurately tracking your step counts, then you can do two things. The first thing is to ensure that you have entered the correct height & other personal details because Fitbit Algorithm uses this information along with additional information from sensors to determine the step counts.
Secondly, you will need to ensure that you are wearing the Fitbit correctly. For example, if you wear your tracker on your wrist, then it is an ideal position, and the tracker can accurately track your step counts. However, if you put in your pocket, then the tracker won’t be able to track your step count accurately.
Conclusion
Fitbit trackers in 2023 are more accurate than ever, and we can expect the trackers to be more accurate in the future. If you have any questions, please let me know in the comment section below. Also, feel free to browse the websites for more useful guides.
As a professional trainer and a gadget lover, I’ve spent a lot of money and time buying wearable activity trackers, smartwatches, and gadgets, and checking them out. My site is focused on helping you with your activity tracking and smart technology journey. I try to provide the most helpful updated content on this subject. Hopefully, you will love my blogs and be a regular around here.
