I can’t remember if I blogged about it, but a year or two ago I tried FitBug thanks to a special offer. At the time it was fairly good – the pedometer was accurate, I had lots of geeky online stats to look at, but for some reason I just wasn’t that motivated. I gave up on logging what I was eating almost straight away – mostly because their database had next to nothing from Sainsbury’s in it – and the forum community was tiny and inactive. I don’t think the service was quite there, either, because some things seemed a bit unfinished and they were slow to react and release updates and changes even though they had plans to. Eventually, and regretfully, because I loved the concept, I just gave up on it altogether and let my membership expire.

Last week I was browsing the Amazon Lightning Deals and found out about FitBit. Amazon had offers on both the wi-fi scales and the Ultra tracker, so for almost half price I thought I’d give it a go. This kind of stuff definitely appeals to my inner geek because it’s all technology-based and it all links up together, so I now have weighing scales, a pedometer, an app, and a web-based account that work together (along with Facebook and Twitter integration, although I’ve limited Facebook to once per week and I’ve not connected my account to Twitter at all). The only slight niggle is that I’ve had to join MyFitnessPal for the food database because FitBit’s is US-orientated, and everything seems to be syncing pretty much fine, so that’s good.

It was surprisingly easy to set up, especially considering the number of reviews I read online from people whining about how there were no instructions (they’re online for the tracker). The only issue was that the batteries that came supplied with it were dead, but once I fished out some replacements it was really quick to set up. The whole thing connected wirelessly via my Mac – I didn’t even have to type my wireless password in. It was beautifully seamless.

The pedometer was easy to set up as well, although for some reason I assumed it would be powered by a watch battery; it actually charges via USB. And it’s apparently compatible with USB wall chargers as well, so it should be fine if I’m away without my laptop. I’m a bit perturbed that it didn’t ask me to input my stride length, and it does seem to record a few steps whilst I’m asleep (unless I’m sleepwalking again without realising), but other than that it’s all fine. The battery seems to last quite a few days without needing to be charged as well.

The online account has lots of graphs to keep me happy, and the paid version has lots of benchmarks and stuff which is pretty cool too. And badges – badges are always addictive. I haven’t checked out the online community yet, but it looks quite active.

I am a sleeping MACHINE.

Weight is something I’ve always struggled with. That’s how I became a geek, and why I got so addicted to the internet. When I was around sixteen, I completely changed my life and lost a lot of weight, but I’ve never been happy with my body. I just don’t really talk about it because it’s not something I like to draw attention to – I’m one of the most self-conscious and clumsiest people in the world, and I really hate being stared at. The last time I properly monitored my weight was back in the summer, and I was horrified to find out this week that I’ve put on 20lb since then. And somehow, I haven’t even realised it.

I do get quite obsessed with things, and I think that food and exercise are quite good things to be obsessed about right now. Especially compared to buying lots of things and drinking and eating lots of crap to distract myself, which is what I’ve been doing recently. I find it incredibly boring when people talk at great length about their exercise routine and how many calories they’ve eaten etc., so I’m not going to be blogging that much about it. I’ll probably (hopefully) just stick to occasional key milestones. But at the moment I’m feeling really motivated. I know that how and when I eat has a direct and noticeable impact on my mood and overall happiness, and there’s a definite link there, so regardless of whether or not I reach my weight goal by May as suggested I should hopefully make other good life changes regardless.

Disclaimer: I reviewed this because I wanted to. I wasn’t compensated in any way for this post.