The Fitbit Flex

Fitbit For Golf Review

By Brian Weis

After a recent round, my golf partner proclaimed he had walked over five miles. I looked at him in disbelief because we rode in a cart for our 18 hole adventure. He verified his statement by showing me his Fitbit Flex attached to his wrist and the data that was synchronized on his smartphone. He shared that he has been wearing the device all summer and was surprised how many steps he actually took while play a round of golf - walking or riding.

The following week I joined the Fitbit Revolution. My wrist now supports the Fitbit Flex - an athletic band that holds an odometer like device that records my steps, miles walked and calories burned. The iPhone/smart phone app synchronizes with the device and allows me track additional things like weight, water consumed and calories eaten.

Health experts recommend 10,000 steps (or 5 miles) of activity each day. If I have a normal office day which includes a lot of sitting and evening with the family I struggle to record 10,000 steps. If I golf 18 holes that day (even riding) I reach 10,000 steps before the round is complete.

Conclusions

When I golf, I typical take a cart. My cart is my refuge for my phone, range finder, a beverage, an extra towel and everything else needed to enjoy my round. I take a cart for convenience and speed not for exercise avoidance. In full disclosure, I am a Type A personality. I typically do not like sitting still, so I usually opt to be the passenger so I can walk to my next shot.

Over the last 40 rounds, my findings have drawn an incredibly obvious conclusion - I take more steps when I walk while golfing. Stay with me here - but not that much more. When I ride I take an average of 10,000-12,000 steps during my round. Conversely, when I have walked I average between 14,000-16,000 steps. Surprisingly, I take a lot of steps when I take a cart. For the walking golf snobs out there, I consider my golf with a cart exercise too.

Revised: 01/31/2015 - Article Viewed 34,246 Times

About: Brian Weis

Brian Weis is the Publisher of GolfTrips.com, a network of golf travel and directory sites including GolfWisconsin.com, GolfMichigan.com, ArizonaGolfer.com, GolfAlabama.com, etc. Professionally, Brian is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America (GWAA), International Network of Golf (ING), Golf Travel Writers of America (GTWA), International Golf Travel Writers Association (IGTWA) and The Society of Hickory Golfers (SoHG). In 2016, Brian won The Shaheen Cup, an award given to a golf travel writer by his peers.

All of his life, Brian has been around the game of golf. As a youngster, Brian competed at all levels in junior and high school golf. Brian had a zero chance for a college golf scholarship, so he worked on the grounds crew at West Bend Country Club to pay for his University of Wisconsin education. In his adult years, his passion for the game collided with his entrepreneurial spirit and in 2004 launched GolfWisconsin.com. In 2007, the idea for a network of local golf directory sites formed and GolfTrips.com was born. Today, the network consists of a site in all 50 states supported by national sites like GolfTrips.com, GolfGuide.com and GolfPackages.com. It is an understatement to say, Brian is passionate about promoting golf and golf travel on a local, regional, national and international level.

On the golf course, Brian is known as a fierce weekend warrior that fluctuates between a 5-9 handicap. With a soft fade, known as "The Weis Slice", and booming 300+ drives, he can blast it out of bounds with the best of them.