Fitbit Rewards Update – August Update!
A few weeks ago I ordered my free Fitbit One as part of a program offered by my employer to encourage physical activity and overall health. I found I can connect the Fitbit to my employer’s physical vitality web portal, and earn points for my activity which can be exchanged for merchandise or gift cards. My hope was to earn $150 in Amazon gift cards in time for Christmas.
Unfortunately, my first attempt at the program lasted exactly one day.
I received my Fitbit within 2 days of ordering it. I got it all setup, and had the device firmly attached to my hip. However, after only a single day of use, it ceased to synchronize with my phone as well my computer. I called customer service, and after several attempts to breathe life back into my Fitbit, they gave up and said they would send me a new one. After a week, the new device finally showed up in the mail.
I had set my $150 Amazon gift card goal without knowing anything regarding how quickly I could accumulate points. Now that I’ve been using the Fitbit for a weeks, as well has spent some time exploring the physical vitality portal, I’ve learned some very important pieces of information.
Points Needed
A $5 Amazon gift card costs 500 points. To earn $150 in Amazon gift cards, I would have to earn 15,000 points.
Physical Activity Points
Points are awarded based upon how many steps are recorded by the Fitbit. 5000 points gets me 5 points, 10,000 points will earn 10 points, and 15,000 steps will be rewarded with 15 points. But, that’s as high as it goes, which is a bummer because there are days I record steps much higher than 15,000. One Saturday I ran 10 miles, mowed the lawn, and went grocery shopping. I had taken over 30,000 steps by noon.
What this means is that the best I can do is earn 105 (15 x7) points a week, or about 2000 more points by the end of the ear.
Points For Promoting Healthy Living
It seems like I can earn more points by accomplishing healthy living tasks than the actual physical activity. I just had a physical, and can submit the results of my blood test and vital functions and earn close to 2000 points for my healthy blood pressure, cholesterol, and glucose levels.
Other things I can do is make progress towards losing weight and reading about making healthy changes to my diet. It appears there are many tasks that can be done, as every time I complete one a new one is displayed.
Resetting my Goal
I have about 2000 points awarded so far from signing up for the program (accounts for most of these points), doing a few healthy living activities, and the physical activity so far. With my limited capacity to earn points with physical activity, I’m resetting my goal to $100 in Amazon gift cards, or 10,000 points.
The program is really doing what it’s designed to do. I’m staying physically active, and taking steps to improve my overall health. My employer gets a healthier, happier employee, and I get better over all health as well as hopefully and extra $100 in my pocket.
I’ll check back at the end of September with an update as to how I’m doing with my goal!
Does your employer have a program that promotes healthy living? How are you doing with your fitness goals this year?
Brought to you courtesy of Brock
Brock is a software engineer by day and personal finance blogger at night. He is a fitness junkie and enjoys grilling and smoking meat. Married with two children, Brock strives to improve his skills as a husband and father, and is always on the lookout to stretch his family’s budget as far as he can.
This sounds like a great program! My employer has run a steps competition in the past, but for bragging rights only. I think I would be more motivated to stick with tracking my steps on my fit bit if I had a financial incentive!
My work had summer walking challenges in the past that consisted of two parts. The first part was the first three people that reached 100 miles in the least amount of days. I was first place three years in a row with the fastest being completed in 8 days. The second part was the top three with the greatest distance completed in 100 days. I was in the top three every year. Some years they gave cash prizes for each challenge and gift cards the last year.
There are quite a few websites that offer rewards for syncing your fitbit.
https://www.bounts.it/ – This is a relatively new site and I have earned about $20 in gift cards.
https://www.achievemint.com/ – This allows you to connect a wide variety of fitness apps. Earned $150
https://www.walgreens.com/balancerewards/balance-rewards.jsp – Earn Walgreens credit. Earned about $30
Not bad considering I am already getting the steps.
@Ali – Earning useful prizes certainly IS a great incentive. I find myself consciously making an effort to hit 15,000 steps each day!
@Jeff – great links to check out…thanks for the pointers!