As we have discovered, Fitbits are wonderful tools for tracking steps, exercise and sleep, among other things. While steps are fairly self-explanatory, one thing that can be measured that is slightly less clear is something known as active minutes. Please see below for a clarification of Fitbit’s active minutes category.
- FitBit measures active minutes through something called METs, or metabolic equivalents
- As per their website, “METs help measure the energy expenditure of various activities” (for example a MET of 1 is a body at rest)
- It takes 10 minutes of exercise at a 3 MET output (what they consider “moderate exercise”) to register on the Fitbit as active minutes
- Once the 10 active minutes are met, they can accumulate even if smaller chunks of activity are done thereafter
- Though it will not affect tracking, if you want the main goal on your Fitbit to be active minutes instead of steps, feel free to change it on the app (but note it will not “celebrate your victory” until you reach 30 active minutes)