What Is Sleep Sensitivity On Fitbit Trackers?

Fitbit, Sleep Tracking & Sleep Sensitivity

Sleep tracking in wearables isn’t a new thing, it has been welcoming aspect of smartwatches for a while now, Fitbit trackers are not far behind the trend either. Yes, there is general misconception within the community that monitoring sleep using digital watches can lead to unpleasant consequences, no study has ever found the concrete statement to back the claim. If you want to, you can, and you should.

Given our focus of study for today are Fitbit trackers, if you are wondering how Fitbit tracks the sleep, then I’d suggest to find about it here. If I may, the process is quite simple and elegant, Fitbit in question utilize proprietary algorithm coupled with data from two sensors – Heart Rate and Accelerometer.

But there was once a time when no Fitbit tracker had Heart Rate sensor, and yet Fitbit was marketing its product with sleep tracking.

Magic? No.

Sleep Sensitivity? Yes.

Sleep Sensitivity On Fitbit Trackers!

In the days when Fitbit was still finding it’s feet fitness brand had added a legacy settings to its trackers. One that was implemented to track the sleeping stages (there is difference between sleep stages and sleep cycles) of a person. Although, in coming years a change would dawn on the ways of it, and Fitbit would drift to a newer, better version to monitor sleeping cycles. At that time resources were limited and scope was narrow.

So, in a way, sleep sensitivity on Fitbit trackers is functionality of past, a make over to make up for the absence of heart rate sensor. But that is not all about it, there is more that it holds, to be more specific, two more modes, one called normal the other that is actually normal.

Normal Mode

In Normal Mode your Fitbit tracker gives you leverage like no other, you could be playing games on PS5 but if your Fitbit tracker had detected earlier in the day you are in bed, it would take substantial wake up call for tracker to change its direction.

Sensitive Mode

During Sensitive Mode every movement that you might make is taken into account, accuracy and precision of Accelerometer recording is quite vital to its proper functionality. So imagine you are in bed and you roll over, your Fitbit tracker would – likely – take note of it and change your status from sleeping to awake.

‘Normal’ Mode Is Not Normal!

Given that Normal Mode essence lies within ignorance of changing coordinates and body acceleration, coupled with large leverage that can result in skewed results. There is no doubt, it is by no means, a normal method to implement for the following medium.

“Seems like a blunder from Fitbit?”

It does, but we have to consider that it was their way to patch up something that needed more than a patch up. Earlier Fitbit devices were clearly not ready to track sleeping stats, they needed more refinement, better approach, what they got was neither okay nor satisfactory.

Does Sensitive Mode Even Need To Be Sensitive?

Since Sensitive Mode heavily relies on data representing the user body movement, many times an eerie situation has been noticed. Even when wearer of the trackers hasn’t woken up, but just changed the position Fitbit tracker takes it as sign and update the data, resulting in fallacy within end results.

So question has to be asked, does the tracker even need to be so sensitive?

Yes, it would be counterintuitive of it to be not sensitive under the guise of sensitive settings. As results are skewing in one direction due to it, wouldn’t it’d have been better to set parameters that keeps the monitoring in check? I’m not an expert nor a Fitbit engineer but I feel it wasn’t exactly 100% correct implementation of system, even if the idea was right.

How To Change Sleep Sensitivity On Fitbit?

If you are using a Fitbit which was released before the year 2017 there is good possibility it will have the Sleep Sensitivity settings. So, if you want to change them, or just wants to play around with Sleep Mode, here is how you can toggle between Normal and Sensitive Mode.

• Open the Dashboard on Fitbit App.
• Click on your profile picture.
• There you will see button called: “Advanced Settings.” Tap on it and try to find Sleep Sensitivity option.
• Once inside you will have two modes Normal and Sensitive. Select whichever you want and then test your Fitbit.

Sleep Sensitivity Is No More

In 2017 Fitbit released Fitbit Blaze and following in its footstep Fitbit Versa 3 and Sense came into scene few years later. While, not free from flaws, Fitbit newer generation of products saw change in their ways to track sleep.

Instead of focusing on sleeping stages the next generation had clear focus on just one thing, and it was maintaining keen sight on developing sleeping cycles. Although at times even newer gen of Fitbits fail to track sleep properly. So, to actually make a haul Fitbit had to change their algorithm and have Heart Rate Variability metric in contention, the ends results improved drastically.