Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

Get started with your new fitness tracker
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The Fitbit Inspire and Inspire HR are packed to the brim with features, but knowing how to get the most out of the fitness tracker from the start isn't easy.

While Fitbit will walk you through many of the basics, and the app provides a breezy, intuitive way to look at all your data, there are plenty of hidden elements waiting to be explored.

Read the reviews: Fitbit Inspire HR review | Fitbit Inspire review

Want to master your new fitness tracker, and learn everything there is to know about the Inspire and Inspire HR? Read on below for 12 tips and tricks to get you started.

1. Sync the Fitbit Inspire

Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

The first thing that's essential to learn about your Fitbit tracker is how to sync it. And while you can't do that through the device itself, there's two ways to allow syncing through the app.

You can either set up All-Day Sync by heading to the Inspire icon in the top left of the Fitbit app and scrolling down to the option – this will mean your tracker regularly feeds data over to the app without your input.

Essential reading: What is the best Fitbit?

Or, you can manually sync your data every time. To do this, swipe down from the Fitbit app's home screen and release. You should then see a line travel from left to right just above the main tracking panel.

If you're having problems syncing your Fitbit, or you want to learn how to sync on your PC, check our full Fitbit sync guide.

2. Turn off raise-to-wake

If you enjoy wearing your Fitbit Inspire to sleep, you'll probably want to turn off the raise-to-wake function, else you'll risk turning over and waking your partner up with a flash of light.

To toggle it off, you'll have to hold down the side button and tap Screen Wake when the option appears. This means the tracker won't show anything if you raise your wrist, obviously, but you can toggle it back on at any time.

3. Clean the Fitbit Inspire

If you're the kind to wear your tracker every day, or at least use it for sweat-inducing workouts, you're going to need to learn how to clean it from time to time.

Fitbit recommends using rubbing alcohol and a toothbrush to clean the pins and the back of the tracker, while each band will require slightly different treatment.

For the standard elastomer band that comes with the Inspire series out of the box, Fitbit wants you to clean it with water or a soap-free cleanser and avoid any oils and lotions on the band, but you can learn how to clean the likes of leather and metal bands with our full guide to keeping a Fitbit clean.

4. Change the Fitbit Inspire band

If you're going to clean the Fitbit Inspire properly, you're going to need to know how to take off the band and put it back on, too. The mechanism on the Inspire is similar to the Versa smartwatch, with quick-release levers used.

It's not the easiest, and it can be a bit of a hassle getting it locked in place, but you'll get the hang of it after a couple of changes. Here are some steps to change the band on the Inspire or Inspire HR:

  • Locate the quick-release lever – there's one on each side of the tracker.
  • Push the lever inward and simultaneously pull the band away from the tracker. Repeat on the other side.
  • To attach a new strap, line the pin up with the hole in the tracker opposite the quick-release lever.
  • Once it's tucked in on one side, push the lever in and do the same in order to slide it into the other.
  • With both sides inserted, let go of the lever and give the band a quick pull to ensure it's all locked into place.

5. Reset the Fitbit Inspire

Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

If you find you can't sync your Inspire, or you're having issues with tracking your stats, here's how to restart it:

  • Plug the charging cable into a USB port, then connect the end to the back of the Inspire tracker, ensuring the pins are locked into place.
  • Press and hold the left button on the device for five seconds and then release.
  • Once the face appears and the tracker vibrates, it's restarting.
  • Remember: this reboots your device, but doesn't give it a factory reset.

To learn how to factory reset your Inspire, or unpair it from your account, read our full guide to restarting your Fitbit.

6. Improve accuracy on Fitbit Inspire

Your Inspire may seem the same as every other Fitbit out there, but there are methods to make it personal to you and improve the accuracy of the tracked data. One of the simplest ways to do this is by adjusting the stride length within the Fitbit app, as this affects the distance of your runs and the accuracy of step counts.

To do so, follow these instructions:

  • Tap the Inspire icon in the top right and scroll down to Advanced Settings.
  • From here, you should see an option for Stride Length. If you haven't tweaked this before, it's likely set to automatically track your steps, adjusting whenever you've ran with GPS enabled.
  • If you toggle it off, you'll be able to set this manually.
  • You can discover your stride length by walking (or running) over a short distance and then dividing that total distance by the number of steps taken. You can enter different stride lengths for running and walking, so make sure you do for maximum accuracy.

This isn't the only way to improve accuracy, remember – to also tweak the settings of your sleep tracking, wrist sensitivity, exercise detection and pool lengths, read our full guide to Fitbit accuracy.

7. Pair Fitbit Inspire with Alexa

Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

Installing and enabling the Fitbit Alexa skill is really quite simple, and the method is the same no matter if you have an Inspire or Inspire HR. Why? Because Alexa talks to the Fitbit app on your phone, not to your tracker itself.

  • Download the Alexa application for your iPhone or Android smartphone, or head to alexa.amazon.com in your browser. Log in using the Amazon account associated with your Alexa-enabled device.
  • Browse the Skills & Games section of the Alexa application and type Fitbit into the search bar.
  • Tap on Fitbit and select the option to Enable Skill.
  • Insert your Fitbit account details; the same email address and password you use to log into the Fitbit app.
  • Finally, you must give permission to access your Fitbit app data and profile. After that, you’re all set.

To learn about the data that's synced from Fitbit to Alexa, just what the voice assistant can tell you about, how to switch profiles and more, check out our full Fitbit Alexa guide.

8. Check stats on the wrist

While the Fitbit app acts as the best place to view all your tracked data, you can also get a quick look at your stats on the tracker itself.

Some of the Clock Faces available for the Inspire series will give you some of your stats whenever you raise your wrist, but turning on Quick View lets you swipe up from the face and view your battery percentage, steps taken, heart rate, stairs climbed, active minutes and how many hours of sleep you recorded.

To do so, tap the Inspire icon in the Fitbit app and scroll down to Quick View to toggle it on.

9. Edit exercise shortcuts

Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

Exercise shortcuts are the quick-start panels that appear when you're gearing up for a workout, but did you know you can optimise this list to jump in even quicker?

If running or cycling isn't your go-to exercise, for example, you can change what appears on your tracker through the Fitbit app. In order to do so, and make something like tennis or football available, tap the Inspire icon in the top left corner, then Exercise Shortcuts before toggling the order you want the top six options in.

Spot the difference: Fitbit Inspire HR v Fitbit Inspire

You'll have to nix a couple if you want to add more, and we'd recommend choosing Workout for any bit of exercise that isn't categorized through the list when you search.

10. Set an alarm on Fitbit

Receiving a buzz on your wrist is much preferable to a repetitive ringing in your ear, and setting a silent alarm on the Inspire series is simple enough to achieve.

You can only do so through the tracker itself, with the option existing to set new ones and toggle them on/off. To set an alarm, go to the Settings, hit Silent Alarms and then choose the time and days you want it to go off.

11. Ditch your band for a clip

Fitbit Inspire HR tips and tricks: 12 things you need to know about your tracker

Now that the Fitbit Zip has been discontinued, the best way to transform your Fitbit into a pedometer is to ditch the band for the Inspire and pick up the clip accessory from the company.

It'll set you back $19.99, and it isn't compatible with the Inspire HR model, but it's a handy add-on to have when you don't want to log exercise from the wrist. Pick it up from Amazon or Fitbit.

12. Adjust notifications

Changing your notifications is only available through the Fitbit app, and doing so will allow you to reduce or raise the amount that comes through to the wrist.

To manage them, click the Inspire icon in the top left corner before tapping the Notifications tab. From there, you can toggle calls, texts and calendar events on or off, and tapping on App Notifications will let you manually change which third-party apps can ping your wrist.




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Conor Allison

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Conor moved to Wareable Media Group in 2017, initially covering all the latest developments in smartwatches, fitness trackers, and VR. He made a name for himself writing about trying out translation earbuds on a first date and cycling with a wearable airbag, as well as covering the industry’s latest releases.

Following a stint as Reviews Editor at Pocket-lint, Conor returned to Wareable Media Group in 2022 as Editor-at-Large. Conor has become a wearables expert, and helps people get more from their wearable tech, via Wareable's considerable how-to-based guides. 

He has also contributed to British GQ, Wired, Metro, The Independent, and The Mirror. 


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