hi, i'm lisa fletcher and you are in "the stream." fitness gadgets are taking the wearable gadget by storm, but it is just another tool to fill our instant gratification via social media. ♪ our digital producer, wajahat ali is here as always bringing in all of your live social media. waj the growth of these gadgets in this the marketplace is huge.

>> yeah, my wife loves today's topic, because i go home, i'm supposed to workout, but i sit on the couch and play call of duty. but speaking of instant gratification, chris says . . . our people cheating is this making them better, or are they just doing it for the points. >> why cheat? that's the big question, right? there is a new kid in town, wearable fitness gadgets. it didn't take us long to find folks sporting them right here

in dc. >> i use the old school nike. i think it's just a fitness band now. whenever i do running, because it tracks my calories, my distance, my pace. >> even though it is nice to give you pushes to get up in the morning, once you have a routine down, they don't keep you there. >> i have friends who use them and they compete with their friends to kind of like one up each other and reach certain fitness goals. >> i love trainers and things, but it gets really expensive, and if an app can do the same thing, i'm all for it, yeah. >> definitely some mixed feelings. if you are not familiar with what they are, they are everything from the nike fuel band, to the fit bit force, they can help you track your progress and compete with users online.

but not everyone is buying into all of the excitement. critics say some users are more interested in feedback from their friends than their scales. the data can easily be manipulated, giving users bragging rights online without even breaking a sweat. so are they just feeding our social media obsession or making us healthier. joining us is a fitness blogger and long-time marathon runner, and tech expert on the intersection of gaming and technology, and a psychologist researching the behavior of consumers who buy health products. welcome to all of you. ivan fitness devices have been around for a long time, what is it about this wearable technology that has people so gung ho? >> pretty much it's the fact that you are using these devices to move around, and it gives you a data calculation of what you

are actually doing. it's making our humdrum activity of walking into something that is more video game like. >> jamie you hang out with a lot of athletes, and you are an athlete yourself, give us some of the reasons people are attracted with these devices. >> i think it starts the hype. you see your favorite athlete wear it, and you get really excited. and i think it's a good jumping point, but i think what it does -- people expect it to do everything for you, and you still have to go out to the track and run, go to the gym and lift weights, and people forget that, so i think the hype is really great, but i love the social aspect. if i post something on facebook and say hey, i'm running five miles, this fast, you might say maybe i can run with her tomorrow. >> yeah. >> we have community coming in. it is also about the human

aspect of it. mark says . . . and janet, going to go to you with this, you are a psychologist, it's all about the human interaction, are we giving up some of that when we go to these apps? do we need that human interaction to help us be healthier? >> i don't know that you need the human interaction to be healthier, what you need is a

lifelong benefit from exercise. and i think out there our lives and exercise lives, certain things are helpful for us, for a while it could be a personal trainer, it could be music, an app or one of these fit bits, and i think it's trying to find the product that is right for you. i don't think you necessarily need to have a physical personal trainer. it is elusive for most of us, right? so this is a low-cost alternative that helps people track their fitness and be healthier and make -- being healthy, you know, something that's immediately gratifying. >> jamie you mentioned that some of these people who buy them do it because it is cool and hip. what is the coolest one to be using right now and why? >> i got suckered into the jawbone one, because you can get it in different colors, and it's kind of a piece of jewelry, and

it's really cool because you are input what you are eating and track it with other people, but the friends i bought it with were lying about what they were eating, but i like the colors. >> these aren't cheap. they range from maybe 60 or $60 to a couple of hundred. and we were talking to prior to the show when we were setting this up, and you said it's just a matter of time before apple gets in on the action, and not one hour later we saw a breaking news brief that said apple just filed for patents on such a device. how much money is to be made on this. >> a significant amount. other than that, i think aside from just standard running fitness, as these devices get

better, smaller, and cheaper, they will be applied to so many different sports, specifically i know a couple for skateboarding, and surfing, and it is just going to keep growing. >> janet part of the allure of this is the positive feedback, right? how much of a motivator is that feedback? >> i think it's really important in some ways it's better than just getting the points. we know in many, many other video games, these games themselves are so reward. you get points, you get recognition. just getting the feedback can be incredibly rewarding to people. more rewarding than money in some cases, so it's very nice that you can have these products give you this type of feedback in a way you have never been able to get it before. and now you can share it in

whatever way you want to use with your social network. >> jill tweeted in . . . >> wait, what it is? and tyler says . . . >> ivan going to you with that, how much does our sharing really lead to better fitness and health, and how much of it is part of our instant gratification culture? >> it goes both ways, honestly. it helps some people, and some people are motivated by competition. so they do assist, but for others it does deter them. people like seeing others, you know, succeed along with them, and having community access, i think is the really bigger image when you use these devices.

>> all right. just how easy is it to fake the results on these fitness gadgets? and why cheat yourself in the first place? if working out for a global audience is feeding your motivation or just your ego. but first you want more interaction with this show, waj has the details. >> share your thoughts during the live show. disagree with one of our guests? great. tell us. interact with other app users in real time. you can be our third co-host. vote, tweet, record video comments and we'll feature them onair. use the app and drive our community's discussions on live tv. download it now at aljazeera.com/ajm stream app.

>> we need whatever you can find. get going. ♪ >> you are watching zombie's run, a popular fitness routine that turns your run into a race for your life. we love zombies around here. waj sometimes the pressure to impress online followers can lead to shady fitness practices. >> human beings never cheat, lisa. that is crazy zombie talk there. if you want to hack your fit bit, here is how you do it. check out this video. ♪ that is so shameless, okay. you can drive with it, use

water. oh, my god -- this is beyond pathetic, but nothing is as shameless as this, people are putting their fit bit on the dog. that is so shameless but thank you for acknowledging it. and check this out. this is how you cheat and get more points lisa by doing ordinary stuff around the house. catch a bottle, or frying pan, dog or head phones. >> head phones. >> mp3 player, spent 10 minutes dancing to our favorite album. >> we are actually moving on that one, though. >> i do that anyway. >> jamie, you hang out with a lot of athletes, you have got to know some who cheat, right? >> they work out so hard anyways, that i don't know if

they are as point conscious as we are. i have done it myself once or twice -- >> how do you cheat? >> i had one app, and it wasn't a wearable, but it was on my phone. it was a tracker. i train with friends in different areas, and we travel for half marathons. and we try to get on the same training program. and i was running around with a friend, and we passed a bar, and i paused it, had a drink or two, and then sprinted home and got in the car and drove around. [ laughter ] >> what is the psychology behind lying do ourselves? >> well, particularly in a situation where you are sharing this information with other people or competing, there is some kind of an incentive to look good, and part of the

reason you purchase these things is you are signalling to people that you are fit and healthy. also you feel bad about yourself when you set a goal like dieting or exercising and you don't meet that goal. so it's a form of ego protection. and in other cases there can be incepttive for you to not let down people or have them make fun of you, or maybe you have signed up for one of these apps where you have put a little bit of money on the line, and if you don't workout, you lose a little bit of money, so there can be a number of reasons, but in general, i think the temptation to cheat on these things is -- is low. right? people do this to feel good about yourself, and if you are cheating, you are really just cheating yourself. >> ivan we are collecting all of this data, we have all of the numbers. what do we do with it? >> that's the thing.

that's my contention with some of these devices, that while this data is fantastic, it is just information in the end. how this informs you and what it means to you in the context of running, it's hard to figure out sometimes. >> and that's part of the problem too if you can't put it in context. i assume they are thinking about that as they are developing new forms of these devices. >> certainly. certainly. and that's why as things get better, i'm not worried about the cheaters on the system, because i think the community will sort it out, because the people are obviously cheating and showing it off. and b, i think as technology gets better for example, with this skateboarding app, it can getting to the point where it can identify a flip kick by the raw data. so these software companies will determine who is cheating and

hopefully weed them out. >> our community is really jumping in about the privacy. and we have a great video comment. give this is a listen. >> i am however a little bit concerned that a few small, you know, apps can actually be an opportunity for larger companies and multinationals to really sort of come modify our workout for us. i would like the workout to be a private affair. >> janet, these gadgets store the following information, weight mile of steps, sleep quality, sexual activity and gps

location. so how can the users protect their privacy and all of this information from being exploited. >> i think that's a real -- i think consumers should be concerned about it, right? for the most part this information is protected in the united states under the health information protection act, hipaa, and hipaa protects your employer from knowing about your wait and s-- sexual activity an all sorts of other juicy bits that they might like to know about you, so once you choose to share that information, you may be giving up your protection under these hipaa laws. >> janet there are a few more serious aspects to this conversation.

i know there are some psychologists and psychiatrists who treat anorexics who think this could be enabling to that disease. what do you think about that? >> i think if you don't think about these for just one segment of the population. for the most part americans don't exercise enough. so the whole idea that you can turn instant gratification into health, and usually instant gratification is having us do unhealthy things, and now you do capture maybe a larger segment of the population who would benefit. at the same time there are people who may have maladaptive behavior, and this may fuel this. but most americans are overweight, don't exercise enough, so it has the potential to help more people than it would to harm.

>> jamie success stories? >> yeah, i think it really depends on the individual, and i know some people who this was their motivation to workout, and it has been their number one motivation still to this day, and there are some people who wear it as an accessory. it's a good way to connect with people. it's a signal for people, i want to workout, i want to take a healthy step, and somebody else sees it, and all of a sudden you have a running partner, so i think there's a lot of success stories. i need a trainer. >> brian just tweeted in a success story . . . >> wow. congratulations. >> there you go. >> that's awesome. >> well done, brian. >> so if you are wondering who should be using these gadgets nose, the answer is probably going to surprise you. if you belong to aarp, you are

going to want to pay attention. plus where the future of wearable fitness devices are headed. some futuristic concepts that are only a few years away keep tweeting us.

take a new look at news. ♪ welcome back to "the stream." we are talking about tracking our health on fitness devices. the people who might benefit the most are the ellerly and chronically ill, and they are the least likely to be wearing them. ivan, i know some over 65s at my gym that can totally kick my rear, but generally speaking these devices seem a little counter intuitive.

why would they be effective? >> because the elderly and the ill need more exercise in general. and these are tools that are meant to facilitate that. and just like everybody they need more exercise. i don't think it is that big of a deal. >> i was reading some research, and they said on average they see people use these things for three weeks up to two months, and that's it. what is that about? >> i think the unofficial fun wears off, and you have to calibrate these and sometimes they are not charged, and it is just an adds thing to take with you to the gym, in the beginning you make sure it's charged, and then it loses its luster. and then it sits on your dresser drawer. >> have yours sit on your dresser drawerer? >> i have a couple.

[ laughter ] >> and speaking about the negative side . . . very sad story. and one more, marco says fitness wearables, an opportunity waiting for a solution. other wearables seem to be a solution, seeking a problem. janet we have discussed the fact that these are expensive, the technology is still getting better. should regular couch potatoes wait for the next generation of fit tech or is it more accessible for people like us right now? >> i think there's multiple options for you. you can use an app that's a couple of dollars to download and it can help you a lot.

compare it with a heart rate monitor or pedometer and it's a low-cost option, and the price of these things drop all the time. they make exercise more fun right now, which is the huge problem with exercise, right? is for most people it is not fun right now, and this is a great way to make it more immediately rewarding. >> ivan, you knew apple was going to drop its new patent an hour before it was announced, so what is the future of these things? >> right. so i think -- one of the big things we'll start to see is, a, more accurate and cheaper devices, and b, more interconnectivity between these things. nike just invested into ten startups into a campus intubate for that will be using the mike

fuel api to create new platforms. so everybody will become interacted with each other, and perhaps when you are running in a park, you may see somebody else with a band and you can start a race with each other. i think we'll see things getting more fun and game like. >> i read today by 2017, 30% of all americans will regularly wear a device to track their sleep, food, exercise, their blood sugar, some of the stuff was really unbelievable. >> we're halfway there already. think of all of information your smartphone already knows. and with things like google glass coming out soon, i know of an app called race yourself which will allow you to race against yourself. >> our community just tweeted in . . .

jamie in the beginning it was a little bit of a downer when it came to trainers versus fit tech, how is this emerging? >> again, personal preference. i'm never going to get rid of my trainer. these will make it more fun to workout with my friends, but when i'm with my trainer, that trainer is pushing me to my limits, and then i take that and push my friends to their limits. to me it will never replace a trainer -- i guess never say never, but i agree with ivan, i would like to have them talk to all of your devices and not have to plug them in and charge them and calibrate them and all of this, but i think they are going to stay.

>> on that note, thanks to all f our guests. the conversation continues right now on twitter. until next time, waj and i will see you online. ♪ good evening, everyone, welcome to al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler in new york. [ gunfire ] >> blood ji thursday in ukraine. more violence in the streets, and more depth as protests continue. global outrage. the u.s. and european union look for ways to end the ukrainian uprising. not guilty, the plea in court from three al jazeera journalists. colorado's m