Thirty Thousand Steps: The FitBit Saga
Episode 5 | 5m 46s | Video has closed captioning.
Steve covers the intersection of fitness and technology, one step at a time.
Aired: 02/12/14
Problems Playing Video? | Closed Captioning
Episode 5 | 5m 46s | Video has closed captioning.
Steve covers the intersection of fitness and technology, one step at a time.
Aired: 02/12/14
Problems Playing Video? | Closed Captioning
Finally tonight, PBS's Steve Goldbloom brings us to the intersection of fitness and technology one step at a time.
The history of the burrito can be traced back to the '60s.
It was Febronio Ontiveros who's credited with creating the super burrito, which includes rice and sour cream.
[phone rings] Hold on.
Hello?
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Hey, Stevie.
How's it going, man?
Hey, bro.
How you doing?
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): So what are you up to?
I'm just doing some stuff for my reel.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Finish chewing, and then we can have a conversation.
I'm here.
What's going on?
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): The assignment's going to be tech and fitness.
You particularly, I think, will benefit from these stories.
You know what I mean?
Mm-hmm.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): You know, we're getting the shots back, and you're looking a little-- ah, a little-- Steve, a little puffy?
A little sizeable?
[inaudible].
[music playing] At Fitbit, we make a whole set of different devices that allow people to track their daily activity.
The activity can mean, you know, how many steps you've walked, the distance you've traveled, calories you've burned, and your sleep quality.
And I wonder if this would just upset me if I knew all the stats or motivate me to do more.
I'd like to believe that it motivates.
Yeah.
We're here in Alamo Square in an early morning in San Francisco.
And I'm here with Daniel, who's an avid Fitbit user.
I swear by it.
He swears by it.
Daniel, tell us about the Fitbit.
Well, the Fitbit is fantastic.
It is fantastic.
It counts your steps throughout the day.
And once you've hit your 10,000-step goal, you are done exercising for the day.
STEVE GOLDBLOOM: Walk us through a typical workout.
That's a great way to put it.
Walk us through, because that's all we're doing.
Hold on.
See, you're going too fast now.
Look-- no, you don't-- no.
Steve?
One, two, three.
Calorie, calorie, calorie.
So I've tried the Jawbone.
Fitbit Zip, Fitbit Flex, Fitbit One, Motorola, Larklife.
Personally, my favorite, though, is this, is the Fitbit.
Did you want to try this thing?
Noah, you ready?
This is a note to the editor.
I need to get some shots of me using the Fitbit here.
[music playing] Maybe-- you don't think Jordan was right when he said puffy, right?
--[inaudible] is essentially self-tracking.
There's two areas where interest lies.
One of them is collecting data on a population level or a sample level.
The other way is just for an individual, if I set specific goals-- like I want to walk 10,000 steps a day-- it can let me know if I'm meeting that goal or not.
It's actually kind of fun, though.
I feel like we should bump it up from 10,000 steps to 20,000.
What do you think?
Do I look out of breath?
I don't feel out of breath.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve?
Where the heck have you been, man?
I've been trying to reach you for days.
So just make sure that I can reach you at all hours.
STEVE GOLDBLOOM: Jordan?
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve?
Yeah, hey.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): [inaudible].
No, this Fitbit's cool.
I like it.
I'm not getting addicted.
I'm just sort of doing a lot of computer research, mainly.
Whoo.
It's like 30,000 steps.
I'm going to sync it and share it.
Damn it.
Noah, were you getting these updates?
We're at-- NOAH: [inaudible].
We're at BitGym in the East Bay.
NOAH: When?
Now, Noah.
Where's the BART?
Noah, spray everything.
Try to get the Berkeley Tower in the background.
Hey, Jordy.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve, where are you?
I'm here.
I'm already here.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve, the interview is done.
We got someone else.
What do you mean you hired somebody else?
BitGym, offers an alternative to the lonely experience of working out inside.
No.
With a simple app-- OK, wait.
I see her.
I can go on a hike through the Swiss Alps or the Grand Canyon.
What, did you hire an amateur?
[speaking spanish] All right, I don't care.
I'm going in, Jordy.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): No, I don't want you going in there looking like Richard Simmons.
I'm fine.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Don't go.
I'm fine.
It's an athletic story.
I look the part.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve?
I'm already inside.
Gym?
Uh, yeah.
How are ya?
Steve from PBS.
I'm Alex.
Nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you, Steve.
Weren't you guys just here?
Yeah, I was.
Um, could we do it again?
We would like to do the whole thing, uh, the whole interview again.
Is that OK?
ALEX GOURLEY: The whole thing?
As a company, we don't even like exercise.
We want to like exercise.
And we started to think, what happens if we could take an iPad and just put it on top of the machine, like a video game.
What if I was running through a virtual world and feeling like I was getting somewhere.
And then suddenly, we'd have this, like, low-cost interactive exercise video game.
No.
I mean, I don't know.
Was that really necessary?
I'm really sorry about that.
I know.
You know, I've been on the story for a while.
Mm.
And this is a Fitbit thing.
Why is he filming?
Why is he filming this?
He's fine.
He's fine.
I haven't eaten in days.
I think we have enough stuff, huh?
[music playing] At the end of the day, exercise is about keeping healthy, both in body and mind.
It's about setting goals and holding yourself accountable to them.
If you want to track your progress, now you can.
How's that?
NOAH: Good.
I gotta take this thing off of me.
Let's get a cab.
JORDAN SMITH (ON PHONE): Steve?
Jordan.
Uh, listen.
The fitness piece that you sent me was worse than horrible.
You're my field correspondent, and I can't trust you yet.
I'm going to have people watching you, and that's the way it's going to be.
And I hate talking like this, man.
I'm-- I want to apologize.
When I called you fat, that was not nice.
Most of the country is overweight now.
I know a trainer if you ever want to talk to him or whatever, and I know a nutritionist.
Anyways, no hard feelings, all right?
OK. Don't push yourself.