As Insurers Offer Discounts For Fitness Trackers, Wearers Should Step With Caution

When Kathy Klute-Nelson heads out a on neighborhood walk she often takes her two dogs — Kona, a boxer, and Max, a small white dog of questionable pedigree who barrels out the front door with barks of enthusiasm.

The 64-year-old resident of Costa Mesa, Calif., says she was never one to engage in regular exercise – especially after a long day of work. But about three years ago, her employer, the Auto Club of Southern California, made her and her colleagues an offer she couldn't refuse: Wear a Fitbit, walk every day and get up to $300 off her yearly health insurance premiums.

"I thought, 'Why don't I try this?' " Klute-Nelson says. " 'Maybe it'll motivate me.' And it really did. You know, you get into little groups and you start walking around and come back and feel better."