Nike updates FuelBand app and links fitness to Facebook

When completing a workout isn't accomplishment enough, Nike has fashioned features for its most social fitness enthusiasts to better bask in the aftermath of completed goals.

Tuesday, Nike released an update to its FuelBand application for iOS that lets band-wearers sum up a workout with a photo, tag their friends and location, and share the tagged shot with Facebook for additional recognition through "likes" and comments.

The FuelBand is an activity tracking wristband that encourages people to set goals and document their daily progress personally or on a leaderboard with friends. The latest addition to the companion iPhone application also allows users to compete with their friends through Facebook.

"This update allows athletes to use NikeFuel in new customizable leaderboards as a social currency to compare, compete and challenge friends to keep up," Nike said.

The changes, though driven by Nike, take advantage of developer-friendly features for fitness apps introduced by Facebook earlier this year. Facebook recently added the ability for app-makers to let users tag their Facebook friends in workouts.

The social network often works collaboratively with developers at fitness-focused companies such as Nike and RunKeeper, and believes that social hooks help hold people accountable to their fitness goals and influences them to work out more.

Facebook's goal isn't really to get you fit, but to build the types of third-party application experiences that attract top applications across a variety of interests to its platform. In the process, as is the case with Nike, the company reaps the reward of more content and activity taking place on its site.