I admit, I wasn’t too excited about Wii Fit when it was announced a year ago. I didn’t even pre-order it! To me, the whole Wii Fit and Balance Board idea seemed gimmicky and opportunistic - another thing to cash in on the get off the couch and do something active movement in America - and honestly not that interesting. I’m pretty active so I don’t need a game to get me to exercise. Nonetheless, since I am a fan of gaming and innovation, I decided to set aside my prejudices and give it a try.
The first time you start up Wii Fit, you pick your Mii and with the balance board as your guide you take a short Body Test. Don’t be alarmed the body test is simple. It measures your center of balance (where your body distributes your weight), your BMI AKA Body Mass Index (a calculation based on weight and height), and your body control (how well you shift your weight from right to left in a specific amount of time). After completion you are presented with your Wii Fit age. Mine was 43 (yikes!). I’m 26 btw.
People have complained about the Wii Fit not giving the correct BMI, but a friend of mine said it was correct, he had just taken a fitness test at the gym a few days ago before trying Wii Fit. Hopefully everyone knows that the Wii Fit isn’t a substitute for going to the doctor or a trainer if you really want accurate results.
What’s interesting with the Wii Fit age is that after a couple of days playing and getting use to the balance board, I did the Body Test again and my Wii Fit age was my actual age. I think doing more than one body control activity during the body test might give a better representation of your Wii Fit age. I’m curious to know how many other people had the same experience.
After receiving your Wii fit age you can set a personal fitness goal which can include losing, gaining or maintaining your weight. Then off to fitness training.
You can choose from several exercises and games in four different categories, Yoga, Aerobics, Strength Training and Balance Games. As you spend more time playing Wii Fit, you open up more activities in each area and increase the level of difficulty in an exercise. Some of the beginner levels are just too easy, but you still have to play them for awhile before you choose the next level.
Here’s a breakdown of the training modes:
Yoga
You can pick from a variety of poses to improve posture, Wii Fit starts off simple with basic poses (Warrior and Half-Moon) and deep breathing.
Strength Training
You start with five different activities that work to strengthen and tone muscles. Those include torso twists, push-ups, leg extensions and lunges. Before doing any exercise you can choose demo and watch the trainer explain and demonstrate the activity.
Aerobics
This section includes running, step exercises and Hula Hoop. My favorite is the running. You put the Wii remote in your pocket and run in place around Wii Fit Island.
Balance Games
These games are designed to help you improve your balance. I don’t know how but they are a lot of fun. You can hit soccer balls with your head and dodge cleats, participate in a ski slalom or jump, or play a human version of the Tilt Game (my personal favorite). These are also great games to watch your friends and/or family complete.
Like any game, Wii Fit has some great areas but could also improve on some things for version 2.0. Here’s where I think Wii Fit shines and falls short:
Pros:
- You can set a fitness goal and track your progress while trying to reach your specified goal.
- Balance games are physically and mentally challenging.
- You can install the Wii Fit channel on your Wii menu so you don’t need to have your disc in your Wii Console to play.
- During the strength and yoga exercises the trainer and Wii Fit lets you know if you are doing the exercise correctly
- If you play for an extended time, Wii Fit tells you to take a break.
Cons:
- Wii Fit age is probably not accurate since it takes a while to get adjusted to the using the very sensitive balance board.
- You can’t combine multiple activities together to create your own routine. After each exercise or activity, you have to stop and pick another. Definitely a momentum killer.
- No suggested training activities for your personal fitness goals.
- All the training exercises start off as beginner which is fine for some but there are a lot of activities that seem too easy at that level.
Do I think I’m going to lose weight doing this? Probably not and honestly I’m not playing it with that in mind. I don’t plan on doing it everyday because I would rather go outside and play a sport or ride a bike. But it is a simple way to get your heart rate up and maybe even sweat a little.
3 responses so far ↓
1 Vern E. // Jun 4, 2008 at 12:35 pm
This was a great review! I may be willing to get off the couch to try this out. Thanks for posting!
2 zwerchserver // Jul 18, 2008 at 6:23 am
I love this game - but after one month playing, the comments are very boring.
3 Four Wii Games You Should Own // Mar 24, 2009 at 7:57 pm
[...] Wii Fit If you are looking for a game to work up a sweat, this is it. Wii Fit lets you exercise in the comfort of your home with a variety of activities including yoga, aerobics, and strength training. There are different levels of difficulty and playing more unlocks new levels of training. If you have several people in your household, play the balance games for some friendly competition. The balance board is going to become the next must have game accessory, especially once more publishers start incorporating the board into their games. I know Wii Fit is an extra $89 and you just dropped $249 on the console, but trust me it’s worth it. Read my full Wii Fit review here. [...]
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