Wii Fit
Wii Fit
Good to force yourself to do exercises Customer Reviews:
I am happy with my purchase. Even when I don’t have the time to do some training, every morning I take the body test to keep track of my weight loss through the graphs, and I noticed that my balance has improved a bit since I started. It is not a very hard workout, but keeps on motivating you, and gives good tips.. I was always afraid of doing exercises on my own, but with the visualization of your center of mass during the yoga poses and strength exercises you have a idea of how to move you body or keep steady.
great way to get back into exercise
I had a series of injuries and illnesses which had me pretty much bed-ridden for a couple years. I had always been active (competitive swimmer, loved hiking, camping, etc.), but after getting so out of shape, found it incredibly difficult to get back into exercise.
One thing I love about Wii fit is it gives you lots of little goals, incentives, and encouragements. It lets you see the little improvements you make, such as being a little steadier on a strength or yoga exercise. You also get “coins” just for spending time doing any of the activities. These go towards unlocking for games and activities.
And you really can get a workout. Some of the strength moves, such as push-ups into planks, will definitely get the sweat rolling. The balance and yoga games improve core muscles. The aerobics are fun and get your blood pumping. We’ve had ours maybe a year now, and still use it a lot.
Great for what it’s meant for
There are actually two things to review here: the balance board, and the game “Wii Fit.” Neither is meant to replace your current exercise regimen. If you think this game will serve as a replacement for gym equipment, such as an elliptical machine, a treadmill, free weights, etc…turn back now.
The primary purpose of Wii Fit is to introduce you to the balance board. You can get an idea of the way it works and (potentially) gain an appreciation of it and desire to purchase additional games that utilize it. The game does have its own merits, however. It encourages people who are usually couch potatoes to get up and move a little. The exercises are short, so you can stop if you’re tired or if you have something to do. The exercises are generally easy enough that anyone can perform them, regardless of current fitness level (although it will take a higher level of fitness to master the exercises.) I worked up a sweat with the two minutes of hula-hooping, and it was fun. I wish I didn’t live alone, because the challenge of beating other people’s scores would be fabulous. The yoga is great for beginners, and gives you immediate feedback as to your posture (which is KEY during yoga.) The best thing about the game itself is the weight/BMI tracking. I LIKE that your Mii gets chubby when you enter your weight (if you’re overweight), because there’s no point in sugar coating it. It actually looked a little thinner than I expected it to. I like the goal tool, and I really like that it encourages you not to go overboard with your goal (it warns against attempting to lose more than 1.5 pounds a week.) The scale appears to be very accurate, and I’m thrilled because my bathroom scale just quit on me (no fat jokes, please.) My big complaint is the running game. It suggests you put the Wii remote in your pocket. When I did this, my Mii ran super-fast, even when I wasn’t moving. It says that you can hold it in your hand, which is what I ended up doing. That mostly worked, although it would say my pace was perfect, and then say it was uneven, although nothing had changed about my pace. My other complaints: There’s too much time between activities. The more out of shape you are, the more you might actually like that, because there’s time to catch your breath in between, but it’s frustrating when you’re ready to get to the next task. This is improved by the favorites section, which contains your top ten most performed activities. Also, I’ve never enjoyed when any game has a prolonged “poor me” segment after a poor performance. I don’t find it motivating and it’s a huge waste of time. I’d appreciate a way to turn off that function or at least the option to press a button to exit the sequence.
I think the balance board is a genius idea. There are so many wonderful games that go with this. Again, this is NOT meant to replace your existing exercise. Some of the games will be suitable to people already in good shape, but there are a lot of games that more sedentary people can play and enjoy. Some of these aren’t even “exercise” games. Example: Rayman’s Raving Rabbids TV Party. I didn’t get this solely for exercise, but as a way to play entertaining games that get me moving a little more. Instead of playing a video game with your thumbs, you can play it with your whole body. I don’t expect to get a model’s body playing Circus Party, the extra movement is a step in the right direction. If you’re sedentary, it will be easy to get benefits from this, even with only the included software. If you’re more active, you should look into specific games as to whether you will find a benefit from this. Some titles to look at: Gold’s Gym Cardio Workout EA Sports Active, and My Fitness Coach. There are some promising titles coming out soon, also.
Set-up is quite easy. Make sure the power button faces AWAY from the Wii console (it seems most people are inclined to position it backwards.) The only (minor) issue I encountered was that I had purchased a power pack so I wouldn’t have to use batteries, but you can’t sync the balance board with the Wii with a battery pack in. I had to round up four AA batteries just long enough to sync it. Seems like they could have put that button somewhere else…but once it’s synchronized, it’s a nonissue.
Finally, this SHOULD go without saying, but since I’ve seen someone post an article on here about this issue I’ll say it anyway–it only works if you use it. Spending $250 on a console and $90 on the balance board will NOT make you healthier. You actually have to get on it and use it. Before you purchase this, you have to evaluate if you will actually get off your butt and use it.