My boyfriend and I eventually gave in and bought ourselves a Wii about 6 months ago. Then, on my birthday back in May, my parents bought me the Wii Fit. Since then, we have used it most evenings and have had an awful lot of fun using it.
What Is A Wii Fit? A Wii Fit is sort of like a fitness game which is used in conjunction with the Wii Games Console. There is the usual disc which you insert into the Wii console and also a 'Balance Board' which is just like a set of weighing scales. You need to stand on the balance board for the various exercises and games that you will take part in. The balance board is slightly different from a normal set of weighing scales because as well as being able to measure you weight, it can also judge how much weight you place on each foot and where you centre of gravity (COG) is. From all this information, it is able to tell you how you can improve your posture.
Setting Up The Wii Fit Setting up the Wii Fit is really easy as you can literally take it straight from the box and get going. All you need to do is put the batteries into the back of it (batteries are included in kit) and press the Power button and you can begin your fun and games.
Setting Up A Mii Each person who uses the Wii Fit can set up a Mii, which is basically a user file which is stored on the Wii. For this you need to input various details such as height, date of birth etc. Then, every time you use the Wii Fit, you click on your own personal Mii and all your user data will be stored here so you are easily able to keep track of any weight loss/gain and the various exercises you have taken part in. If you would like to keep your user information such as your weight a secret, then you can actually password protect your Mii which I thought was quite a good option!
The Body Test - Wii Fit Age In this section you can have your Body Mass Index (BMI) checked, take part on a Body Test and afterwards you will be presented with a 'Wii Fit Age' which is basically the Wii console guessing your age based on how well you have done in the Body Test. When you select the body test, you need to stand still on the balance board while it takes your various measurements and judges how much weight you place on each leg. Afterwards, you are told about your centre of gravity (COG), how equally balanced you are, your current weight and what your current BMI is. You are then told if you have gained or lost weight since the last time you took a Body Test. From here, you can set goals, choosing how much you want to lose/gain or stay and the time period you would like to achieve this in. After you have had your BMI calculated, you can choose to end the Body Test here, or continue with the Body Test and be given a Wii Fit Age. To judge your Wii Fit age you are given 2 tests and these can vary each time you do a Body Test. There are only a few options for the tests and you do not get to choose which test you do as they are selected randomly by the Wii. The various options are:
The Walking Test For the Walking Test you will be asked to walk on the spot (on the balance board) for 20 paces. At the end of the test you are told how much weight you place on each leg as you walk. The idea is to get the balance as near to 50% for each leg as you can.
The Stillness Test For the Stillness
Test you are required to stay as still as you possibly can for one minute. At the end of the test you will be shown exactly how much you moved around on the balance board during the test.
One Leg Test This is where you stand on one leg and need to stay as still as possible throughout the test. At the end of the test you are shown a trace of how much you moved about during the test. Personally, I am rubbish at this one because my balance is fairly poor and I find it really difficult to keep still when I am trying to balance!
Hitting Targets This is where you need to adjust the balance between your leg to hit various targets that appear on the screen, as the time progresses, the targets appear in more difficult areas. The idea is to hit as many targets as you can in the time you are given.
Agility Test This is similar to the Hitting Targets tests in the sense the you need to adjust your balance between your legs but in this test you just need to balance a specific amount of weight i.e. 30% on your right leg and 70% on your left leg. You are given various weights to follow and the idea is to hit the targets you are given as quickly as you can.
Once you have taken part in two of the above tests, you are then presented with a Wii Fit Age based on how well you did in the tests. When I first started using the Wii, my age was round the 45 mark which was rather embarrassing as I am actually 24. Now when I use the Wii, I can regularly get my age down to 21 which is much more satisfying. My partner is 34 and has managed to get his age down to 29 (which had him smiling for days!)
Nearly every time you use the Wii, you are informed that you should do a body test every day even if you don't have time to do any of the other games and exercises..
Once you have done the Body Test, you can then choose between the various exercises. When you first begin to use the Wii, only a selection of the exercises are available but as you use to Wii more, the other exercises become unlocked. We used to Wii quite a lot in the first month or so and had most of the exercises unlocked within 10 days. The exercises are split into four sections.
Aerobic Exercises This section is designed to give you a cardio workout and believe me they really get your heart pumping!!. There are nine different sections although some of them are just different variations of a previous section, which is just more difficult and challenging.
Hula Hoop This is the first game that I took part in on the Wii and I found it such good fun, even if I did look rather silly doing it! The idea is that you need to move you hips in a circular motion with the intention of keeping a hula hoop spinning around your hips. There is a character on the screen (your Mii) and you can see how well you are doing and how fast the hoop is spinning around. This is a sure fire way to get everyone in the room laughing as you look so silly when you are doing it but boy does it make you ache the next day if you do the exercise several times!
Step At first, I really really struggled with this exercise! For this, you are expected to step on and off the balance board in time to the music and along with the other Mii's that are on the screen in front of you. Because I found this so hard, I avoided doing it for a while and then decided to give it another go and have since found out that I am not actually as bad as I thought I was. Now I actually quite enjoy doing this and again, this is another exercise that gets your heart pumping. As I mentioned earlier, the Aerobic Exercise has 9 sections to it but most of the exercises are just different variations of the basic three. There are also two other Step exercises in this section as well as this one. The other two are advanced versions of this where the you have to step faster and the routines get more tricky. One of the other step routines is where you are required to step on and off the balance board for ten minutes. For this exercise, you have the option to listen to your music or watch TV while you are exercising and you don't necessarily need to watch the screen for the Wii for the entire 10 minutes as your progress is given to you through the Wii remote. I quite like this idea as it means you can exercise while watching Eastenders!
Jogging For this one, you don't actually use the balance board. Instead you put the Wii remote in your pocket (or hold it in your hand) and jog on the spot to move along the track on the screen. Again, this has an advanced section where you can take part in a ten minute exercise routine where you can watch TV, listen to music etc like I explained above.
I really enjoy this section and wish that there were more exercises to choose from as it can be quite limited with just the three sections to pick between. The is one of the sections where you can really feel your heart rate increase and you can feel the effects of the exercises the day after.
Muscle Exercises Next are the muscle exercises. These are aimed at strengthening and toning various parts of the body. As you select each muscle exercise, you are informed of which area of your body this will tone up. As you start to improve your technique, you will be able to increase the number of repetitions which means you are always challenging yourself to do that little bit better.
At the beginning of this section, you need to pick a personal trainer, there are two choices, male or female, personally. I picked a female as if this were a real life situation, I would prefer a female as I think I would be too self conscious in front of a male trainer! You can swap trainers as often as you like so don't worry if you decide you don't like yours! Your trainer helps you to do the various exercises by talking you through the exercises and they also offer encouragement when you do well as guide you with tips when your not doing so well!
There are twelve exercises in this section and three 'challenges' where you can challenge yourself against the trainer - as you can imagine, these challenges are pretty hardcore! Some of these exercises are quite frankly. Bloody difficult but I quite like the fact that I need to challenge myself to be able to complete them. It also helps that you are given a score for each exercise you do, your score is then entered onto the leader board and my partner and I are constantly in competition with each other to see who can get to the top of the leader board! For some of the muscle exercises, you need to stand on the balance board and for others, you are required to support yourself on the board, for example, for the press ups, you need to place you hands on the balance board and complete a set of press ups in this position!
I really like this section although I am not particularly sure I enjoy it as it can be quite touch. I find the arm exercises especially difficult because I have very weak arms but I have certainly seen an improvement in my arms since I have been using the Wii Fit, my arms certainly look and feel more toned.
Yoga With the Yoga section, you also get a personal trainer to talk you through the various poses. Again, you also get a score for each exercise.
In this section there are fifteen different Yoga poses to work on most of which are done on the balance board although a few of them are done on the floor.
Pictures of Wii Fit (Wii)
The screen where you are given your BMI
The first few poses are quite simple and easy such as deep breathing but as you progress through them, you will find the poses become more difficult. Throughout each of the poses, you are shown your centre of gravity and are informed where you need to keep this in order to get the best results from the poses. I found this really useful as it helps you to see exactly what position you need to be in.
I have never ever done Yoga before and when I first started doing this section, I found it pretty hard, especially the poses which are to be done using only one leg. My balance is rubbish and trying to stand entirely still on one leg was a challenge in itself for me. Having said that, I have found that over the past two months, my balance has improved and I am starting to obtain higher scores on the poses which I found very difficult in the beginning. Although I enjoy the Yoga, it is probably my least favourite section as I find the Aerobic and Balance Exercises more enjoyable.
Balance Exercises This is the section which I enjoy the most. In my opinion, the various exercises in here don't feel like exercises at all, they feel more like games. In this sections there are nine exercises which all involve suing your balance.
Every exercise if different and the idea is you need to adjust your weight on the balance board on order to move the various items on the screen. For example, one of the exercise is to 'Head A Ball'. On the screen you will see your Mii character who is stood in goal. In front of you there are other Mii's who are trying to score a goal. The idea is you have to stop as many goals as you can by heading the ball. You need to adjust your weight from side to side on the balance board in order for your Mii to head the ball. Added to this, there are also other items such as football boots and panda heads (random I know) which you need to avoid. If you end up heading one of these then you will loose points.
Other options in this section are the Downhill Ski Slalom, Ski Jumping, Snowboarding, Tightrope Walking and making your way down the River inside a Bubble without popping it. There are others which involve rolling balls around flat plates into the holes without the balls falling off the plates (where each level gets harder to do), helping a penguin to catch fish on a slippery iceberg and sitting as still as you can.
Every single one of these exercises are good fun although like all things in life, I do have my favourites. I am not keen on the Tightrope Walking or the Snowboarding as I find them both very difficult to do. I must point out that for some of these exercises, your Mii is required to jump. However, you do not actually jump on the balance board as this would damage it, instead you bend you knees and then stand up straight in one sharp motion. In turn, this makes your Mii jump.
I find that this section really makes you feel involved in what you are doing because each exercise is challenging and I find myself getting really frustrated when I am unable to complete a difficult section of the challenge. Myself and my boyfriend are always trying to beat each others scores on this section too which I feel adds to the fun!
Summary I would highly recommend the Wii Fit to anyone. I have had mine since May and aside from when I have been working nights, I have used it every week without fail, sometimes every day and other times just once or twice a week. I think that the Wii Fit is a fantastic idea, especially in this day and age where obesity is a problem and children sit in front of computers all day and don't get enough exercise, this is the perfect compromise. The Wii Fit is suitable for all ages which means that the whole family can get involved in using it. The games are kept nice and simple and the Wii Fit as a whole is really easy to use and the various exercises are so easy to follow. I find that the Wii Fit actually helps me to exercise more which may sound a bit silly as anyone can exercise at home but I find that if I stick the Wii on and follow my trainers guidelines, then I actually feel more inclined to exercise, rather than if I were doing the exercises by myself. I am not actually overweight so my Wii Fit was bought with the intention of maintaining my weight and to tone myself up. Having said that, since I have been using the Wii, I have actually lost 5 lbs. which is proof that the exercises really do work! Although this was bought for me as a present, I have looked on the internet and seen that the average price for the Wii Fit is £69.99 which is pretty expensive but in my opinion, I think it is worth the money. If you are looking to help keep yourself fit in the comfort of your own home, they you can go far wrong with a Wii Fit!
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interactive and entertaining manner. It is used to perform and measure player performance during exercise as well as calculating the BMI and Wii Fit Age Consequently, go...
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interested in having this item sent elsewhere.Wii Fit is designed to be enjoyed by the whole family. In Japan it has been encouraging family members as a whole to di...
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Advantages: great for weightloss, fun for all the family, improves posture, balance and health Disadvantages: expensive, can only register up to 8 family members
ilusvm 29.10.2008 (29.10.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: exceptional
Review of Wii Fit (Wii)
Advantages: Get fit without going to the gym, use little or often. Disadvantages: Initial Start up Costs Expensive if you don't have a Console, Some Suppliers out of stock
innercircle 30.01.2009 (30.01.2009)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: exceptional
Review of Wii Fit (Wii)
Advantages: Fun way to get fit. Keeps you coming back for the fun exercises. Disadvantages: The muscle exercises are largely for the legs, not much for the arms. Workout quite fiddly.
Rebeccs 09.11.2009 ·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Wii Fit (Wii)
Advantages: great for weightloss, fun for all the family, improves posture, balance and health Disadvantages: expensive, can only register up to 8 family members
ilusvm 29.10.2008 (29.10.2008)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: exceptional
Review of Wii Fit (Wii)
Advantages: Get fit without going to the gym, use little or often. Disadvantages: Initial Start up Costs Expensive if you don't have a Console, Some Suppliers out of stock
innercircle 30.01.2009 (30.01.2009)
·
Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: exceptional
Review of Wii Fit (Wii)
Advantages: fun, easy to use, great for kids Disadvantages: it's not enough to cause a large weight loss so if thats what your hoping for try something else.
boro-babe_123 04.11.2009 ·
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of WiiFit Plus (Wii)
Jul 13th, 2008
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