Using the Nintendo Wii & Wii Fit for Exercise

An increase in convenience foods, motorised transport and a more sedentary lifestyle, generally, has meant that people across the world are putting on weight. Obesity is a modern problem, and not just for adults. Television and video games are often cited as reasons for the increase in children obesity, because, unlike previous generations, children today simply don’t get enough exercise. The Wii, introduced by Nintendo in 2006, was a breakthrough in video games console technology, insofar as players use a wireless remote control to mimic real-life sports action – swinging it like a tennis racket, golf club, etc. – and are therefore much more active, physically, than when playing traditional, sedentary games.

Wii Fit is a video game – or better, a collection of video games, because there are a total of 40 activities in which players can participate – designed to combine fitness with fun. Players of any age and fitness level can create their own avatar, or on screen character – known as a “Mii” – and follow the progress of that character towards, hopefully, better health and fitness.

Wii Fit includes balance games, yoga, strength training and aerobic exercise routines, all of which work with the innovative Wii Balance Board. The Wii Balance Board is roughly the size of a set of weighing scales, but includes gyroscopic technology, so that when a player moves his, or her, weight on the board, those movements are mimicked, exactly, be his, or her, Mii. Thus, real-life movements are translated into gameplay in exactly the same way as with the standard Wii remote control. A calculation of BMI (“Body Mass Index”), along with performance is some basic fitness and balance routines, is used to calculate a “Wii Fitness Age”, and statistics, personal targets, etc. provide an incentive to carry on exercising, even after the initial novelty has worn off.

The Wii Balance Board obviously lends itself well to cardiovascular and other fitness workout routines but many other games involving skateboarding, snowboarding, and other sports, such as boxing, which take advantage of the Wii Balance Board are either already in production or in the pipeline. You can, if you wish, purchase accessories for the Wii Balance Board, such as a textured workout mat, or a rechargeable battery pack and charging cable.

Wii Fit does not, of course, replace real sports, but encourages anyone with a sedentary lifestyle to be, at least, a little more active. A study published in the British Medical Journal suggested that Wii Fit could provide health benefits, and it may be worth remembering some famous quotes on the subject of fitness, not least that from A.A. Milne, “A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise.”