Wii Sports Weight Loss?
On the list of exercise ideas - I have listed "video games with movement". It may seem improbable to link video games with exercise and even weight loss, but a gaming blogger has done a comprehensive experiment using the new Nintendo Wii.
Over a period of 6 weeks the blogger (name unknown) lost 9 lbs and dropped body fat percentage from 19% to 17.2%. He claims that he didn't change his eating habits.
One thing to point out is that on each of the sports (Tennis, Boxing, Bowling, etc) - he played very aggressively.
Wii Sports - Tennis Doubles
The gamer makes these conclusions.
A.) You get back whatever you put into something.
b.) Video games can and are a great way to have exercise and not even know you are burning calories.
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I agree with this. I purchased a cheaper, lower quality version of the Wii, because I didn't have the $500 - the Xavix port and boxing/running games. I got a great workout from the boxing especially - I even had to heat my muscles after the 2nd day playing it. The problem was I kept going up levels and I've already beaten the top one. I wonder if the Wii would be better, because this game was not very challenging.
ReplyWii Sports is awesome in generating a sweat. The Boxing especially. 30 mins (for me) playing boxing is as tough as Tae-Bo. Cardio? Definately. I am already adding this gaming system to my exercise routine. Wii Sports also includes a Fitness Trainer. The system will randomly pick any 3 of the games (Boxing, Tennis, Golf, Baseball, and Bowling) and offer a great challenge.
A definate possibility for any video game lover!
ReplyMy brother in law (an avid gamer) told me that this system would bomb among gamers because it involves too much moving around. I think it's a great idea though. It's definitely a better way to play video games, rather than just sit there and stare at a screen.
ReplySpectra: Some said the same thing about Xbox, which I consider an insult to gaming but seems to have done well regardless. Only very slight movements of the controller are necessary. I think Twilight Princess is a very enticing title for a lot of gamers, and we appreciate innovation.
ReplyNot Nintendo Wii, but my brother lost a LOT of weight playing DDR (once he got past the beginner awkwardness) every day. Didn't change his diet either (lucky boys!)
ReplyThey look so cool I want one
ReplyI got the Wii and though i havent lost weight from it, it really does make me sweat! i know if i played it more i would so get an insane workout! i love it and it is the best system out there, except for the SNES which will always be the greatest!
ReplyOh my god, will you marry me? :-)
ReplyThe Wii was only $250
ReplySami -
ReplyIt sells on Amazon for around $500. I didn't wait outside the store to get it first thing.
Hey Ryan!
ReplyI know a little boxing but have never liked getting hit!! Do you recommend any of the action games as a boxing workout for fun without the damage? :-) Is there one that does Karate as that's where my main training has been? Thanks!
Dr. J: The best approximation I've seen is Wii Boxing, and I'll be the first to tell you it's not perfect. The system does pretty well at recognizing jabs and straights, but it gets really finicky about hooks and uppercuts. I know of none for karate.
My grand hope is that the Punch-Out series comes back for the Wii and that they perfect what Wii Boxing set out to do.
ReplyThanks Ryan!! I will try it out before I buy it!
ReplyWe were playing this at a friend’s house last week and I thought we were going to die from exhaustion. We played boxing, baseball and tennis. It was a lot of fun and a great workout to boot.
ReplyExercise with video games is an awesome idea as a friend of mine has a game where you dance on a mat and it kicks our butt. I spent an hour on that game and while having a blast it was an incredible cardio session.
ReplyI got a new PS2 (mine broke) a few months before the new systems came out cause I wasn't sure which would be worth the money yet, and I didn't want to wait to play something. I just got the DDR and was unsure as many said u hate it or u love it. I thought I'd hate it cause I kinda don't like most simulation games as they are kinda kiddy, BUT this DDR thing is awesome. I really really like it. I even got two other vids that seem to be going off the market for it. I really get a good workout from it, and can play for over an hour mostly cause the thing is very fun. If u ain't gonna get the Wii get the DDR.
ReplyI've had my Wii for three weeks, and I've lost 2 1/2" off my hips already. It's a great and fun workout.
ReplyI have a PS2 and use the Kinetic game (with eyetoy) to do my exercise. It actually tells you how much calories you have burnt during the games! It's pretty cool, especially when it comes to the combat section as I don't realise when I have playing for more 30 minutes straight! It's only when the game ends that I realise I am covered in sweat. So, at the moment that would be a cheaper alternative to the Wii, as the PS2s are going cheap at the moment (wonder why?)
ReplyActually, I'm blogging about my weight loss with the Nintendo Wii as well. Unlike Mickey I'm actually fairly overweight and I've decided to increase the workout by using wrist weights. I'm 22 days into a 30 day regimen so far. You can read the beginning post at: http://www.spillingcoffee.com/2007/01/01/wii-exercise-experiment-day-1-the-beginning/
-Tom
ReplyI just recently got my Wii. I have a blast playing boxing and tennis. I'm a bit peeved at the controller recognizing an uppercut or a good roundhouse. But I'm sure there's gonna be some boxing game out there before the end of the year that will take advantage of this great setup. I did it for 2 hours yesterday and my upper biceps are still tight.
Replyreally!?
Holy crap what will the japanese market do next?
ReplyWII is great. I try to play some everyday, its not only a great form of exercise but it gets the kids of the sofa(save those cushions)
ReplyI'm another DDR fanatic. I'm not very GOOD at it, but I can still work up a really good sweat on the easy workout mode and my kids and even my husband love to play it as well (actually, I have to give props to my 6 year old son for unlocking a bunch of songs for me!! He's the dance MASTER! LOL)
ReplySo how awesome is it that the Japanese are concerned with Americas obesity problem. They invented a game that gets lazy and fat Americans off their asses to shake some of their fat and make them think its exercise.
9lbs in 6 weeks is nothing special and its actually pretty poor, but I guess its better then sitting on your ass all day playing video games. You can do twice that in a month if you do it the old fashioned way. 19% to 17.2% is also nothing to write home about, id also like to know how he measured that. I hope not a bathroom scale.
Enjoy your video games kids, if it helps you sleep better at night knowing that playing the Wii is beneficial then knock yourselves out.
Replydid this guy not know how to do PUSH UPS until he got this kid's gaming console? does he not know he's been able to do it for free his whole life? bet you any money the next ninnovation is an electronic potty which teaches you how to take a poo then rates you on stool content.
ReplyIm sorry if I hurt some fat persons feelings because I know he/she really had his/her heart set on losing weight the fun way. But I find it a little bit ridiculous and sickening that the average person has time for video games but doesn't have an hour a day, three to four days a week to dedicate to proper exercise in a fitness center.
Then to top it all off, parents are getting this thing for their kids thinking its beneficial. You know whats beneficial? Tell your kids to go outside and run till they fall over from exhaustion. Playing video games does nothing for them, definitely not physically and sure as hell not mentally. Just look, every couple of years when a new console(drug) comes out the collective IQ of the nations children plummets.
Hell kids these days have NO social skills at all, they spend more time interacting with the game console then other human beings.
ReplyLosing 9 pounds is a damn sight better than gaining it wouldn't you say?
No of course not. You're perfect, after all.
And let me tell you, I am SO green with envy of your social skills.
Remember kids, if you're having fun, you're doing it wrong, go pass out.
ReplyThere are better ways of doing it, and substituting a video game console for exercise and then saying "wow I lost weight doing this" is pretty stupid. If you need to lose weight go outside and run.
Also its not 9lbs of flab. Its like 5 pounds of water weight. Hell I can weigh myself in the morning and in the evening and my weight fluctuates close to 5 pounds. So 9lbs in 6 weeks is nothing.
And yes, staying indoors all day long is so good for children. Constant access to food and all that is great after all. Right?
Bottom line is and my point, get off your asses and go do real exercise if your goal is to lose weight, the Wii is not the way to do it.
Im not perfect, but im damn better then the people who play Wii all day long instead of pursuing real physical activity.
ReplyNo one is recommending the Wii be subsituted for a regular exercise routine. It is a fun way to spend the afternoon with your friends on a rainy day, improve hand/eye coordination, and be a little more active than you might have usually been doing it.
Nine pounds in six weeks is a healthy rate of weight loss, and in that period of time doctors don't recommend losing more that 12 pounds.
Furthermore, not everyone has the option or the ability to go outside and run. For obese people or folks who may not be physically capable for whatever reason, the Wii can be a decent alternative.
I live in downtown Vegas. If I go outside and run, regardless of the time of day, I'm putting myself in a dangerous situation.
Read the studies and get off your pedestal.
ReplyI guess Sam's children will end up in counseling for exercise bulimia due to all the times he'll lock them outdoors and force them to "run until they fall over from exhaustion."
My optometrist recommended video games to improve my eyesight and my sister's lazy eye.
And you sure as hell aren't outside running while you're posting your self-righteous crap. You interact via the web, that's what our children are doing, that's what our grandchildren are doing. It's how things are done now.
ReplyI disagree with our learned friend above - I think exercise is difficult to keep up if you bore easily of things and the best antidote to this is to do something that you find interesting - if thumping a virtual boxing opponent is your thing and this keeps you going back to the workout then I say great. So whats wrong with that?
ReplyI tried to Wii out for the first time the other night there and I am still feeling the pain, hah. It's unreal the kind of energy it takes to play some of the games. My fav was Boxing forsure. The thing I found sweet was that it didn't seem like a workout at all.
ReplyI think Sam's comments are a little ignorant. I can't just go outside and run- I live in Canada and our winter is just ending. Last week it was about -30 degrees outside. I can't just go and run outside in that kind of weather, studies show it's horrible for the heart.
ReplySo what do I do? Play Wii and my cheap version of DDR (called Pump it Up.) I was actually my skinniest when I played PiU every day.