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I know, who needs one when you can do all this without it - well, it gives you a benchmark and is a motivator to actually do the work. If you miss a day, it tells you ("too busy to work out yesterday, eh?")
What you won't get, even from a professional trainer, is the balance readings that come from the board. This is gold. You have to try it out to see what I mean . . .
The Wii Fit cannot distinguish between muscle mass and fat when testing your BMI. But for most of us, this isn't a problem (we know love handles when we see them!)
I've always been a "slouch" - slightly tipped forward hips in that "keep on truckin' " pose. It has caused me endless lower back aches and I've just dealt with it. In 4 weeks, It's becoming natural to walk with good posture, the back pain is gone . . . and I've lost 6.8 pounds!
Still got a way to go, but this thing is amazing. You get your own personal trainer, using it daily trains you to be aware of your posture and center of balance (Yoga,) and the strength exercises are tuned to building the core muscles to keep your posture correct. And oddly enough, it's fun! It keeps telling me my Wii Fit age is - well, 15 years or more less than my real age. :-)
Does anyone use one of these? As web-people, always sitting at a computer somewhere, it really helps a LOT!
Started: 187.6 lbs.
Today, 4 weeks +1 day: 180.8 lbs.
6.8 lbs in under a month!
Accounting for daily fluctuation of +- 2 lbs
or can you just buy the pad and still do the exercises?
My Wii fit skipped past "obese" and calls me "round boy"
LOL . . . this is what they call negative motivation! hahah . . ."Couch Potato" is another one. :-)
I've done the old fashioned way many times in my life.
Sure, I'd step on the scale, flex in the mirror (you SHOULD be laughing), I could see changes, but after a time, I'd do it every other day instead of every day . . . then every third . . . . eventually I allowed my interest to wane and stopped completely.
What keeps me going with the Wii Fit is the daily tracking, right there in front of me. It's all automatic, and records your accomplishments. I know this is all related to ego-polish, but it works.
Every now and then I scroll back in my graph, looking at the line from almost 4 months ago and look at it going down . . .. down . . .down . . . . from 189+ lbs to 158. Wow. Just . . . WOW.
The other thing is that each exercise is timed and regular. It tells you if you're putting too much weight on one leg, shows your balance points, and tells you if you're doing the exercise right or not. These are things you won't get in a gym or even with a "real" trainer. A real trainer can't assess your balance other than from external observation. One of the things everyone says is "it sure LOOKS like you're balanced" but that little red dot is waving all over the place like an etch-a-sketch. . . .
About two months after we started, the power supply went out on the Wii, it was down for a full 4 days. I tried keeping my routine without it. I don't know why, I felt stupid and out of place, and couldn't stay motivated. Odd huh?
Then there's the testosterone factor. There's this exercise called The Plank: lay face down, support yourself only by your toes and forearms, keep your body straight. Sounds easy, it's BRUTAL. The first time, 30 seconds breaks you out in a sweat. There's a "Plank challenge" where you challenge your "trainer" to see how long you can hold a plank.
If you fold before the end, your trainer says, in a condescending tone, "You look tired. We'd better give you a rest."
Makes you want to rip his circuitry out.
But when you beat him at three minutes, he says "Maybe YOU should be training ME." D**n straight you wuss, I RULE! :-)
I'm now doing a daily three minute plank, no problem. If anyone thinks that's easy, just TRY it!
I've always had back problems. This exercise alone has made that almost go away completely, straightening my spine. I walk and stand differently now . . . without thinking about it, it's becoming natural. I'll probably live a heck of a lot longer.
Update: I think I've arrived . . . I have a few small handfuls behind my back now, I'm UNDER 158 lbs, can run 2.5 miles with water in my mouth (nose breathing,) and am in better shape than I was when I was 25.
What I can't figure out is why every GUY I relate this to ALWAYS says "bet your wife is really loving it, huh? Heh heh heh . . . ." Dawgs.
There was the race to get the best ski score, won it, still holding it.
We fought over the perfect soccer score, I got there 1st, when she finally made it she just kept doing it until my score was gone, grrrr
Then there's the stepping thing, I'm 2 steps from a perfect score, she's not on the board.
However, she can be top score on hula hoop, I think I'll concede to that one.
perfect soccer score
Beginner or advanced? Beginner is all about rhythm, not that hard to crack . . . advanced changes rhythm randomly, pretty hard to beat!
Then there's the stepping thing
I can get a perfect step on the advanced one from time to time, but simply can't do it on the slower beginner one. I gave up and just do the run and cool down with the "Free Step" - 10 minutes. When it starts if you A-button through all the stupid alert screens and up the pace before it gets to 10 steps, the highest I've gotten is 998 steps in 10 minutes. I simply can't suck two more steps out of it . . . lol . . . .
Yeah the hula hoop really works you when you get into the Super Hula, 90 seconds per side doesn't seem like a lot of work . . . for a 12 YEAR OLD!
