Wii Fit

After the huge hit of Wii Sports coupled with the Wii Remote make full golf swings, tennis serves, baseball, bowling and boxing safely (for the most part) into the living room Nintendo has now turned the living room into a Wii Fitness centre. Using Wii Fit all members of a family can get a "core" work out whilst having fun, allowing comparisons of results and progress through a new channel on the Wii menu.

So, Why Wii Fit? Liverpool John Moores University found that Wii users could lose up to 12kg a year from daily Wii Sports sessions. Imagine the potential weight loss for Wii Fit!

Wii Fit is Nintendo's first game specially designed to help players get into shape. With over 40 different activities spread over 4 different training categories (Aerobic Exercise, Muscle Workouts, Yoga and Balance) each designed to test you in different ways. Wii Fit will help you burn excess fat, increase your muscle tone and condition as well as increasing aerobic stamina and improve your balance. All this from your own living room. With the ability to store data for up to 8 people, Wii Fit will allow the whole family to develop their own personal fitness regime and monitor it from a specially created Wii Fit channel on the Wii Home menu. From the Wii Fit channel you can quickly check your Body Mass Index (BMI), an evaluation of body fat based on weight to height ratio, and see your calculated Wii Fit age.

In order for Wii Fit to sense your motions and balance you have to stand on the Wii Balance Board (bundled in with the game), a clever pressure sensitive device that detects a shift in your balance in any direction. Just place this wireless (nothing to trip over) board in front of your TV and use it to interact with the Wii Fit activities.

As yet there are no other games that use the Wii balance board, however there are claims made by Nintendo that there are at least 10 games in development that use the unique balance board, and not just fitness games!! Sports and fighting games can also take advantage of the balance based interface.

As you step on to the Balance Board (included with Wii Fit) your body's overall balance is linked to the game in a way you will have not experienced before. Some Wii Fit features include:
Games such as leaning to block a ball, swivelling hips to keep a hula hoop going, or balancing to hold the perfect yoga pose.
Have a daily Wii Fit test which will be used to calculate your BMI and Wii Fit age, measured using your BMI and your centre of gravity using quick balance tests.

The 40 types of training activities are split into 4 sections:

• Aerobic Exercise (Wii Fits 10 minute exercises designed to get the heart pumping)
• Muscle Conditioning (Wii Fit motions controlled using arms, legs and other body parts)
• Yoga Poses (The Wii Fit feature focusing on balance and stretching)
• Balancing games (Such as ski jumping and heading balls helping with the Wii Fit users over all balance)

Please note: The Wii balance board has a weight limit of 150kg / 23.8 stone / 330.69 pounds (not of 136kg as previously stated by Nintendo)