Replace large, home gym equipment with a Wii Fit

I dislike exercising in a gym full of workout equipment. I prefer to play competitive sports in the Big Blue Room instead of puffing away on a treadmill to nowhere. Unfortunately, this means that most winters I’ll add five to 10 pounds to my weight because the weather doesn’t always want to cooperate with my outdoor sports preferences.

I’m also obsessed with video games.

So, you can imagine my delight when I started reading rumor sites about a year ago that were discussing Nintendo’s Wii Fit. I could play video games! I could get a workout indoors! Win! Win!

Now that I’ve had one in my home for a while, I think it’s safe to say that I’m smitten with it. The balance and aerobic games are immensely more entertaining than the strength and yoga activities, but my opinion of this is again tied to my disdain for gym-style workouts. The virtual “trainers” in the game also creep me out a little. Their mouths don’t move and the male and female have the same pony tail hairstyle (envision Tim Robbins’ character in High Fidelity).

Overall, though, the game is a huge hit in our home. We’ve tossed our old bathroom scales because the sensor board has one built-in. I’ve Craigslisted my six-piece-set hand weights and our other home workout equipment that wasn’t being used. I also want to add that my husband and I have lost some excess weight–another form of unnecessary clutter. Plus, the sensor board works with We Ski and hopefully more upcoming games.

If you have a competitive spirit and aren’t using your gym membership or any of your exercise equipment, consider getting yourself a Wii and a Wii Fit. The money you get from selling off your workout equipment or stop paying to your gym in membership fees will more than make up for the price of the sensor board. Additionally, we store our sensor board on the floor underneath the media center where it takes up considerably less space than all of the workout equipment we had. The Wii Fit is my uncluttered workout solution.

Images courtesy of Amazon because I couldn’t get up the nerve to post pictures of myself in workout clothing.

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Posted by Erin on Jul 18, 2008 | Comments | Tweet This

35 comments posted

  1. Posted by elsie - 07/18/2008

    This is interesting. My favorite piece of exercise equipment is my DVD player. I do Nia, Intu-Flow, and FlowFit (all 3 are on DVD), and my only other piece of equipment is a flat-topped bar stool for the beginner level of FlowFit.

    That’s not quite true, because I do have a mat and props for my yoga practice, but most of that fits into a decorative wicker basket.

    I’ll be interested to see how other people declutter their exercise.

  2. Posted by Nathania Johnson - 07/18/2008

    I love the Wii Fit! And you really can do some toning. The yoga really helps my body feel balanced out.

    But there are also fun exercises (like Hoola Hoop) if you’re not concerned about your weight (i.e. for kids).

    I also could not work up the nerve to post pictures of me working out when I recently blogged about it! :)

  3. Posted by Katie - 07/18/2008

    Our infatuation with Wii Fit faded after a couple of weeks, I’m sorry to say. Once I unlocked everything, I lost interest. Plus, the lag between activities can stretch 30 minutes of exercise time to 50 minutes of Wii time (time clutter!).

    I love the board and I’m looking forward to more games that use it, but we’ve gone elsewhere for our fitness needs. I’m a big fan of DVD workouts.

  4. Posted by Bill - 07/18/2008

    My wife and I used Wii from launch to about two weeks… when our Wii died. I still need to send it back. :( Thanks for reminding me Erin.

  5. Posted by Doug - 07/18/2008

    Seen the game and was unimpressed. If you’re not that active to begin with, well, anything is better than nothing. Really though, the yoga is beginner level and the games seem to provide all the workout of a wobble board (which is typically used in rehab for your ankles or core, before you can return to real workouts). Like a number of the simpler Wii games, it strikes me as one that once (easily) mastered, will get boring quick and the level of “toning” you’re likely to see… well, again, if you’re not active, you’ll see some, but it won’t take you that far.

    My advice, keep trying different real activities until you find something you enjoy. For me, I hate cardio and every couple of months I’d partake in a different type of activity… finally fell in love with boxing (which I’d never have guessed I’d enjoy) and cardio is quickly becoming a non-issue!

  6. Posted by Stephanie - 07/18/2008

    My husband and I have been looking forward to getting some excercise with the Wii Fit, but unfortunately we can’t get our hands on one. Of course we could pay double the cost to get it at amazon or ebay, but on our budget it’s not really viable.

  7. Posted by Gayle - 07/18/2008

    Just got one last week! Couldn’t believe it when I saw it in the store.

    I get into a real sweat with the “kid’s” hula hoop, and I’m enjoying the focus the game gives me. I really don’t move much and this is going to give me the impetus necessary to get active.

    No, it’s not the same as going to the gym, but it’s a fun way to learn balance, posture and even get the heart rate going (running in place, anybody?), as well as keep track of what you’ve been doing. The daily “stamps” for the body check work like Seinfeld’s calendar chain – I’m focusing on getting a stamp every day.

  8. Posted by Divine Bird Jenny - 07/18/2008

    I adore our Wii Fit. Both my husband and I are pretty sedentary people–we both work in offices; he plays computer games at home, and my biggest hobbies are knitting & spinning (yarn, not the bike thing). For us, it’s a fun way to get our butts off the chair. One of our friends, who got her Wii Fit before we did, has already lost weight AND there’s a visible change in her appearance.

    Would I recommend it to someone who already has an active lifestyle, or someone who has been doing yoga for years? Probably not. But for the internet-obsessed and the couch potatoes out there, this is better than DDR. :)

  9. Posted by Celeste - 07/18/2008

    My fiancé and I just got one on Sunday and love it. We have been major, major slackers, getting basically no exercise, so it’s much-needed in our house. I love it because, as a game, it has goals and meters and cute things to focus on so I don’t really think about the fact that I’m working out. Also, the scoreboard makes us competitive against ourselves and each other, which makes us work harder! =) We’re trying to do it for 20 minutes a day (exercise time) which isn’t bad at all.

    Hula Hoop isn’t just for kids..? You can definitely burn some calories that way. It’s up to you how fast you go.

  10. Posted by Nicole - 07/18/2008

    I love our wii fit but hadn’t thought of posting our exercise equipment on Craigslist until you mentioned. Great idea, thanks.

    The strength and yoga exercises are our favorite. My boys 12,11 and 10 can’t get enough of the lunges and squats. I love how it wears them out.

    I added wii fit to my diet and think it has been instrumental in my losing 23 pounds in the past 58 days. While hard-core exercisers probably won’t get much out of it, I sure have.

  11. Posted by Dale Cruse - 07/18/2008

    Stephanie, I bought one for regular price off Amazon.com.

  12. Posted by Jenn - 07/18/2008

    I really want to try one of these, but I haven’t:

    a) bought one

    OR

    b)found a friend who owns one for me to mooch off of.

    I need to get on that though. I’ve heard Jillian Michael’s (Biggest Loser trainer) is coming out with a game on it soon…

  13. Posted by JenK - 07/18/2008

    Um, what about strength training? Granted my strength routine is an extension of the physical therapy I did after a knee / quad injury, but I haven’t read that Wii does much for targeting specific muscles.

    (Fwiw, I’m using an ankle weight for leg muscles + some bodyweight exercises. I also use dumbbells for arms / shoulders, but that’s secondary….)

  14. Posted by Celeste - 07/18/2008

    Wii Fit has strength training. You can choose from different exercises which tell you which muscles they’re targeting.

  15. Posted by Chica & Jo - 07/18/2008

    I love our Wii Fit! It’s done wonders for my core muscle group and I am more likely to wander into my living room to do it than drive to the gym (wasting time and gas)! One tip we blogged about was using the foam squares underneath the board. It helps absorb the shock from doing the running and pads your floor for doing the exercises where you aren’t standing up.

  16. Posted by Jasi - 07/18/2008

    A hit at our house. My husband and I are competitive and have some new baby weight to lose. About 20 lbs each remain after baby arrived and we’re motivated to lose. We plan to use this more for organizing and tracking our health, not so much the end-all for exercise. We’re practically paperless so this is good stuff.

  17. Posted by Megan - 07/18/2008

    I love the Wii Fit as well, but I do find that in order to actually loose weight and tone my muscles, I still need to go to the gym. I got the Wii Fit to use as a daily maintenance kind of thing. I don’t get to the gym as often as I would like due to my one year old (it is expense to use the child care facility there very often) so when I can’t go to the gym, it is nice to have the Wii Fit to at least keep up some level of activity. I’ve never been a fan of exercise videos, but I do love to play games, so this is perfect for me.

    I will admit though, I don’t use it everyday like I should. I’m trying to get better about that, but the last few weeks have been so hot! (I know, excuses, excuses :) )

  18. Posted by MzDeeCee - 07/18/2008

    We are not gamers, so I had no idea how great the WiiFit was until my son demo’ed his. I was impressed by how it adjusted to the individual, and its excellent feedback on your balance. My husband and I work with a trainer at the gym on core strengthening, and I can see the WiiFit works many of the same muscles. Plus it is so darned cute. He created a custom avatar that looks like him, and says he can get avatars from friends to exercise with him. If you don’t want to share your workout photos, show us your avatar!

  19. Posted by Rebee - 07/18/2008

    “Their mouths don’t move and the male and female have the same pony tail hairstyle (envision Tim Robbins’ character in High Fidelity).”

    Actually, we’ve had it for a month or so and we noticed that the trainers’ hair changes styles. So far the female’s hair has changed twice and the male’s hair has changed three times (I think …)

    Regardless, I love this game! My fifty-year-old mum plays it to keep in shape and build good posture and balance and she adores it. I like that it tracks your weight, so that you get a constant reminder.

  20. Posted by JenK - 07/18/2008

    Wii Fit has strength training. You can choose from different exercises which tell you which muscles they’re targeting.

    Like, what sort of strength training? Example: Right now I’m doing modified squats, balance-on-one-foot, and step exercises without weights. The ankle weight is used with leg extensions, hamstring curls, and front, side, & back leg lifts.

    Of course it’s all academic since we don’t have a console gaming system. I really can’t see myself paying money for another “TV accessory” – and husband specifically doesn’t want one, because his job is testing console & handheld games. Any console means “work” not “fun” for him…

  21. Posted by wiifittestdotcom - 07/18/2008

    I specifically bought the Wii Fit to help me unclutter my room. I have been using it since it came out, and it really motivates me to get up and exercise, even if I don’t specifically do the Wii Fit. I keep the balance board out in plain view and it reminds me that I need to get up off my butt and do “something” so I either go for a run, or jump on the Wii Fit.

    You can follow along with my progress at my website, http://wiifittest.com :)

  22. Posted by wiifittestdotcom - 07/18/2008

    Erin, I have been trying to track all the latest games that will be coming out that support the Wii Fit balance board on my site (I also bought We Ski, which is quite fun).

    Some of them look like a lot of fun too: snowboarding, skateboarding, more workout-themed games, and even a cheerleading game! Don’t know if I’ll try that last one out, but maybe for my sister. haha.

  23. Posted by sylrayj - 07/18/2008

    Our family of mouse potatoes enjoys the Wii Fit. One thing I’ve noticed, though, is that you can do the exercises mindfully, or haphazardly. Concentrate on the muscles you’re using, we’re regularly reminded, and when I do, there’s a bigger difference in how I feel after. If I don’t pay it much mind, I get less results. I also strive to spend at least five minutes on balance – the stuff I find most difficult. I’m improving, and I feel my posture improving. Weight loss isn’t necessarily happening, since we’re shifting from fat to muscle, but in time we’ll get better.

  24. Posted by infmom - 07/18/2008

    Hmm. I’m one of those people who always means to go to the gym but doesn’t get there. I got a decent discount on the gym membership, though, so if I were to cancel it, it’d take, oh, about ten months of saving the payments before I would have enough for a Wii and the Wii Fit.

  25. Posted by Tvini - 07/18/2008

    My husband and I have been using the wii fit for about two weeks. I’ve dropped a couple of pounds, and my husband, who is far more hardcore than I, has found that his “thin” shorts are feeling loose on him. I still am doing the Couch to 5K program for my aerobic workout, but the wii fit is great for off days or for days when I can’t get out because I’m home with our child.

    And yes, after a week we realized we could lose our clothes rack. I mean, treadmill. Just gotta take pictures and that behemoth will be outta here!

  26. Posted by becoming minimalist - 07/18/2008

    now, if it could only balance my checkbook too.

  27. Posted by Someone - 07/18/2008

    But I’d have to buy a TV to make that work, wouldn’t I?

    I looked into getting a Dance Dance Revolution for exersize purposes several years ago– but there was no way to hook it up to a computer monitor– it had to be a TV. I didn’t get it, because I don’t want to buy a TV. Looks like this has the same problem. :(

    Since a video-game system of any kind is essentially a computer, why can’t they be hooked up to computer monitors? I don’t get it.

  28. Posted by JenK - 07/19/2008

    Someone –

    Many console games also come out on PC, and vice versa. So far DDR, Rock Band, Guitar Hero, and Wii – things with specialized controllers – haven’t been on PC. I guess they just don’t want me to clutter up my house with those peripherals? :)

  29. Posted by Pete - 07/19/2008

    I’m not sure how fit you can get with the Wii (i am a Jiu Jitsu purple belt), but a local Martial Arts school near me has actually incorporated the Wii into a fun filled event for the school. They loaded a room on a Saturday night with kids who compete for big prizes (including their very own system) on the Wii. In this day and age, that is a great way to lure kids into an active environment.

    Whatever it takes, I guess.

    http://yinvsyang.com/

  30. Posted by jes - 07/19/2008

    Another vote for Wii fit here. It works for me because I don’t find the gym convenient anymore. With the fit I can mix exercises to fit energy, desire, time, etc. It keeps track better than I would in my head or trying to keep a log. It doesn’t take much space and was a one time cost vs reoccurring gym costs. The balance board will probably have continued life via other games (besides just We Ski, see http://www.balanceboardblog.com).

    I agree it has drawbacks (lag, trainers, etc). It would be nice if the combos they suggested where actually linked, or I could create my own. But the con list is alot smaller than the pro list.

    JenK: Everything except the hamstring curls is in the Wii Fit in one form or another. I plan on adding weights if necessary to keep it interesting & challenging.

    Someone: http://www.stepmania.com/ is a site dedicated to dance mat games for the PC. And I do believe there is a PC version of DDR.

  31. Posted by Mary - 07/19/2008

    I bought the Wii fit as a means of decluttering too. And to exercise, of course. The truly fantastic thing about the game is that my little boy can play along while I do my jogging or stepping. And the jog-or-step-while-watching-something-else function works out really well for my husband and me since we usually watch an hour of tv a night and get some exercise while we do it. And for fun, I really love the balance games, especially the skiing game.

    And I just pretend the Wii workout coaches are drunk. It makes them a lot less creepy.

  32. Posted by Karen the Californian - 07/20/2008

    jes: there IS a PC version of DDR. I can’t remember the name of it, but I did own it about nine-some-odd years ago. I’m sure the pad is somewhere in the garage… with all my other clutter. *sigh*

  33. Posted by Battra92 - 07/21/2008

    I actually just got mine yesterday. I wasn’t going to but it was covered under my company reimbursement for exercise equipment. It’s really quite fun.

    Now I just need to figure out how to store the balance board.

  34. Posted by disconnect - 07/22/2008

    Re: lag, I got frustrated after a few days and started repeating the exercise while waiting for the screens to clear. So I do a yoga pose or strength exercise once with the Fit, once by myself, then take a few seconds break before moving on to the next pose.

    I would like to see additional strength training options. One particular exercise is single leg band pulls; attach a band to a wall or post, stand on one leg facing away from the wall, and press your hands out (like a pushup, only standing on one leg). This would be a great use of the Fit, as the objective is to develop single leg strength.

  35. Posted by supersocco - 07/22/2008

    Wii Fit Parody
    http://youtube.com/watch?v=_iYBmAVuBns

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