Wii Fit (Wii, 2008)

Don't give up on getting fit. The Wii Fit really keeps you working towards your fitness/health goals in a fun and challenging way. It is an awesome motivational tool.

Watch your Mii change as your weight and height are turned in to BMI. You Mii remains the same for all other games and activities you have it on, but on the Wii Fit program it changes to match your height and weight. You get a line graph to watch your progress. You can see how much time you spend on the Wii, how much weight you lose or gain, your Wii Fit age (daily balance test to see how fit you are), and you can even add outside activities to your Wii Fit credits to show what you are doing outside of the Wii program. You want to come back each day just to see how you are progressing.

The Wii Fit board is wireless so you can place it pretty much anywhere in the area of your Wii. The only time you are limited to distance is when you have the rechargeable batteries on the cable for charging (you can charge while you play and workout).

You can perform Yoga, strength training exercises, Aerobics, or play balance games. Each activity is fun to do - no boring workout sessions, LOL.

There are 15 different Yoga moves, and several of them have advanced activities. There are 13 different strength training exercises with 3 additional challenge versions, plus they are also multi-level. The aerobics activities have multiple levels as well - there are nine different activities. There are 9 different games, each has different skill levels depending on what you unlock as you progress. Also, each of the different areas give you a scale of how well you are doing. It's great to challenge yourself to do better the next time and you can really see if you have met your own personal goal.

You could literally spend hours on the Wii-Fit and not realize how much time has passed.

It's easy to use, easy to hook up and easy to stay enthused about the program. Some of the aerobics activities feel more like a game than work and you want to keep going and going. :) Did you ever consider hula-hoops an aerobic activity? The Wii has found a way to take this childhood game and really give you a good workout and really get your cardiovascular system going. Awesome! I love to do the Yoga every day, it's a great way to develop balance and get you ready for the day or relax you after a busy one. The strength training exercise really work out spot areas - and the next day if you've really worked, you surely can feel it in your muscles. Then, on the days when I get an opportunity for a little extra play time, I go to the balance games. They really get you thinking and moving. If you think it will be easy to do a video version of snowboarding or ski jumping think again - you really have to maintain your balance.

The Wii seems to have take multiple surfaces into consideration with its leg extensions so that you can use it on carpet. However, that said, there are times when our very thick carpet does cause some slight differentiation. Since our goal was to eventually finish our basement as a family play/gym area, we are okay with the occasional glitches, but you may want to make sure the room you choose is one with low pile carpet or a flat hard surface. Other than that, the Wii has outperformed anything we expected. This one is a keeper. It even has the non-physical family members going in this house - now that's saying something!