Wii Warm Up: Let's get physical

by Candace Savino { Nov 10th 2007 at 10:30AM }

We know that the Wii has the potential to help people shed pounds, but we wonder how often it actually has. We suppose it's a question of dedication, but still, we're curious -- how many of you have benefited physically from the Wii? We're pretty much as lazy as we ever were, but we want to know about you. Do you use Wii Sports regularly as a means of exercise? Or are you perhaps waiting for Wii Fit to get your glutes into shape? Let us know whether or not the Wii has inspired you to get physical.

Tags: Exercise, Lazy, Physical, Wii-Fit, Wii-Sports

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Hame @ Nov 10th 2007 11:04AM

Not really. In fact I always cringe whenever I hear people say "the Wii is great exercise" as I imagine all the hardcore gamers spitting blood.

I play games to relax, not exercise. When I come home from a long, tiring days' work I just want to sit down, chill-out and play, not jump around or flail my arms about. A lot of the Wii controls are great, but a lot of them are just tiresome and annoying as well.

For me, swinging the controller as if it were a tennis racket seems kinda pointless as I feel I might as well just go and play real tennis.

I'm not saying stuff like Wii Sports and Wii Fit don't have their appeal or their place. But I hope they don't become the norm. Where gaming = exercise rather than escape and relaxation and immersion = gimmicky physical exursion rather than deep involving gameplay.

hellvector @ Nov 10th 2007 11:09AM

My cousin and I have concluded that Boxing, if used properly, could potentially be good exercise, but most of the other games not so much. I'm not so interested in this sort of thing, I just like boxing because it's entertaining and I play tennis with my wife. Now if the Wii remote can start simulating weight, so I can lift weights with my Wii, that'll be cool.

hellvector @ Nov 10th 2007 11:14AM

I've also always had a problem with games, as I am an avid Zelda fan, and I can rarely find a game that envelopes me in a way that I desire. I agree that I'm afraid the gimmicky controls and game play style sometimes lead developers to what they assume is expected, instead of what I want.

I haven't played my 360 in weeks as I've been busy with Prince of Persia and Zelda, but I must say, the lack of similar titles and the fact that Assassin's Creed will be arriving in a matter of days will likely leave my wife with much more time to play GH3 on our Wii.

racecar @ Nov 10th 2007 11:18AM

My Wii is not and will not be a means of exercise. That's why I go running. Still, the RRR1 "Workout" games will kill your nunchuck arm if you let them. Bunnies love carrot juice and if you can make it past 2 minutes you'll definitely be feeling it.

-racecar
http://everybodyvotes.blogspot.com

racecar @ Nov 10th 2007 11:24AM

@2

Two words: Wrist Weights
http://www.joystiq.com/2007/02/09/wii-wrist-weights-why/

:D

-racecar
http://everybodyvotes.blogspot.com

raindog @ Nov 10th 2007 11:45AM

The reason Wii Sports is more compelling than actual tennis, baseball, bowling, boxing or golf is that to do any of those activities in real life takes far more time than just starting the Wii up, if you can do them alone at all. The least amount of time I could spend at one of them is bowling (since my current complex has no tennis courts, but there's a bowling alley a mile away.) I would have to get dressed, possibly shower, get my ball out of the closet, drive to the bowling alley, rent shoes and a lane, and by then if I only want to bowl one or two strings it's taken me longer to prepare for it than to actually do it. When it's all done I have to drive home, and if I've played more than a string, probably shower again.

In the case of tennis or boxing, you have to find an opponent in real life. Unless you're already friends with other tennis players or boxers who are ready to play at the drop of a hat, that means you have to pretty much join a club or boxing gym.

You can use a pitching machine to replace Wii Sports Baseball, but you won't have an easy means of measuring your performance and it requires a similar time investment to bowling. And as for golf, you have to not only have a pretty big equipment investment, but you also need to set up a tee time and it sucks for you if you want to play at night.

Not that Wii Sports golf is very good, but this applies as well to Tiger Woods or Madden or, for that matter, Guitar Hero, THPS, DDR or any of the other games that cause people to come out of the woodwork and go, "Why don't you just do that in real life?!" I bet we can expect another round of this stuff when Wii Fit comes out and people are ski-jumping and doing yoga in front of their TVs.

Videogames are like the sport equivalent to Internet pr0n.... you can do it whenever you like in the privacy of your own home with little effort and no commitment. Now that the Wii's around, they get the job done, even if it's not as satisfying or beneficial as "the real thing".

vidGuy @ Nov 10th 2007 11:46AM

The Wii will never affect me physically because I already run about 10 miles, bike 20 miles, and lift for about 5 hours every week. It's good to be a college student and have all of this extra time! I'm a senior now and I have almost nothing left in my major, so I've been catching up on gaming and working out.

MisterInvisible @ Nov 10th 2007 12:12PM

DS did, not Wii. I went on WeightWatchers hoping to lose weight. My reward for reaching my goal was a DS. 53 weeks later and 95 pounds lighter, I bought my shiny DS this past summer!

Jimiisama @ Nov 10th 2007 1:20PM

I play Wii by sitting down and flicking my wrist, so, no, it has not benefited me physically.

jp @ Nov 10th 2007 6:34PM

i love the idea of Wii as a fitness tool. of course videogames aren't supposed to be strenuous but here's a hint: don't play Wii Sports after a tiresome day at work. part of Wii's 'party console' appeal lies in the fact that some of the games that require a little physical effort to play. i personally cannot wait for Wii Fit as i will be purchasing it the day it comes out. Wii is a system that is very versatile, you can sit down and play Super Paper Mario or you can get up and swing your arms about. no one's forcing you to do either. i can't imagine playing Wii Tennis and just pressing a few buttons. boring! the Wii has been long overdue as an alternative to just sitting on your ass and shooting people. there has never before been quite a system that can actually encourage a healthy lifestyle while having fun at the same time. Wii is it. if you don't like it, go have fun hunting down more enemies on your 360. i'll stick with something a little more stimulating.

BigAmos17 @ Nov 10th 2007 7:48PM

Actually Wii Sports did not work and i'm still as fat as Rosie O Donnell in a fat suit but now it just stop working so I can't play it anymore. But I am waiting on wii fit though. I hope it works because I can't watch fittv no more because they keep showing cooking shows and yoga. I can't even let my leg up for 10 seconds so wii fit yoga, I will not be playing.

davedrastic @ Nov 10th 2007 8:58PM

I play wii tennis whilst riding my exercise bike, need more games to do this with

SoshiKitai @ Nov 10th 2007 9:20PM

Simply put, it's as good as you make it to be...

... Let's say you've got a jittery leg and playing Resident Evil 4 for the Wii... you suddenly realize that you've lost some pounds! ... must be the Wii! - no wait, that was just your jittery leg getting jittier through the zombie battles.

How about Wii Sports? In all honesty, don't listen to physical experts or scientists, in the long run they'll just speak in what they believe in, or what they support, or what they get money out of. Most of them don't see it in all manners.
What does that mean? -
In the end, any physical activity can build your muscles and burn your fat, some more than others... and some just have no effect depending on your metabolism.

So does the Wii give me an excercise and lose weight? You can't ask me, though my shoulders and wrists get tired from hard-swinging action and competetive rushes from Wii games, my muscles and fat constantly reduce and grow too much for me to pinpoint where it came from.
... I would have no idea if my muscles got bigger from Wii, or if it was because I decided to walk around boredly... no idea at all. O_o

But do I believe it can? As I've said before: Definitely possible. (Afterall, it is a physical activity)

Dark Lord @ Nov 11th 2007 12:55AM

i'd have to say that soshikitai is probably the most right on this topic. anything can make you burn fat. lifting your fork to eat a steak can do that. but as it was mentioned before, everything does something, just in smaller doses. soshikitai, you are totally right about this one. :D

gui @ Nov 11th 2007 1:10PM

i have been doing 1/2 hour of wii boxing every day for the past few weeks, punching and dodging as intensely as i can for the whole time.

im happy to say that my arms and core have gotten noticeably stronger and more toned as a result. it's the only exercise i do!