Wii Fit The Experiment

Wii Fit Two Month Exercise Experiment

I'm sure you all know Wii Fit, the exercising game for the Nintendo Wii. In case you're unfamiliar with this exhaustingly entertaining game, the basic idea is that you exercise on a board - the so called balance board - in front of your TV. The board works by tracing how you shift your balance while standing on it. Arguably, this is not the best workout tool ever - after all it is just a game - but if you really take the exercises seriously, it sure beats playing traditional games from within the comfort of your chair. You can learn more about the game in the review earlier in this issue.

We here at GameOn wanted to test what Wii Fit can do for the average guy by applying a two-month workout schedule to a test subject - me - and compare the results from before and after the two months. The test began on the 20th of September and will end on the 20th of November. You will be kept up to speed in the GameOn Mag's November issue and the results are planned for the December issue.

The plan is that I'm to work out three times per week, about 45 minutes per session. Each session is designed to focus on a certain type of workout, but variation is also important. A session may thus contain a warm-up phase and room for other activities than just the main focus of the day. After each session compulsory stretching applies, and plenty of water is to be available at all times.

Prior to starting the experiment, I did a number of tests to see how fit I was. These tests, except for the balance test, were independent of Wii Fit and the balance board. Here are the results:

Push-ups: (number of)
Sit-ups: (number of)
Running, 10 minutes: (distance)
Balance: (with the help of the balance board)

The goal is to have improved on these points after the two months have passed. I'll also be looking in to how I feel overall, my fitness as a whole and whether or not the exercised have made me more flexible, relaxed, energetic or even made me lose weight.

And hey, even though I've already started by the time you read this, why don't you join me? You have a general plan outlined here on the page already. Race you to the TV!

SUBJECT

Name: Johan Dahlberg
Age: 19
Gender: Male
Height: ?
Weight: ?
BMI:
Previous level of exercising: Modest

THE SCHEDULE

Three sessions/week. Every other week, the sessions are repeated from session 1.

Session 1 - Fitness session: 15 minutes jogging, 15 minutes aerobics, 15 minutes yoga