Fun and Fitness for the 40-Something

Can video games replace your trips to the gym? Nintendo’s release of Wii just before the holidays in 2006 set off a frenzy among even those who weren’t traditional gamers and prompted some to wonder whether the interactive sports games could improve fitness. According to research sponsored by the American Council on Exercise (ACE), the results are mixed.

The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Exercise and Health Program investigated the potential fitness benefits of Wii Sports, including baseball, bowling, boxing, golf and tennis games. It found that playing Wii Sports increases heart rate, maximum oxygen intake and perceived exertion, which ultimately does lead to calories burned.

But the beneficial effects of the games should not be overstated. “While [the games] have managed to get traditional gamers off the couch, and our results show that Wii Sports offer more of a cardio benefit than sedentary games,” ACE’s chief science officer says, “we believe there is no substitute for the real sport.”

The games logged the following calorie burns per 30 minutes:

Boxing: 216 calories

Tennis: 159

Baseball: 135

Bowling: 117

Golf: 93

ACE reports that actual bowling burns twice as many calories as the video version, and tennis and baseball also showed significant differences. Boxing was the only Wii game tested that would be considered intense enough to maintain or improve cardiorespiratory endurance as defined by accepted industry standards.

While playing the Wii does not produce as much of a fitness benefit as playing the real sport, the video games burned more calories and used more energy than playing a sedentary video game. The study’s lead researcher concluded that the key comes down to simulating the movements in the actual sports—i.e., performing a full tennis swing rather than just flicking your wrist.

Wii Fit

ACE has also announced that a study of Wii Fit, a game designed to promote health and fitness, is underway.

Wii Fit launched this past spring. It works with the original Wii game console and comes with a CD with exercises, information and a wired balance board. Most of the exercises are done on or next to the board, a 12-inch by 20-inch plastic slab similar to the steps used in aerobic classes.

The board senses whether you’re correctly positioned and also works as a scale that announces your weight, BMI and “Wii fit age.” WebMD warns that users should expect to be labeled “overweight” if you have large muscles because Wii doesn’t account for muscle mass and body fat.

Wii Fit offers four games: Yoga, Balance Games, Aerobics and Strength Training. Starting off, each game gives four or five choices; the longer you exercise, the more games you “unlock.” With some of the games, the activities become more challenging as you progress. The games also provide some biofeedback and encouragement from an onscreen trainer. You receive a “stamp” for every day you use a game, and a “fit bank” tracks how many minutes you participate, your ongoing weight and your weight goals (it does not log calorie burn).

The November issue of Runner’s World includes a report by a reviewer who tried the Wii Fit games for a week. Using a five-star rating system, she gave her top score of four stars to the Balance Games. Balance features four initial exercises—a ski slalom run, a ski jump, a table tilt and soccer heading—and five advanced. The reviewer found it provided “fun ways to hone motor skills,” as well as specific feedback (the reviewer, for example, favors her right side and leans forward slightly). But, while each game had its pros and cons, the reviewer generally concluded that she would soon grow bored with them.

As far as their fitness effectiveness, we’ll have to wait and see.

This entry was posted on Thursday, October 9th, 2008 at 7:38 am and is filed under General Fitness, Products and Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.