Wii and XBox Help

Can You Lose Weight with Nintendo Wii Fit?   by Raymond Hinish

Copyright (c) 2010 Raymond Hinish

Over 21 million American families have turned to Wii Fit to burn calories and promote fitness in their households. It is encouraging to see that families are at least trying to promote fitness in their household; but it begs the question, how many calories can you expect to burn with the Wii Fit?

The American Council on Exercise (ACE) recently put the Wii Fit to the test and I wanted to provide you with some of the research highlights. In the study, six Wii Fit activities were tested for how they impact caloric expenditure and cardiovascular fitness. Below, you will find the main findings:

1. Island Run & Free Run produce the best calorie burns, allowing the participants to reach 60% of their maximum heart rate. Both games burned approximately 5.5 calories per minute (165 calories/30 minutes).

2. Free Step burned 3.3 calories per minute (99 calories/30 minutes); Advanced Step burned 3.6 calories per minute (108 calories/30 minutes); Super Hula Hoop burned 3.7 calories per minute (111 calories/30 minutes); Rhythm Boxing burned 3.8 calories per minute (114 calories/30 minutes). 3. None of the tested games improved cardorespiratory endurance.

So, as you can see, the Wii Fit burns a modest number of calories compared to actual exercises in the field or gym. With that said, the simple fact that a child is actually performing some sort of physical activity rather than laying on a couch and twiddling their thumbs all night, is an improvement. Everything counts! More research is coming to light around a principle called Non-Exercise Activity Time (NEAT); the term NEAT includes all activity that occurs during the day that does not involve actual exercise. Researchers show that fit people move more all day long; they fidget, they stand, they walk, they sway…they just naturally move more! Although the Wii Fit would technically fall into the exercise realm; an argument could be made that the perception of play takes the stress out of the exercise label…resulting in instant NEAT. It is my belief that we should promote exercise on top of the Wii Fit, meaning that we should not rely on the Wii as our primary source of activity.  With that said, I believe that this could be a fun addition to a healthy household allowing the entire family to bond and compete around a NEAT, gaming idea. (Ok, I know, that was a bad pun-Blythe made me say it)

(Fitness Matters, Nov/Dec 2009: 15;6, Pages 6-8)

About the Author

Dr. Ray Hinish is a licensed, natural-pharmacist and certified personal trainer. He co-hosts the Cut the Fat Podcast and Your Prescription for Health radio show. He currently contributes to http://cutthefatpodcast.com and http://www.professionalvitaminsource.com.
Wii Fit, Aerobic, Hula Hoop, Nintendo Wii

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