May 28, 2008 by Will Mitchell

 
So I got Wii Fit last Wednesday and I've been "working out" with it every day since.  The truly remarkable thing though is how committed I've become to trying to lose weight.  The fact that my weight is now represented on a day to day basis (via a line graph), makes me super conscious of the things I am eating.  I substitute fruit for fries now, I have stocked up on lower calorie frozen meals (Morningstar, Lean Cuisine), and I try to replace water with my other favorite drinks.  This is all so I can get closer to my goal in a video game more or less.  

I initially tried to set my goal for 10 lbs. in two weeks, but Wii Fit advised me that this would not be healthy and asked if I would like to go through with it anyways....I opted for "no."  If Nintendo wants me to take it easy and go at a nice pace, I'm all for it.  I changed my goal to 7.5 lbs. in two weeks and got started.

My friend Johnny also got Wii Fit last Wednesday and is already down 17 lbs!!  That's just insane, and probably unhealthy - but its still pretty remarkable.  To be fair, Johnny has been eating healthier for a little while now.  He also was fairly active outside of Wii Fit over the weekend having to tote around a full-size organ (and Leslie cabinet) and then going knee-boarding at the lake.  He is psyched about the weight loss though and looks forward to getting rid of his gut.

I'm at a nice loss of about seven pounds and I already feel my pants fitting loser.  The combination of yoga, strength training, aerobics, and balance games has also made me more flexible, and my back feels 100% better than it did two weeks ago in the midst of my sedentary lifestyle.  Many of the exercises concentrate on the user maintaining good posture which has led to my healthier back.  

Oh, and did I mention my feet don't hurt anymore?  I had no idea why my heels always hurt at the end of the day...I guess it was pretty common sense that I was putting too much weight on them.  It was strange at first when Nintendo showed me what my center of balance should be.  I initially felt like I was leaning forward as if asking for a kiss (or to be punched in the face.)  I then began to realize that I just needed more weight on the balls of my feet, and I've become fully conscience of that now.

Now...The disclaimer is this :
I was very inactive up to a week ago.  I move around a little bit at work, but I didn't worry at all about what I ate.  I never had any kind of workout regimen, and I was all around out of shape.  I'm not out of the dark yet or anything...I'm just telling you this to be fair.  If you're a professional athlete that does work out on a regular basis, you're not going to get too much of a work out with this.  The daily body test is still very informative for anybody that wants to be more aware of the day to day changes of their weight.  And the balance aspect of it is great for people who want to develop better posture.  

If you're in the category of unmotivated slacker, (like I am/was) when it comes to working out, this very well might be your ticket to the beginning of a healthier lifestyle.  I am very, very happy with it.