gavinshearer.com

Hey, I got a Wii Fit and I am a girl (and I also get my lazy ass into yoga classes, run outside, take golf lessons, etc.) Girls, sheesh, indeed.

My plan is to use the Wii Fit as a break in the workday. Way healthier than cigarette (not that I took those) or coffee breaks!

We just got a Wii Fit yesterday and Bryan and I are both planning to use it. It's a little hard to make it to yoga class now that we have a baby!

There are a few things that I like about the Wii Fit over a yoga class. It's at home, so the barrier to entry is low. I don't have to rearrange my schedule around whenever I can find a local yoga class.

It encourages me to do something really basic (what they call a body test -- weighing and two balance tests) every day. Since it's encouraging me to come in for something really lightweight, it's not a big deal, and I'm likely to do it.

Once I'm there, since I'm already standing there on the balance board, I end up doing something else. It's not actively encouraging me to do anything (in fact, it asks whether I want to do the full body test instead of just weighing me, so it feels like it's been really considerate of my time), but I know that most of the basic exercises are a 2- or 3- minute investment. So I start out with the intent of just doing a couple, but then I'm there and I'm kinda into it, so I end up doing more.

As I do more exercises (in Wii Fit parlance, "earning fit credits"), it unlocks achievements. Sometimes these are new activities, sometimes these are more of an existing one (ex: start off on the short run, later earn the long run), some of these are more advanced versions (especially in the balance games). When I see that I've earned a new activity, I'm compelled to at least go see what it is, and usually try it.

I get to choose what I do. This morning, my shoulder was pretty tender, so I chose activities that would either give it a gentle stretching or would avoid hurting it. I don't get that kind of decision in yoga class, I either go along with it or wait it out until it's doing something that I'm ready for. I was feeling pretty run one day last week, so I only did a couple of yoga poses and some balance games.

The activities are really varied. Yoga and strength training are pretty traditional activities, but the aerobics and balance games are fun. And it turns out that hula hooping is way more difficult than you might realise. They're cute and engaging.

I get ongoing feedback about how well I'm doing, as well as a direct comparison to what I've done with it in the past. The balance board can detect if my center of balance is off (after years of protecting my right shoulder, my center of balance is off, and my muscles on that side aren't as limber as on the other side), and it can tell me when I'm putting too much weight on one side or the other. The ongoing feedback gives me a measurable feeling of accomplishment.

I wasn't planning on getting one, but the boy saw one in Target and picked it up on impulse. We're eight days in, and have used it every day. Will it keep up? I don't know, but so far so good.

Hmm, that was a lot longer than I intended. I'm surprised at how much I like it. :)

Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)

(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)

URL:
Remember me? YesNo

Comments: