Exer-gaming not replacing playing sports

Excerpts from a 12/08/09 Detroit Free Press article by Krista Jahnke

Wii Fit has a growing set of followers who bypass traditional workout methods and use interactive exer-gaming to get in shape.

It started 3 years ago with Dance Dance Revolution. Now there's Wii Fit, The Biggest Loser and more. Wii Fit has sold more than 21 million units since its launch in 2007. The American Council on Exercise (ACE) named technology-based fitness one the top trends of 2009.

The games help make fitness fun and get people who are not exercising to start. But do the games a worthwhile workout?

An Ace study conducted with the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, showed less than six-pack-producing results.

``Doing the real thing is always better in terms of return on that investment,'' said Dr. Cedric Bryant, the ACE chief of science. ``You can't perfectly simulate the activity that the game mimics.''

These studies found that Dance Dance Revolution offers the best video game workout; Wii Sports was second-best. They called the popular Wii Fit the most ineffective.

"Of course, much depends on how much the user puts into it," Bryant said. And he points out, something is better than nothing. ``What you can do is look at it as part of an overall workout program,'' he said. ``For a person who traditionally works out pretty hard already, the Wii could be a great exercise for a recovery day.''

Michaels, the celebrated trainer from The Biggest Loser, said getting into the exer-gaming arena was rewarding because she once was an overweight gamer herself. Her new game line, Fitness Ultimatum 2010, allows users to customize their workout and get simulated one-on-one training from Michaels. On the Wii version, which uses a balance board, it can track how closely users mimic Michaels' movements. ``The game offers immediate and accurate feedback following each rep completed, so the player can correct their movements, thus attaining a successful workout,'' Michaels wrote in an e-mail.

Exercising at home has meant following repetitive DVDs or bulky exercise equipment. Technology based exercising (Wii Fit and others) or exer-gaming gives the exerciser a lot of options to vary their work-out at convenient times and place. It shouldn't be your only source of exercise, however. Most fitness experts suggest using it on 'recovery' days from your normal fitness routine.