We Wii? Oui!
The other day I received my Nintendo Wii. I had every intention of letting it sit in the box until I could post it on Craigslist and collect a tidy profit from my free Wii, but I couldn't resist having a piece of technology in my home and not trying it out. The company for which I work awards its employees with 'points' for various reasons. For example, I won a quarterly award and received points as well as a personalized plaque a while back. The points can be collected and then redeemed for prizes from a website. At one time, you could redeem your points for gift cards to Target, The Home Depot, etc., but I missed out on that great deal. By the time I got around to redeeming my points, the gift cards were no longer an option because of tax reasons, so I was told.
Being the clever individual that I think I am, I decided to redeem something that would be easily converted to cash via Craigslist. I didn't have enough points for the LCD TV or the iPod Touch, so I opted for the Wii console and the Wii Fit Plus. There's no way a man of my age could be tempted to open and keep a gaming console aimed at kids and a fitness peripheral designed for the ladies! Well, I was tempted, and I did. I had played Wii at various corporate team building events and with my nieces and nephews last Christmas, so I was aware of the cool factor, but it was the fact that it had built-in WiFi that sealed the deal for me. I can now sit on my couch and surf the web on my TV! How cool! Never mind that I have a very powerful desktop PC in the other room, a nice laptop, and a Motorola Droid with 3G and WiFi that has been surgically attached to my hand; I now have yet another way to watch highlights of the latest (almost) Mets win on the internet!
I plan to use the Wii Fit to help me kick my exercise routine up a notch. I wonder if it really works, or is just a gimmick. I guess I can still sell the whole thing used if I keep the packaging and use it gently, but who am I kidding? I can only part with technology when it is replaced with newer and better technology, and since my last gaming console was the Atari 5200, I have a feeling the Wii is here to stay.
May 15th, 2010 - 17:46
I thought that was my idea if I remember correctly;-)
May 16th, 2010 - 15:03
I thought it was mine. :) Anyway, can’t part with it now. I discovered Wii Fit boxing.
May 17th, 2010 - 12:53
Wii does not count as exercise EVER! You are playing a video game and that is all it ever is and all it ever will be. Do not be fooled. if you want to run hurdles for real go to the track, it is a much different experience. This is like comparing playing the game paperboy to actually riding a bike and running a paper route (I know you are old enough to remember the game).
You want to get fit and the answer is OUI! Put on some shoes go outside and go in one direction away from you home and fridge. When you get far enough away turn around and go home. What this does is allows you to live, it makes you move and guess what, unless you take a cab back you have to keep moving to get back home. Set a goal of 3 miles and get there. When there challenge yourself to go one more mile and then hoof it 4 miles back. Generally every mile you run or walk is equal to 100 to 150 calories. If walking gets to easy set running goals. If running gets to easy run further. If you want to walk and make it more challenging get a weighted vest and walk with that. That will also burn extra calories.
Rome wasn’t built in a day and Wii fit does not count. Reward yourself with playing video games only after you get you minimum daily miles in. Set a goal and meet it and then reward. Do not reward with food. Reward yourself with playing the video game at the end. Do not reward with a big pizza unless you are consoling yourself from having to watch the Mets and the rest of the NL East lose out to the Nats when they bring up Strassburg. Scary!
In the meantime keep up the good work.
May 18th, 2010 - 20:57
If I were using the Wii as an excuse to stop going to the gym or running, I would agree with you, but if it gets me up and moving — what’s wrong with that? I think you’re a Xbox fan. :-)
Thanks for the encouragement. I’m making progress.
May 19th, 2010 - 05:58
I don’t know anonymous, that sounds like an awful lot of walking just to go nowhere in particular. I think I have a better idea…
I’ve read that a real good cold induced shivering spell can burn up to 400 calories an hour. (There’s a four mile walk right there!!) We can all crank the AC full bore and get thin. Then in about a decade, when fossil fuels are depleted and global warming is in full swing, we switch our mindset to losing weight through sweating. Both excercise “programs” still entail a Wii controller lashed to one hand and a bag of Funyuns in the other. It’s the American dream updated for the 21st century.
If you follow this program, you do need to commit. Just making the home cool and comfortable may be linked to weight gain. http://hiloliving.blogspot.com/2009/07/obesity-and-air-conditioning.html
Remember, anything worth doing is worth doing right.
May 18th, 2010 - 16:24
Anonymous sounds like a frickin lawyer ;-)
May 18th, 2010 - 20:25
Impossible. I have the “No Lawyers” WordPress plugin installed. ;-)