I bought Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2009 in early March, 2009. My husband and I had come late to the Wii craze, and we were looking for interesting games to play around with. I'm a new mom, and it's hard for me to get any kind of exercise fit into my day, so I thought this would be perfect.

My husband tried the game first. He was pouring sweat by the end of his first workout. A few days later, a girlfriend of mine came over and we played the multiplayer option on the game. It was fantastic! We were laughing and sweating without realizing we'd just spent 20 minutes exercising.

To start with, you have to create an avatar to use in the game. I have never been able to describe my body type as "athletic", so the avatar was far from true to life. It was, however, a nice representation of what I would look like if I was that fit. My girlfriend didn't have as much luck; her avatar looks nothing like her.

We skimmed through the instruction booklet for a general idea of what to do before starting the game. There are a variety of activities, some with more intensity than others, and not all of them work.

The game states that it is compatible with the Wii Fitness Board (which I have yet to be able to find), and perhaps that's the reason my game wasn't as successful as I'd have liked. I find I get the best workout with the handcar, jogging, rowing, monkey bars, and on occasion, the punching bag.

The log jump looks like fun, but the few times I've tried it the game either lags, or doesn't register. This seems to happen with a few of the activities, including the grenade throw, and the punching bag dodge. I find no point in the tightrope walk. There are even times when I'll be jogging and my avatar will stop, or I'll use the punching bag, and it won't register a kick. Being an obsessive competitor, this frustrates me when I don't receive the points (and in turn, fall behind my husband's scores). I keep my intensity set on beginner, so I'm not sure if the lag is due to that or not. When I switched it, it didn't seem to matter.

Also, the soundtrack is interesting, but I'm still not sure how to change it. The instruction booklet gives you clear directions, but when I follow them my game seems to stay on the same track. Jillian does narrate your workout, but her voice is drowned out by the music track.

The game isn't just Wii's answer to the workout video, it also has healthy living and eating tips. You get a few tips on start up, but most of them you have to unlock through working out. The game will alert you as to when you've unlocked a new recipe or tip.

If the glitches don't bother you, then I definitely recommend the game. You get a fantastic workout, and it's fun. I can't wait to try it with the Wii fit board (once I finally hunt one down).