Family Fitness with Wii - Review of Wii Fit, EA Sports Active

Are you looking for a healthy workout that you can do with your kids? As a mom, two of my highest priorities are the health of my family and the quality time we spend together.

Getting fit together on the Wii allows us to combine these goals with little effort. We have all become very enthusiastic participants in our workout routine. That alone is amazing to me! To be honest, I first chose my Wii workout program based on what I wanted and what I thought would work best for me. I didn't think of it as a family activity.

It took about 10 seconds of my kids watching me workout for them to start fighting over who was going to play next. I now do my workout with a family member by my side. Sometimes it's my husband beating me at boxing, sometimes it's my 10-year-old outrunning me in the track events. Occasionally it's my three-year-old running up next to me to do in-line skating jumps or my 6-year-old cardio dancing by my side. Regardless of which member of the family is participating, we are always laughing, sometimes panting a little trying to keep up, but always having a good time.

Warning : I think you should know that the Wii can be so much fun you may push yourself a little too hard! Take it easy at first. It took less than 48 hours of Wii playing for both my husband and I to injure ourselves. Not too seriously, fortunately, but my husband couldn't Wii Box for a couple of days due to a sore back and my obsessive tennis playing was extremely difficult with an aching arm - which had not had so much exercise since the early 90's.

Which Wii Fitness Program is Right for Your Family?

There are tons of different fitness programs for the Wii to choose from for the Wii. Wii Fit is probably the most well known and popular, but EA Sports Active is quickly catching up. It was my choice, for my self initially but now I occasionally have to fight my way into a workout on the weekend! Luckily, my boxing skills are improving!

I initially chose EA Sports Active because it doesn't require a balance board and it looked like it offered a good variety of activities. I know myself pretty well, and if by some crazy chance I didn't like working out with the Wii , I didn't want to feel like I wasted a whole lot of money on an exercise fad that wasn't as good as everyone promised. I bought the additional gear so two people could work out at once, but I didn't need to invest in a balance board.

What I like about EA Sports Active:

• The personal trainer walks you through each exercise and explains the proper way to complete the workout. Your trainer will also encourage you along the way.
• The journal lets you set personal goals, view by calendar day how many calories you have burned and how long you worked out. My kids love the trophies you receive when you reach your goals.
• The workouts are diverse and fun. You can design them to include all of your favorite activities. My husband's favorite workout includes extra boxing and baseball. My workout is made up of lots of tennis and in-line skating (as I am the family champ at skating "tricks").
• The 30 Day Challenge is designed by Bob Greene (of Oprah fame) and will coach you through a program suited to your fitness and weight loss needs and goals.
• There is always a more challenging workout to conquer. At least so far!
• You can workout with a friend and challenge / encourage each other on a split screen.

The bottom line : It's just plain fun to workout with my family! Workout time has become something we all look forward to and every now and then I find my girls exercising purely for the fun of it. Isn't that the way exercise is supposed to be?

We have long winters here in New England, and since I hate the cold, it will be awhile before we get back out for a family hike through our favorite nature trails. This has proved itself to be a terrific value for our family.

I'm looking forward to trying out their newest series of workouts and adding a balance board to our Wii accessories in the near future.

I've heard some amazing stories about excellent results using the Wii Fit program to lose weight. I've included an overview video below so you can have a look. It definitely offers some incredibly fun games that both kids and adults would love. I love that includes extensive yoga options and strengthening exercises as well as the fun fitness games.

Again, I bought Wii Fit Plus and the Balance Board thinking of my own fitness goals. I have yet to use it regularly because my kids enjoy it so much that I have to fight for a chance to try. I don't appreciate the way it estimates your body size and makes your Mii image chubby if you weigh in a little overweight. I don't feel like that is a good motivator for me, but perhaps it works for some people!

Whichever family fitness program you choose, you have many hours of family fun to look forward to! Be sure to come back and let me know in the comments section what games your family likes best!