Day 11 activity

WII FIT DAY 11 ACTIVITY

AEROBICS
Advanced Step: 572 pts. (3 stars)
Basic Run: Island Lap - Burn Rate: 91% (3 stars)
Rhythm Boxing: 6 minutes - 634 pts. (3 stars)

YOGA
Deep Breathing: 90 pts. (3 stars)

EXERCISE GAMES
Ski Slalom: 0:45.36 (2 stars)
Ski Jump: 190 m (2 stars)
Balance Bubble: Beginner - 1:04.36 (2 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 31 MINUTES

Day 10 activity

WII FIT DAY 10 ACTIVITY

AEROBICS
Super Hula Hoop: 6 min. - 1558 spins (3 stars)
Basic Run: Island Lap - Burn Rate: 133% (4 stars)

STRENGTH
Jackknife: 10 reps - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Rowing Squat: 30 reps - 96 pts. (4 stars)
Plank: 78 pts. (3 stars)

YOGA
Chair: 68 pts. (2 stars)
Cobra: points n/a

EXERCISE GAMES
Ski Jump: 199 m (2 stars)
Balance Bubble: Beginner - 1253 yds. (1 star)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 30 MINUTES

Day 9 activity

WII FIT DAY 9 ACTIVITY

I found a good song with a perfect tempo to run to... Private Idaho by the B-52's. I just set up a Genius playlist in iTunes for Missionary Man by the Eurythmics and this song happened to play. It picked up my pace and I was able to run to it perfectly. Oddly though, even though I ran harder than I have in the past, I got my lowest burn rate score to date. Puzzling... but I had to work off some chips and queso I had earlier from Baja Fresh.

AEROBICS
Advanced Step: 572 pts. (3 stars)
Rhythm Boxing: 6 minutes - 642 pts. (3 stars)
Basic Run: Island Lap - Burn Rate: 81% (3 stars)

STRENGTH
Sideways Leg Lift: 10 reps per leg - 51 pts. (2 stars)
Sideways Leg Lift: 10 reps per leg - 69 pts. (2 stars)
Tricep Extension: 10 reps per arm - points not applicable

YOGA
Deep Breathing: 88 pts. (3 stars)
Sun Salutation: 89 pts. (3 stars)
Palm Tree: 70 pts. (3 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 36 MINUTES

Day 8 activity

WII FIT DAY 8 ACTIVITY

AEROBICS
Rhythm Boxing: 6 minutes - 551 pts. (2 stars)
Basic Run: Island Lap - Burn Rate: 144% (4 stars)

STRENGTH
Sideways Leg Lift: 10 reps per leg - 68 pts. (2 stars)
Tricep Extension: 10 reps per arm - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Single Leg Twist: 10 reps per leg - 78 pts. (3 stars)

YOGA
Sun Salutation: 84 pts. (3 stars)
Palm Tree: 68 pts. (2 stars)
Half-Moon: 73 pts. (3 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 32 MINUTES

Wii Fit: Basic Run review

I've been using Wii Fit for one week straight now, and one of my favorite activities so far is the Basic Run. This is the activity where I feel I am burning off the most calories.


See More Wii Fit Screenshots at IGN.com

I enjoy that they present you with a perspective that makes you feel like you are there running in their world. You get paired up with a different running partner every time. Your partner leads the way and turns around to wave at you for encouragement.

I have unlocked three distances so far... Short, Long, and Island Lap. Short lasts about 5 minutes. Long, about 10 minutes. And Island Lap about 18-20 minutes. I'm not sure yet if there are any that are longer than Island Lap. Each take you on a different pre-determined course. I haven't noticed any difference in running speed whether I run fast or slow. The only time I notice a difference in speed is if I happen to stop running for a second or two (leg cramp). When I stop for a short period of time, my runner in game speeds up rapidly for a few seconds before stopping. I haven't figured out what that's all about yet.

Great use of Mii characters!
I had a couple of friends create Mii characters on my Wii. I have found that this to be very beneficial in Wii Fit, especially in the Basic Run, because your friend's Mii characters exercise too. Every so often, I'll see my sister Sara run past me going the opposite direction, often smiling and waving as she passes. Or my friend Steve will run past me, encouraging me to run a little faster to catch up (which never happens). These Mii characters add a sense of familiarity and warmth to your exercising, rather than exercising with characters that you can't relate to on a personal level.

Things that need improvement:

- NEEDS MUSIC! All of the other Wii Fit exercises have music, but for some reason or another Nintendo removed all music from Basic Run. You see your character in the progress bar at the bottom of the screen with musical notes indicating music, but there is no music. The lack of music makes the run seem much longer than it actually is. I'll need to start listening to my iPod or play music from my computer while I run.

- The speed at which you run does not appear to influence the running speed in the game. In other words, if you push yourself to run harder/faster, it doesn't appear that you reach the finish line any faster.

Things I don't understand:

• There are Mario character icons scattered around the island. The manual says to try and locate them all, but I don't know what to do if I see them or why I am trying to find them. Rather than just trying to find them, they should let you capture/collect them, sort of like trophies. They don't seem to have a purpose as they are now.
• During my Island Lap run, a pack of dogs leaped off of a cliff which was at least 100 feet high. I saw that and it shocked me because it seemed like they were falling to their death. But they kept running on past me.
  

Tip!
If your floor has carpeting, you might want to invest in a rug or mat to run on. Running in one place every day can wear down the carpet in that location.

Day 7 activity

WII FIT DAY 7 ACTIVITY

AEROBICS
Super Hula Hoop: 3 minutes - 753 spins (4 stars)
Rhythm Boxing: 3 minutes - 263 pts. (2 stars)
Basic Run: Island Lap - Burn Rate: 173% (4 stars)
Advanced Step: 549 (3 stars)

STRENGTH
Single-Leg Twist: 10 reps per leg - 69 pts. (2 stars)
Jackknife: 10 reps - 100 pts. (4 stars)

YOGA
Deep Breathing: 86 pts. (3 stars)
Half-Moon: 81 pts. (3 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 34 MINUTES

Day 6 activity

WII FIT DAY 6 ACTIVITY

I unlocked a couple of new items today. The Rhythm Boxing exercise was a lot of fun because gave me something interesting to do with my arms. The Plank wasn't too hard, but I could really feel it in my abs.

I'm looking forward to checking out a new running course that I unlocked tonight. The change of scenery should be nice.

AEROBICS
Super Hula Hoop: 3 minutes - 699 spins (3 stars)
Rhythm Boxing: 3 minutes - 236 pts. (2 stars)
Basic Run: Long - Burn Rate: 197% (4 stars)
Advanced Step: 519 (2 stars)

STRENGTH
Lunge: 15 reps per leg - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Plank: 30 seconds - 66 pts. (2 stars)

YOGA
Warrior: 83 pts. (3 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 24 MINUTES

Day 5 activity

WII FIT DAY 5 ACTIVITY

Since I went light yesterday, and this morning's weigh-in showed a slight weight gain, I really tried to push myself today. I'm wiping sweat off my face as I write this.

Over the past couple days, I have unlocked some of the more advanced versions of the basic exercises, so I tried to tackle those.

Going from 10 to 20 reps of the Jackknife exercise was a mistake because I had to hold my legs up at times when I should be holding them up without assistance. It was good for the abs, but I think I'm going to drop back down to 10 until I am comfortable that I can do the additional 10 properly.

Other exercises, such as the Basic Run switching from short to long, were just what I needed. I can do that easily enough and it makes me burn more calories. The longer exercises also makes the workout session not seem quite as long because you can get a longer workout with less exercises.

AEROBICS
Basic Run: Long - Burn Rate: 210% (4 stars)
Advanced Step: 416 (2 stars)

STRENGTH
Lunge: 10 reps per leg - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Jackknife: 20 reps - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Torso Twists: 3 reps - 76 pts. (3 stars)
Rowing Squat: 30 reps - 100 pts. (4 stars)

YOGA
Standing Knee: 25 pts. (1 star)
Warrior: 78 pts. (3 stars)
Palm Tree: 12 pts. (1 star)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 25 MINUTES

Day 3 activity

WII FIT DAY 3 ACTIVITY

AEROBICS
Basic Step: 295 pts. (3 stars)
Hula Hoop: 249 spins (2 stars)
Basic Run: Short - Burn Rate: 104% (4 stars)

BALANCE GAMES
Ski Jump: 254m (2 stars)
Tightrope Walk: Beginner - 18 yards (1 star)

STRENGTH
Push-up and Side Plank: 6 reps - 83 pts. (3 stars)
Jackknife: 10 reps - 100 pts. (4 stars)
Rowing Squat: 15 reps - 93 pts. (4 stars)

YOGA
Standing Knee: 38 pts. (1 star)
Sun Salutation: 87 pts. (3 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 19 MINUTES

I'm definately starting to feel the effects of the exercise. My abs and theighs are sore today. Tomorrow's a new day!

Day 1 activity

WII FIT DAY 1 ACTIVITY

Back when I was in the U.S. Army, my Drill Sergeant taught me how long just one minute can be. Well, today I did 16 whole minutes of exercise. All-in-all, I think I actually spent about an hour in Wii Fit, but the rest of that time was spent watching examples of exercises and choosing which exercises I wanted to perform. The 16 minutes was pure exercise, and I actually broke a sweat and felt a little sore when i was done.

AEROBICS
Hula Hoop: 238 spins (2 stars)
Basic Step: 278 pts. (3 stars)
Basic Run: Short - Burn Rate 124% (4 stars)

STRENGTH
Torso Twist: 3 reps - 84 pts. (3 stars)
Lunge: 10 reps each leg - 100 pts. (4 stars)

YOGA
Warrior: 68 pts. (2 stars)
Deep Breathing: 92 pts. (4 stars)

TOTAL SESSION TIME: 16 MINUTES

Once I know the exercies and don't need to watch the examples, I should be able to spend more time on the actual exercises.

If anyone knows of a good way to track this data automatically, or even manually, in a way that will produce progress charts, please leave a comment. The only place this data is visible is in the game, so I have to manually type it in here and it doesn't produce any charts. It's a shame that Nintendo didn't make it so that you can review your Wii Fit stats online.