Wii™ Fitness for Dummies®

Introduction

Exercise and gaming — who thought the twain would ever meet? At least not until Wii Fit came along. Sure, there were other fitness titles on other platforms prior to the Wii, but Nintendo's console really helped bring the genre mainstream. Why is this? Well, for the first time, there was a way to accurately track even subtle body movements and provide feedback in real time. Wii Fit was engaging, giving you the sense that a personal trainer was right there with you, and you weren't just haphazardly mimicking actions observed onscreen while a lifeless automaton cycled through the same repertoire of encouragement.

Certainly, as with all things, there are skeptics. Some may even smirk upon seeing a "videogame" book categorized as a fitness title, but those folks likely never gave "exergaming" a try or are hardcore fitness enthusiasts who spend hours pumping iron or putting the treadmill to its paces at the gym. There is certainly nothing wrong with that, unless taken to the extreme, but even if we wanted to, most of us simply don't have the time or resources to devote to that type of lifestyle. For us, exergames can be a great and fun way to make regular physical activity a part of our lifestyle, rain or shine.

We concede that some fitness titles are certainly better than others at yielding results and offering guidance and feedback, but we believe if you try any of the games covered in this For Dummies book—Wii Fit Plus, EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer, Jillian Michaels ...