How Wii-Fit changed more than my waist-line...

How the Wii-Fit Changed My Waistline and My Life

Tomorrow will mark two weeks since I came home from work to find my friendly little Wii-Fit waiting for me on my doorstep.  As a lifelong Nintendo Geek (well, I’ll admit that I’m older than their first consoles), I happily ripped into the Amazon box, dug out the sleek other box and was up and running in minutes.  Since the announcement that Wii-Fit would be coming stateside, I diligently watched Amazon so I could pre-order.  I was going to get in shape!  Finally!

Before I start on my journey with Wii-Fit, I feel like I should give some background.  I’m 34.  I am not highly active, I don’t go to the gym, I do always sign up for work or friend related sports festival kind of things.  I am not overweight as confirmed by my doctor prior to Wii-Fit.  At times in my life I have been very physically active; in junior high I did cross country and softball, in high school I did track until my knees decided they hated me, then I joined my part time job’s company softball team, in my early twenties I taught ballroom dancing, in my mid to late twenties I played on co-ed rec league volleyball teams (I think the beer negated the exercise), in my early thirties I had a job that included a lot running through airports, carrying massive quantities of weight, and tons of speed walking.

So here I am at 34.  I’m just a bit over 5’5”, and after the crazy job with the carrying and the running, and the non-stop traveling, I settled very happily back into my chosen world of working in IT, playing a lot of video games, reading, and being on the computer non-stop.  So on the day the Wii-Fit showed up, I wasn’t overweight, I wasn’t a lost cause, but I was definitely… squishy.  I was however, highly competitive, motivated and captivated by games, and not wanting to be squishy anymore.

As for my eating habits?  I’m mostly herbivore.  I just have weird issues about meat and how I eat it.  Catching the least bit a gristle?  I’m done with my meal.  Fat?  Same thing.  It’s not a stance on anything, I’m just very texture oriented and freak about certain things.  Plus being single, as much as I love to cook, I need stuff that’s easy and re-heatable.  Not to mention in this day and age when I cook for groups there are so many dietary restrictions to cook for.  I hit fast food maybe once every two or three months.  I love peanut butter, milk, TGIF Potato Skins frozen or chips.  I love fruit candy (sour gummy LifeSavors, JellyBelly).   And anyone that suggests South Beach/Atkins, runs the risk of being stabbed with a sharpened celery stalk, because I live on bread, potatoes and fruit.  Food made of happiness.

Here’s another admission:  I’ve used the Wii-Fit almost every day (I think I’ve missed four days) since I got it, and not only have I not lost a pound?  I seem to have gained one since my first weigh in.  My daily weight chart goes up and down and the little balance board avatar quite honestly tells me that daily weight fluctuates two pounds a day.  On the first day I set a goal of losing four pounds in two weeks.  Tomorrow is the deadline and I’ll actually weigh more than when I started.  There goes my goal of losing four pounds in two weeks (which the Wii-Fit wisely decried as too ambitious when I set it).

I started out easy.  The first night I played for hours.  Oooh yoga!  Skiing!  Hula Hoops!

Then I didn’t play for two days.  Then I did almost every day.  I started at 20 minutes, I worked up to 50.  But I quickly became hopelessly devoted to yoga, strength training and aerobics.  I wouldn’t touch the balance games until I had done at least thirty minutes of all the other activities.  I wanted to squash the squish.

There are hundreds of Wii-Fit stories out there that will say:  ‘It works!’, ‘It doesn’t’, ‘It does, but it won’t long term’, endlessly.  But just like the South Beach Diet, or Spinning Class, it’s going to have different results based on how you use it and who you are.  When I finally found a co-worker that had it from the same day I did, I was ecstatic to compare notes.  Until he told me he lost nine pounds in a week.  I was crushed.  I felt like that stupid supplement commercial cartoon woman bitching about her and her husband giving up soda.  He lost ten pounds she gained two. 

Aside from skipping a few days early on for various reasons, I find, especially on work days, thinking about what combinations I’m going to do when I get home.  I do some of the basic yoga in my cube.  I’ve also started checking out and trying my free ‘On Demand’ yoga channels in addition to the Wii-Fit.  I’ve become a yoga junkie.  And a jackknife crunch junkie.  I look forward to working out.  It takes a video game to remind me to stop at the one hour mark.  I bought 3 and 5 lb free weights that I’ve figured out how to incorporate in step aerobics and strength training.  I bought new work out clothes.  My already existing clothes fit better. 

In two weeks, I haven’t lost any weight.  And I don’t care.  I feel better; all over.  My waist is actually discernable and starting to be curvy; my legs (which were always my best feature) are taught, my upper arms (those of you in your twenties?  Don’t realize how quickly that bat wing situation happens) are toned, my hips and thighs are sleeker.  I feel sharper and more energized.  I’ve had several people ask if I’ve lost weight. 

That’s an interesting question, since I haven’t… I’ve gained a pound plus.  I hope that’s muscle mass, but I have no idea.  I do know that when I’m standing naked drying my hair in the morning, a lot of parts look better.  Especially my abs and hips and gut, which two weeks ago, I hated about myself.  I know my slim pants?  I no longer want to discard by 10:30 in the morning.  They’re now comfortable.

But the only person wearing my clothes, and seeing me naked in the mirror every morning is me.  The scale didn’t see a difference, but I did.  And the Wii-Fit did on my center of balance and my scores.  And people that know me think I lost weight.  They also sense that I have a better energy.  I’m more positive, focused, and aware of myself. 

The only downside is that my friends that always exercised constantly are now right about how much I would love it.  And I haven’t mentioned it yet, because they are going to be insufferable. They will also at the same time make fun of me working out with a video game. 

It would take a video game got me to do what they couldn’t.  I’m now a fitness/video junkie.  I’ve also ordered a yoga title on DS.  Then again, I’ve also started doing the local cable OnDemand yoga programs. 

Wii-Fit isn’t a revolution, but if it can get mid-level (obviously not hard core RPG FPS maniacs) this into it?  Rock.  Yes, most people will focus on the games, but the work out bits are for real, to an extent; especially if you get creative. 

I’m anxiously awaiting intense and customizable yoga and aerobics. 

So I didn’t lose nine pounds in the first week.  But I lost a lot of bad preconceptions, I lost several inches, I lost a fear of what I didn’t know I could do. 

Now I just have to figure out how to deal with the excess work out adrenaline, work out rush that seems to keep me up until at least 1 AM.  I mean seriously.  Those stupid endorphin rush issues are annoying.