Wii Fit? Wii don't think so

Mike Bantick
Friday, 28 December 2007 02:37

Your IT - Entertainment

It is a high step in the right direction, but do not be fooled into thinking the Nintendo Wii is a substitute for a regular exercise regime

A U.K based sport science research team from Liverpool’s John Moores University has put a bunch of kids through the gaming treadmill.

In a study funded by Nintendo marketing, the result was, on average, that an hour of Wii waggle and Xbox 360 racing will burn 60 calories (251 Joules).

Taking six boys and five girls between 13 – 15 Years the researchers let them go on four games for 15 minutes each.  Some Wii Sports Tennis, Bowling and Boxing whilst on the Xbox 360 they played the car racing action of Project Gotham Racing 3.

With a five minute rest between each game the hour long gaming session burnt up the equivalent of a quarter of a Mars Bar in fat.

"In a typical week of computer play for these participants, active gaming rather than passive gaming would increase total energy expenditure by less than two per cent," says the study set to be published today in the British Medical Journal.

Though the fat burn up is trivial, the report is still encouraging of the whole Wii approach to more active interaction in gaming; "Given the current prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity, such positive behaviours should be encouraged," it says.

"The energy used when playing Wii Sports games was not of high enough intensity to contribute towards the recommended daily amount of exercise in children," say the authors.

My own experience, especially with Wii Sports Boxing is that fifteen minutes is not a realistic length of play time,  after a more realistic 30 to 45 minutes you will be sweating like a post Richard Simmons work out.