You've probably noticed the ads with the happy family working out in front of their HDTV, in their perfectly white home, with their latest Wii Fit, Xbox Kinect or Playstation Move software. But today we answer the top question on everybody's lips...
How good are tools such as Wii Fit, Playstation Move and Xbox Kinect for weight loss and toning up when they are compared to going to the gym?
Being a Personal Trainer, it would probably be acceptable of me to dismiss these products as a fad. However, that is not what I am going to do. While many trainers would be happy to just advise you to use a real gym, we can undoubtedly see that Nintendo Wii Fit, for example, has huge potential. Here are a few reasons why we believe this software actually has a massive future.
* Tools such as Wii Fit are fantastic for people who lack the confidence to workout in front of others at the gym
* Owning an Xbox Kinect, Playstation Move or Wii Fit allows you to squeeze in a workout at just about any time
* The one time cost makes this very affordable. Cheaper than a home gym and a gym membership.
* In two years time the technology will have moved forward an awful lot.
As a personal trainer you have to look at this type of technology with great enthusiasm for the future. You could, of course, see it as a potential threat however to me that's a sign of an insecure teacher. The fact is, this type of software allows gyms to prosper as it will help way more people get through the first, giant step of joining a gym. Who knows, maybe they would previously never have reached that stage with their confidence had they not been able to get started at home first.
If you are relatively new to exercise and lack the confidence to go to the gym, or simply find it hard allocating the necessary time to squeeze in a workout most days, then Wii Fit, Xbox Kinect and Playstation Move provide an absolutely brilliant way to take care of this dilemma and get you on the road to a leaner, better body. The fact that the technology is always moving forward, too, bodes well for the future.
Is working out via your games console as effective as using a real gym? At the moment, no. But that's not a bad thing in any way. In fact the technology is already great and you can achieve fantastic weight loss results with the range of cardiovascular, yoga and body weight workouts available. Where it is still way behind the gym of course is resistance training. However in five to ten years I can see this being hugely progressed, too.
As a trainer I firmly believe that within the next five years we will have the ability to perform a full weights workout via our Wii, Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 console at home. The technology is moving so nicely along that this warrants taking a look at what is already available and sticking with it to see how far it is taken.
If you are thinking about buying an Xbox Kinect, Playstation Move or Wii Fit for weight loss purposes then a as a Fitness Instructor I highly recommend that you do. Not only will you be able to achieve great results with what is already available right now, but it gets better all the time.
How good are tools such as Wii Fit, Playstation Move and Xbox Kinect for weight loss and toning up when they are compared to going to the gym?
Being a Personal Trainer, it would probably be acceptable of me to dismiss these products as a fad. However, that is not what I am going to do. While many trainers would be happy to just advise you to use a real gym, we can undoubtedly see that Nintendo Wii Fit, for example, has huge potential. Here are a few reasons why we believe this software actually has a massive future.
* Tools such as Wii Fit are fantastic for people who lack the confidence to workout in front of others at the gym
* Owning an Xbox Kinect, Playstation Move or Wii Fit allows you to squeeze in a workout at just about any time
* The one time cost makes this very affordable. Cheaper than a home gym and a gym membership.
* In two years time the technology will have moved forward an awful lot.
As a personal trainer you have to look at this type of technology with great enthusiasm for the future. You could, of course, see it as a potential threat however to me that's a sign of an insecure teacher. The fact is, this type of software allows gyms to prosper as it will help way more people get through the first, giant step of joining a gym. Who knows, maybe they would previously never have reached that stage with their confidence had they not been able to get started at home first.
If you are relatively new to exercise and lack the confidence to go to the gym, or simply find it hard allocating the necessary time to squeeze in a workout most days, then Wii Fit, Xbox Kinect and Playstation Move provide an absolutely brilliant way to take care of this dilemma and get you on the road to a leaner, better body. The fact that the technology is always moving forward, too, bodes well for the future.
Is working out via your games console as effective as using a real gym? At the moment, no. But that's not a bad thing in any way. In fact the technology is already great and you can achieve fantastic weight loss results with the range of cardiovascular, yoga and body weight workouts available. Where it is still way behind the gym of course is resistance training. However in five to ten years I can see this being hugely progressed, too.
As a trainer I firmly believe that within the next five years we will have the ability to perform a full weights workout via our Wii, Xbox 360 or Playstation 3 console at home. The technology is moving so nicely along that this warrants taking a look at what is already available and sticking with it to see how far it is taken.
If you are thinking about buying an Xbox Kinect, Playstation Move or Wii Fit for weight loss purposes then a as a Fitness Instructor I highly recommend that you do. Not only will you be able to achieve great results with what is already available right now, but it gets better all the time.
About the Author:
About the author: Russ Howe is a qualified Personal Trainer. Watch his free video guide to Wii Fit vs Xbox Kinect.
