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Posts with tag WiiFit

New York Gym Offering Nintendo Wii Workouts for $110 Per Hour

Okay, so we all know that everything is overpriced in the big city, and we don't just mean rent. Food, bottled water, parking, movie tickets -- you name it, it'll cost you twice (or more) as much as the same thing would cost you in some nice, small town. Paying $110 to get some supervised play time with a Wii, though? That's a bit exorbitant, no matter where you live.

According to the New York Post, Gravity Fitness at New York's Le Parker Meridien Hotel has mixed Nintendo Wii gameplay into its personal training rotation along with sessions of boxing and weight training. The hotel charges $110-per-hour for its personal trainers, regardless of whether guests are weight-training or, as it turns out, Wii-training. The Wii (which costs just $250 to buy outright) is mixed into a workout routine as a bit of a reward, acting a boost between sessions of more trying things, like real boxing, serving to keep peoples' heart rates up -- 140-t-150 beats-per-minute for some. That's comparable to what you get on a treadmill, and flies in the face of some folks who that playing Wii is not exercise.

Just the same, we'd recommend buying your own and playing from home. It's the economical thing to do, wherever you live. [Source: The New York Post]

Saucy 'Wii Fit Girl' YouTube Video Causing ID Problems for NYC Librarian


It takes a certain kind of douchebag to secretly film his girlfriend playing 'Wii Fit' in her underwear and post it on YouTube (almost his ex-girlfriend). The video, originally titled 'Why Every Guy Should Buy Their Girlfriend a Wii Fit,' became so popular that many began to suspect it was a viral marketing ploy by Nintendo. But both Nintendo and the couple have strenuously denied this charge.

The couple's (Lauren Bernat, 25 and Giovanny Gutierrez, 30) exploits have proven particularly troublesome, however, for a 22-year-old librarian from New York City who happens to also be named Lauren Bernat. The young masters degree candidate is worried what prospective employers and schools might think now that the first result for "Lauren Bernat" on Google is the Wii Fit Girl video on YouTube. She contacted Google about the issue, but since the other woman's name is Lauren Bernat, there is nothing that can be done.

We hope that prospective employers who bother to Google the librarian Lauren Bernat will dig a little deeper than the first page of results. [Source: Geek Sugar and Crave]


Engadget

Nintendo's 'Wii Fit' Hits Stores This Week


If for some reason you've been so far outside of the natural world that you were unaware of Nintendo's impending Wii Fit firestorm, this should get you back in the swing of things. Today the big N has made the forthcoming release of the exercise / gaming sensation officially official in the States. The device is available exclusively at the Nintendo World store in New York City starting today, but will hit other shelves on May 21st, will run you a thrifty $89.99, and launches with software containing more than 40 activities. Of course, you'll never get to experience any of those activities, as there's already a run on stock, and if you haven't pre-ordered then you're pretty much left to the whim of eBay sellers and their inflated prices. Thanks Nintendo! [Source: Business Wire]

Diane Sawyer and the 'Good Morning America' Crew Ski On the Wii


Diane Sawyer and her companions on 'Good Morning America' got their hands (well, feet) on the hotly anticipated Wii Fit, due out May 19. The $90 package comes with a balance board used to track your weight and play a number of physically involved mini-games that test your balance, coordination, and get your heart rate up... in theory.

Despite reports of people testing the Wii Fit and losing weight with it, Diane Sawyer's performance on the balance board isn't convincing us that this is the answer to America's obesity problem. No one in this video is breaking a sweat, unless it's from the discomfort of looking like an idiot on national television. [Source: GeekSugar]

Nintendo Wii Rehabilitates Injured Soldiers, Stroke Victims

Nintendo Wii Rehabilitates Injured Soldiers, Stroke Victims

Since its release late last year, the motion-sensitive Nintendo Wii has become a runaway success for many reasons, including famously keeping the aging and elderly active with a variety of sports titles.

Given the video-game console's unorthodox penchant for promoting physical activity instead of discouraging it, it seems only natural that physical therapists have begun putting the system to use to help patients achieve better balance and motor skills. As Minneapolis/St. Paul CBS affiliate WCCO reports, therapists at the Sister Kenny Rehabilitation Institute at Abbott Northwestern Hospital are seeing great results among stroke patients who play 'Wii Tennis.' In addition to actually exercising the patient back to health, the therapists note that the Wii makes the process of rehabilitation more fun. According to WCCO, the U.S. Army has also also hopped aboard the Wii Train, testing the system out on injured soldiers in Landstuhl, Germany to help them regain their strength.

With Nintendo's upcoming 'Wii Fit', which includes a pressure-sensitive balance board that can be used for everything from push-ups to yoga to aerobics on the way early next year, we expect that more practical uses for the Wii's unique controls are on the way.

From Engadget

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