EA Sports Active: More Workouts - Nintendo Wii

Everybody is different. That needs to be clear. There is not one workout for everyone. Things I have tried in the past would probably produce excellent results for other people (1 year of treadmill 45 minutes 5 times a day, Wii Fit for 6 months everyday, and then a strict diet for 4 months) but not for me, those all did nothing. Yet with EA Sports Active and now EA Sports Active: More Workouts I've lost 23lbs and a total of 8 inches total around waist hips and thighs since May. It works great... for me. No, it's not perfect. The first one had major issues, but thankfully the lot of them were resolved with this new "expansion" (I use quotes because it's actually not an expansion, you can import data but that's about it, definitely not an expansion by definition). There's some lag issues that can get frustrating at times, the motion recognition is shakey (only having a band on the right leg severely affects a few exercises like lunges), and the motivation is, frankly, annoying. But look, gyms are expensive and public, videos are repetitive and boring, trainers are even more expensive and demanding. Getting fit isn't pain free. I'll gladly deal with a few gaming glitches than deal with the other things especially since they're not that bad in this installment. The lag and controller issues are annoying, yes, but they are greatly improved from the first game. Trainer feedback can get old, but again, from the first game they're less aggressive about yelling at you for doing something wrong, they give you a second or two to balance before getting snippy (I mute the trainer anyway, can't stand it). The time between each exercise is dramatically decreased for a faster workout. The core workouts are A-freakin-mazing. Wonderful, love them. So easy on the back and yet so very effective. I absolutely love a lot of the new exercises they added, and some of the sports activities you do are actually a lot better than the first game as far as working out. The useless baseball, basketball, volleyball are replaced with a much more effective squash, water ski, paddle boat, and obstacle course. Yes they're less popular sports, but a better workout. The boring track is replaced with waterfront scenery which I found silly at first, but quickly realized how less draining it was. Things I don't like? Some of the exercises are a bit "much" like push-ups and lunges with high knee jumps. They're incredibly difficult based on the scale of the rest of the workout. In one workout you can do about 40 bicep curls, which isn't much spaced out. But 32 push-ups in the same workout? Show me someone who can get an effective burn with 40 bicep curls and are able to do 32 push-ups. Also the lunge to high knee jumps is incredibly tasking on balance and leg strength. I can do 60 regular lunges but can only do about 3 of those before I hurt myself. Hard to imagine someone doing 48 of those still able to get a burn doing 40 regular lunges, again, in the same workout. But, there is a lot more to this than just these statements, I'm just babbling a bit more than I intended already. Finally, the stretches. They're a very very welcome addition, I'm having less muscle aches and strains (and still feel like I'm getting a better workout from the first game) but there's only four warm-ups and four cool-downs. Ever. EVER. They don't ever change at all, not even in order. I have so very much more to say in greater detail but it's not wise to keep going on as long as I did already. Bottom line, it does incredibly amazingly well for it's capabilities and it's hard for me to imagine someone not getting an effective work out using this system. You may not lose 23lbs and 8 inches, but I'll eat my hat if you do the 6 week challenge and never broke into a heavy sweat. Hey, I'd be amazed if you don't feel anything after the first day of your 6 week challenge on hard. It's intense, and it's awesome. I can't recommend it enough. Good luck!

Let me preface this with I have been a Sims player since its origional incarnation with Maxis. Since EA took over I've been sorely disapointed. The relevance here is I am by no means an EA fan. Origionally I wanted to get Wii Fit Plus, but did not have the 90$ for for the board and everything. My daughter and I enjoy playing the Sports game that came with the Wii. However, I bought the Wii for its exercise aspects and the Sports game wasn't cutting it for me. So, I looked around and decided to try EA Sports Active: More Workouts. The Wii board is optional, but I do reccomend getting the EA active accessory pack if you don't have the leg band. I have been pleasantly surprised. The controls are very well designed and easy to use. I really like that for the sports activities (i.e. water skiing) there is a video tutorial with a real person going through how to use the Wii-mote and engage in the activity. The second time through it gives you an option to review the tutorial or go right into the activity. Which is nice since you arn't stuck waiting for the tutorial to finish. Also, the next time you do the workout you can view the tutorial or skip it. If like me, you have physiological issues which make some activites difficult or impossible you can skip them without some kind of 'penalty'. You can create your own workout or select one of a wide variety of preset workouts to do. Now, I mentioned my daughter. She turns six in March. The video tutorial was super helpful for her. She was able to participate with minimual fustration at learning the Wii-mote and how to engage in the sports activities. She thuroughly enjoyed the island workout we did. Anybody with a younger child knows how difficult it can be keeping them actively engaged. The island workout combined exercise techniques and a variety of sports in a way that kept her interested for the entire 35 minutes we worked out. We both liked the journal and its various atributes. Specifically she liked watching the graph populate and was tickled to get a trophy. I liked the calander and its customizability. When we finished our initial workout my daughter looked at me and said 'Mommy, can we do another one?' I would definately reccomend this product to anyone looking for an exercise game for thier Wii, whether it be for themselves or as a family activity. As a matter of fact, I already have reccomended it, lol. I was telling my best friend about it and she asked me where I got it and to e-mail her the links!

Good for exercices.

great