Nintendo has had it right for quite some time now. We can go back to the 1980’s to see how this vision of virtual fitness and the blending of fun with exercise began to emerge in the world of video games. Remember the “Power-pad”? The electronic mat that had sensors placed at certain spots, like giant buttons for you to step on! There was the Track & Field Game and that mat could be turned over to reveal a different set of sensors. Using the “B” side of that mat one could play the Dance Aerobics game that featured a personal trainer and programs to go through. At that time we didn’t realize we were seeing the future of fitness and it took 20+ years of technology evolution and the maturing of the Fitness Industry to begin to realize it.
Now we have the Wii Fit, but have we reached the pinnacle of virtual fitness? Not a chance!
Here we are, on the edge of a rebirth of personal and group fitness. This is more than a fad and it is not reserved to the video game nerds. This movement has already begun to enter its way into the home and the daily routines of moms and dads, grandpas and grandmas, teens, children, young adults and even pets! Obviously I am referring to the Wii Fit but I am not so obviously referring to the possibilities that exist beyond the Wii Fit Balance Board.
Today we are in a connected world. We use the internet as our means to communicate, to learn, record, and soon we will use it as our means to exercise. In recent years Group Fitness has had a successful resurgence in popularity and has moved far beyond the fad of what we saw in the Aerobics days. Through the Wii, we find a connected medium that appeals to every demographic. It only makes sense to combine social networking, the Wii media and Group Fitness.
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