EA Activing

Yep I am still hitting EA Active regularly.  I really like it.  The workouts are demanding and do a good job of giving you almost a full body workout.  The only part that seems somewhat neglected is the chest.   There is good variety in scenery, music and exercises.  A 20 minute workout on medium difficulty is guaranteed to have you sweating generously.There is a lot of stuff to like about the title but let me point out a few flaws.

  The game supports the Wii Fit board in various exercises yet it doesn’t utilize it to incorporate tracking your weight.  In order to do that I need to fire up Wii Fit.  I would think this would have been pretty easy to incorporate.

 I am in the middle of a 30 day challenge.  Part of the challenge is accomplishing 20 workouts during those 30 days.  Last week I did a 30 minute partner workout with Ali.  I got no credit for the workout towards my 30 day challenge.  Instead I HAD to do a workout from the 30 day challenge screen if I wanted to get OFFICIAL credit, dumb.

Sometimes it is a bit awkward holding on to the Wii remote and nunchuk while trying to grab the elastic band handles.  The game can also be a bit finicky when reading your movements during certain exercises.  It’s aggravating when you you see your on screen avatar standing still after you already completed the movement.  Over time you realize that the controllers need to be held a certain way in order to be picked up more accurately.

None of these complaints are major, it’s a great fitness title, the best I ever played.  If you keep moving from exercise to exercise at the pace that is intended you really are working hard.  The in-game trainer can be cruel by doing things like sending you into a set of explosive side to side jumps immediately after completing a long set of side to side lunges.  However in the big picture that is exactly what you need to help keep things progressing.

I really like using the game as a supplement to my mostly strength training lunch time workouts.  I feel like it really is helping me in total body fitness.  My lower body especially is getting much needed attention.  My knees have felt significantly better since I started with EA Active.

If you have a Wii and want to get in shape without hiring a trainer, get the game, stick to the program, watch your diet and reap the results.