Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Friday, August 08, 2008
Reseachers find some benefit to Wii games, but say they aren't as good as the real thing
Bowling, playing golf and playing tennis with Nintendo Wii Sports video games are a lot of fun but not much of a workout.
That’s what researchers found out in a recent University of Wisconsin-La Crosse study of Wii Sports games. But UW-L’s Exercise and Health Program study, commissioned by the American Council on Exercise, found the games, including baseball, bowling, boxing, golf and tennis, burn some calories because they increase heart rate, maximum oxygen intake and perceived exertion.
“We wanted to see if the video sports games had fitness benefits and whether they were a good workout,” said John Porcari, UW-L professor of exercise and sport science. “They aren’t much of a workout except for boxing.”
The study by Porcari and Karel Schmidt found that the popular interactive sports games had more of a cardiovascular benefit than regular sedentary video games. The conclusion: “Although they do not simulate playing the same sports in real life, they can be used as an aid to control weight.”
Boxing produced the most significant results, burning about 216 calories per 30 minutes, followed by tennis (159), baseball (135), bowling, (117) and golf (93). None of the games burned more calories than participation in the actual activity.
According to the American Council on Exercise, boxing was the only game tested that would be considered intense enough to maintain or improve cardiorespiratory endurance as defined by accepted industry standards.
Actual bowling burns twice as many calories as the game, and tennis and baseball also showed significant differences. The golf game burns 3.1 calories per minute playing the game versus 3.9 calories per minute actually hitting golf balls at a range.
“Wii Sports does get people to be more active in a more fun environment, but don’t expect a good workout,” Porcari said.
“It’s much better to do the actual sport.”
Nintendo Wii, launched in the fall of 2006, is an exergame that requires users to apply physical movements to manipulate actions of a video game.
Porcari had his adult fitness program participants play the Wii Sports games. Regina Kilbey of La Crosse, who participates in the UW-L program, said she had a great time with Wii bowling.
“I know it wasn’t a workout, and it was not strenuous, but it was fun,” Kilbey said.
Franciscan Skemp Healthcare uses Wii Sports and Wii Fit, a fitness program, for patients in rehabilitation.
“We use it a lot for shoulder flexibility and balance as well as strengthening,” said Roy Eggart, a Franciscan Skemp physical therapy assistant.
Dan Mueller, 29, of Onalaska, Wis, tore the ACL in his right knee while skiing. He uses Wii Fit as a strengthening activity, with lunges to see how much pressure he is putting on his leg.
“It keeps your mind off the actual work,” Mueller said.
Porcari said UW-L also plans to conduct a study of Wii Fit for the American Council on Exercise. Both Wii Sports and Wii Fit are hard to find in stores due to high demand by consumers, he said.
“From what I understand, Wii Fit is a better workout, and we will find out in our study,” Porcari said.
Terry Rindfleisch can be reached at trindfleisch@lacrossetribune.com or (608) 791-8227.
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