Wii Fit Project

I hate that there has to be such a lull in the action here while we all wait for Wii Fit to hit the shelves.  Last week I contacted Nintendo PR to make them aware of my experiment and this site but have yet to hear anything back.  I’d like to get my hands on an advance copy of Wii Fit so that we can get this ball rolling, so if any of you out there have a direct contact at Nintendo that you think might be able to help, please contact me directly at press AT wiifitproject DOT com.

Remember, I’m doing this for all of you!  Well, actually I’m doing it for the benefit of my own health and well-being, but I’m parading it out here for your entertainment and or inspiration, so if we can get this going, let’s do it!

Alright, I decided we needed to get some baseline readings this morning.  We’ll do this one more time when Wii Fit arrives just so we have an official starting point, but here’s where I stand right now:

• 278.4 pounds
• Height: 6′6″

Taking my height and weight and putting it into a body mass index calculator, I get 32.1, which is just over the line for obesity.

As you can see, all the sweet, creamy obesity resides in one concentrated area on my body. It will be interesting to see how that affects the balance tests in Wii Fit.

Good news is that I’ve already lost 4 pounds since the last time I weighed (probably a month ago), so that’s good.

I put my height, age, and gender into an ideal weight calculator and came up with 239 pounds.  That means I need to lose 39 pounds.

Do I think that I’ll lose all of it in 2 months using only Wii Fit and a sensible diet?  No.  That’s a lot of weight to lose even with daily vigorous exercise.  I will however try to see how much of that goal I can attain in 2 months and then will see it through, no matter how long it takes.

Hello, and welcome to the Wii Fit Project.

My name is Jeremy Fuksa.  I’m a 35 year old interactive designer in Kansas City, MO.  I’ve started this site to chronicle an experiment I’m about to embark on.

I am going to see how well exercise with the Wii Fit will help shed pounds and benefit my health.

I am roughly 40 pounds overweight. My eating habits are not what most would consider poor.  I stay away from fast food as much as possible and try to make the best nutritional choices for myself everywhere that I can.

One year and four months ago I underwent triple coronary bypass surgery.  Long story short, genetics were not kind to my heart.  I am now in good cardiovascular health and my cardiologist suggests vigorous cardiovascular exercise.  I was very good about getting that exercise until winter came and I put 20 pounds back on.  Spring is here, and it’s time to get those pounds back off as well as continue to lose more weight so that I can achieve my ideal weight of 230 pounds.  I figured that Wii Fit would be a fun way to do that.

Now that you know the back story to my fitness needs, I’ll tell you about how I intend to conduct this experiment.

Once I obtain a copy of Wii Fit, I will be using it every evening for a minimum of 30 minutes and a maximum of 60 minutes.  I will do this for a minimum of 60 days.

I will track my progress via Wii Fit and will show screenshot results as well as photos and video of my progress.  I will be keeping track of the following metrics:

• Weight
• Body Mass Index (BMI)
• Blood pressure and heart rate while resting
• Overall well-being
• Notes on how my life is affected from day to day (i.e. not winded when climbing 4 flights of stairs, etc.)

I will keep track of any extra activity (i.e. walking 6 blocks for lunch) in the Wii Fit activity log.

I will not increasing my level of activity outside of Wii Fit and I will not alter my diet any more than I already have in the past month (spring always makes me want to start eating better).

I’m also trying to devise a way to bring other people who want to attempt this experiment together so that we can share in each other’s progress.  More on that as I figure out what specifically I want to do.

As the US release date of Wii Fit (May 21st) approaches, I will have more specifics on all of this and more.

I’ve gotten in touch with Nintendo PR to see if there’s any support I can get from them.  An advance copy of Wii Fit would be ideal so that I might start the project as soon as possible.  Any other third parties that can help in this endeavor are also encouraged to contact me directly at press@wiifitproject.com.

I hope you’ll join me in my journey, and I look forward to losing weight with Wii Fit!