The Wii Loses Some Of Its Fitness Thunder To Dance Town

Show of hands. Who has heard of the video game Dancetown? You know, the video game that National Public Radio reports might better whip you into shape than Wii Fit.

NPR’s Morning Edition, the radio show I wake up every morning, got around to covering a study we covered in November that shows people can get more fit from non-gaming exercise. But the surprise in the report, revealed by NPR, is that a game called Dance Town — maybe this DDR-looking game? — is better for some of you than Wii Fit.

https://lastchance.cc/study-finds-wii-fit-produces-underwhelming-results-5401876%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E

NPR Reporter: “Cedric Bryant is chief science officer for the American Council on Exercise which recently studied the fitness benefits of the Wii Fit and Dance Town. Dance Town is a video game where participants follow on-screen prompts to dance steps.. Bryant says the study found that generally, video game workouts alone arent enough of a good thing. Take the running games on the Wii for example.”

Cedric Bryant, American Council of Exercise: “[Wii Fit’s] Free Run and the Island Run yielded about five and a half calories per minute. Real running you would expect to get about twice that.”

NPR Reporter: “The study found that just using the Wii isnt enough for people in their twenties or for older folk who are reasonably fit. But Bryant says Dance Towns moderate and hard levels are sufficient for many older adults, especially those who are sedentary.”

Listen to the full report over at NPR’s site.

Study: We Need More Than Wii Workouts [NPR]

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