The bambino is going to be a year old (jaysus how time flies!) on the 31st May and it occurred to me that my perfect excuse of “I have had a c-section you know!” for anything I want to escape being in trouble for forgetting or explaining my bit of a tummy, can’t really be used for much longer….

It is time for me to get fit and it’s clear that having a gym across the street (yeah, yeah, shame on me) and the Davina workout video where I had to mute her, just isn’t happening. But now, I am becoming an exercise queen and it’s all thanks to my beloved Wii Fit!

My pre-ordered Wii Fitness arrived the day after its release which was frustrating as I had preordered it from HMV. I practically snatched it off the postman! Still, it wasn’t too long before I fell in love with competitive exercise!

What is it?

Wii Fit is a balance board which communicates with your Nintendo Wii. The board comes with the software and the idea is to combine the revolutionary form of motion gaming that has made Nintendo so hugely successful over the last couple of years with exercise. The console is sitting there anyway and anyone who has ever used a Nintendo Wii knows that you can’t help exerting yourself, so it’s now being put to some very healthy use.

The balance board acts as your scale but it also detects centre of gravity, and how you are using your body to do the exercises.

Set up

Easy peasy. Honestly.

Use

Set up is actually pretty straightforward and it wasn’t long before I was weighing myself, doing a balance test (my centre of gravity is slightly to the right) where it also declared that I had the fitness age of a 60 year old! After roaring expletives at the TV, I took the test again and it’s now fluctuating between 21 and 37….

The activities are split into yoga, muscle workouts, aerobics, and balance games and quite frankly, it’s amazing! It can sense everything and tells you when you’re not positioned right and gives you tips on how to improve. Shameful as it is to admit, I’ve done more exercise in the few weeks since i’ve owned it than I have in years!

My favourites are step aerobics, the boxercise, hula hooping (exhausting), the various balance games where I am challenging the boyf and the little bro (they’ve beat me on a few of them), and I’m getting into yoga.

The jogging (you put the wii remote in your pocket or in your hand) wore me out! You can do it in two player mode and the boyf dashed off and I started sprinting to keep up and I had to stop half way through as I thought I was having a coronary. It actually advises you to run at 60% speed….The boyf has also warned me about smashing the telly in with my aggressive jogging and over zealousness with the boxing.

Oh and hot tip: wear a sports bra! Obviously don’t if you’re a man….

The amazing thing about Wii Fit is that although you compete with others, you also compete with your previous scores in an attempt to continually better yourself.

Not to boast though, but I am currently better at heading footballs than the sports obsessed boyf…ha!

Hot tip: You can weigh your baby! When you finish doing your balance test, click on weigh again and hold your baby (or pet).

Downside: I can’t include the fact that certain annoying family members keep coming in and beating my top score because they’re show offs….It’s only flaw is not taking into account physique. I won’t be getting bored with the exercises for a good while but I do hope they bring out more because we particularly loved new balance activities being unlocked.

Price: I paid £69.99. The trick is finding one to buy…

Overall: It’s got me exercising (that says a lot) and loving it (that says even more) and I have actually started to see a difference to my stomach which I am sure is down to hula hooping! It makes exercise fun and turns the Nintendo Wii into a real lifestyle multitasker. It also encourages competitive spirit although be careful of family rows!

Perfect if you already own a Nintendo Wii and are looking to work off baby weight in a fun way or already feel time poor, or don’t want to spend money on a gym membership.

As an aside, the bambino is entranced with it and keeps trying to sit on it in the middle of my ski jumping…..

Verdict 5/5 Mama loves it!

Now there is the question of where to buy…. My little moles in my local Woolworths tell me that they get deliveries twice a week and they normally sell out within hours. If you want one, go to your local Woolies and find out when their next delivery is. Also try the same thing with Game or HMV. Failing that, spend a hell of a lot of time online trying to find one that isn’t at inflated prices.