My Fitness Coach - Get In Shape (Wii)

I genuinely cannot recommend this highly enough. My experiences of other Wii fitness games have been one of repetition and boredom - they start out ok, but within a few weeks (days with some) I found myself getting bored and losing interest. Not so with this…As another reviewer has said here, one of the most annoying things with Wii Fit is the fact that you have to choose every exercise individually. Not being a trained fitness instructor, I have next to no idea what exercises I should be doing to see positive results, but My Fitness Coach completely removes the need. On first loading the disc you're asked to do an initial fitness evaluation (measurements, age, weight, etc), followed by a brief fitness check which requires you to measure your resting heart rate and your active heart rate (after a few minutes of exertion). Once completed, the system then asks you what equipment you own (heart rate monitor, aerobic step, balance ball and weights). If you tick the box against any of these it will then incorporate them into your future workouts, although for certain exercises there's no reason why you couldn't incorporate them yourself if you wanted to.Finally you're ask what your goal is - weight loss, cardio fitness, upper or lower body strength etc. The system will also make recommendations for you based on the results of your fitness check. Once you've told it what your goal is, it sets up a weekly routine for you but you do have the option to set workout days and duration yourself, which is helpful for those who might have other commitments that don't fit around the system set routines.The first time I used this I was hooked! The female avatar instructor is really good, moving around exactly as a real-life instructor would, whilst the timing bar at the bottom of the screen lets you know in plenty of time what exercise is coming next. The good thing about this though is that you get a few seconds between exercises to change position/catch your breath/have a drink. But don't let that fool you - this is still an effective workout routine. I do one hour, twice a week and can honestly say that I'm aching the day after.After a few sessions of following your weekly routine (which unlike Wii Fit are always different and engaging), you start to unlock new rooms in which to exercise and new music too. After ten workouts you're asked to carry out your fitness test again, which then shows you how you've improved over the weeks you've been working out. This really helps with motivation, as you're able to see at a glance where you can still make improvements, but also where you're doing well.I would 100% recommend this over Wii Fit and pretty much any other fitness workouts on the Wii. It's definitely not a game - so don't expect hoola-hooping, 'skiing', or head-butting balls into a football net - but if you're looking for a serious workout programme that really challenges you and makes you work hard, you can't go far wrong with this.

Let's get one thing clear - this is not a game, so if you are looking for game-type play, or ways to play with the Wii Fitboard, this is not for you.What it is, is a very good exercise program. Think of fitness DVD's. They may be fun the first time, but they quickly get repetitive. My Fitness Coach can give you an exercise routine of your choice of length (15-90 minutes in 15 minute gradations), with a difficulty level that you can adjust, and workouts that concentrate on various elements - cardio, upper or lower body, flexibility, core strength and more, and if you have excercise equipment (weights, step, etc) you can incorporate them. You choose the focus for that day, and it sets the type of routine. There are many different types of excercises available and each time you use it, the system designs a new one for you so it is never repetitive. When I first started, I did find it a little too easy (having been going to the gym for many years) but after ramping the difficulty up quickly, I'm now on challenging workouts.The system does have a method for you to track your progress - you start by inputting quite a few details as to weight, fitness level and measurements, and as you progress those get tracked, but it is quite long term. There is no week to week progress. And although you are encouraged to design a weekly exercise commitment, there is no calendar for you to see how well you are keeping to it.The Exercise instructor may not be lifelike, but she's close enough and co-ordinates very smoothly with the music. She's easy to follow, and if you are not sure of the exercise, there is a tutorial that will guide you in the proper movement for that exercise. She also gives useful encouragement and tips with each exercise and they are not repetitive either.The instructor also has various different backgrounds for the workouts, and if you stick to your planned weekly commitment, you are rewarded with new ones. They aren't high tech, but are good enough.Probably the only thing I find a little tedious are the music tracks. No matter what style I pick, they all sound the same. I suppose it has to fit with the beat for the exercises.I have bought exercise DVD's in the past (famous people, exercise coaches) and got bored with all of them. I have had My Fitness Coach for a few months now and am keeping to my fitness plan, thanks to the endlessly varied routines that it can provide.The only reasons I haven't given it 5 stars are for the music, and the lack of calendar to track the number of sessions I've done.