Playing Games for Better Health

About a year ago, I acquired a Nintendo Wii game system. My stated rationale was that I needed to have some sort of target practice game to help improve my vision after a bout of retinal surgery, but as any man knows, you invent all sorts of stuff to justify getting a new toy.

I had been to an educational technology conference a while back and spent part of one evening watching some adolescent boys and girls playing on several of the available "platforms." I realized then that I had completely misunderstood what today's games were about in terms of subtlety, strategy, and just plain fun. And I was marginally involved in a project which involved some applications of these technologies, and I thought finding out more about these things would be, well, fun - there's that word again.

After nine months of shooting balloons, targets, clay pigeons, pop cans (soda cans for those of you outside the American midwest) and aliens trying to capture miniature versions of a character whom I created and looks very like me, except much thinner [of course]), my scores increased, and I think my reaction time sped up some. Or I prefer to think so.

A couple of months ago, Wii came out with a game called Wii "Fit." It comes with a balance board which collects all sorts of data about the person using it, and it has games involving yoga, strength, aerobics, and balance. I managed to find one at a local store, took it home, and set it up immediately.

Two years ago I had a hip replaced, so there had been several years of gimping around before surgery but a good recovery thereafter. That said, I also felt that I wasn't walking as efficiently as I would like. So in the ten days of working with "Fit," I have focussed on games related to balance, along with some yoga. (I figure that in time, I'll begin messing around with the other two areas, but balance has been a big concern, especially after an icy winter year before last when I found myself on the pavement seven - count 'em - seven times.

In a short period of time, I have improved my balance both statistically and in the way I feel about my moving through my every day life. Even K has jumped on the balance board and we are now in direct competition, especially in the slalom race where she has led from the git-go. I am determined to catch up, no matter how long it takes.

No, I don't think that using this game alone will make me fit. But it will make me a healthier person in some important ways, and when I read that rehab centers are using the Wii for patients recovering from strokes, I understand. Just walking more efficiently has helped heaps.

The Wii may be a game system, but if you approach it in the right way, it will add new dimensions to your life which you may never have imagined.

I never expected to compete with K in the slalom, nor she with me, but this is seriously fun stuff, and good for both of us. You might want to park your talent for prejudging things and have a look. I'm very glad I did.