Fitness Coach Club

I have bought a great number of exercise dvds in the past but end up getting bored with them as at the end of the day they are the same thing over and over. I am not one for computer games at all but after being introduced to the wii as a tool to keep me exercising with the original MY FITNESS COACH I am well and truely hooked on this "game" it has so much variation it is excellent at keeping you motivated to reach your goal. One thing to watch out for is that all the workouts are in alphabetical order so i didnt realise that there are some short warm ups in amongst the workouts and you must do one or two of these before you do your main workouts. I am going to ask my daughter about how you can download your own music for the workouts and additional workouts like it says you can in the product feature cos like i said i am no good with computers however I wont need new workouts for a long time as there are so many to start with. I am probably not using all the features on the game that i could be but i am definately seeing results in my fitness and body shape.

Having just come off of Sports Active 2 I wanted something a bit different so picked this up at a stunning low price. Firstly the menu is a bit of a mess you would think that it would be in some order per group eg, warm ups 1,2,3 easy,medium ,hard workouts but its not just all mixed together, once you have done some workouts and know your way around its not too bad but really its like no thought has gone into the planning! You choose a goal eg relaxation or loose weight and it recommends workouts and you get point for doing them which really does nothing, its kind of like why bother with that, unlike Sports Active there is no way of tracking what you are doing so it is move compatable but you can choose not to use it, all doing the move does is give you a great after a set of movements. I would say less than half the workouts involve the move. As it doesn't track you , you can stop mid rep or even go out of the room, so you can't really track progress, weight loss,calories or even if you are in the correct position for the rep which would be really helpful for pilates. I was a bit dissapointed as there is only Pilates not Yoga on the disc the yoga workouts add-on is another£7.99 from the ps store. I have done the kickboxing type workouts, pilates,dancing and core. The dancing is either very repetative or they do some moves even my 8 year old was what are they doing and how are they doing it, because this is one of my main gripes they don't really tell you how to do the exercise, what position you should be in etc, so its kind of following the on-screen person and hoping. It really is like other reviewers say more like an interactive dvd than a proper workout game like Sports Active or Zumba.But its weakness is also its strength, I really enjoy picking and choosing going from pilates to kickboxing or doing short workouts from each group. Another gripe is you don't know what is in the workout til you are actually doing it so need to work your way through the game and pick your favourites.
Very easy to add music to, simply search for your playlist on PS3 , very clear instructions, but sometimes the game decides only 3 songs are compatable with the workout, which is fine on a short one, but not for a 30 minute workout!
For under a tenner I would definately recommend it for anyone who wants a workout, but I wouldn't have it as my main one I'm using it with Zumba for PS3 at the moment so do maybe half hour at pilates then a Zumba workout, so its nice to have so I can mix things up a bit, and also as I twisted my ankle recently to choose low impact exercises (most of the pilates is done lying on your back)to keep fit but rest up my ankle.

Am amazed to have become a bit addicted to this. Many exercises are things I wouldn't have dreamt of doing like spot running with your legs wide apart, looks ridiculous yet its difference makes me think it's doing good.

There are a few modes so you can set goals and use the exercises prescribed or go into 'tab' mode and pick out what you want or tab-tab mode and group them differently. It can be hard work as it likes to do more reps than you would normally do although there are easy and pro routines which tends to mean 3 minutes v 30 minutes.

Each exercise is categorised as to whether it's upper body + cardio, lower body + flexible etc with a level of intensity for each. Some dancing, pilates, martial arts as well. This is set against daily targets, a history of activity and overall tally broken into categories. There are easy, medium and hard exercises. I'm into data so this is a positive to me.

In general the vigorous exercises tend to be male avatars while the others are female. The Move Controller is used for around half the exercises although in my opinion it will be as good without. It does give bonus points for good moves with the Move controller though.

You can set your own music from Playstation Playlists.

A negative point is you can't stop an exercise and get a part score or rest, or fast forward to miss one you don't like, it's all or nothing. You can let it run to the end do the bits you want and get the same score without Move.

Yes, after 3 weeks I'm using this 4-5 times a week and very keen although haven't yet got the knack of some of the moves especially balance and back exercises. In general I find the PS3 is a great tool to learn new dexterity and physical ability through perseverance for a 60+ year old like myself, although you'll need to be careful if you are new to exercise.