EA Sports Active: More Workouts

For those of you who aren’t already familiar with EA Sports Active, this Nintendo Wii game was released May 19, 2009. It uses the motion controls of the Wii to track the movements as players complete exercises. Players can create exercise routines and are encouraged to take a 30 Day Challenge where they use the game to workout 5 days a week for 30 days. The game plays similarly to an interactive exercise video, with the advantage of allowing you to view the calories you burn as you complete exercises.

One of the biggest strengths of the game is the ability to invoke community involvement. For example, a new 5k Challenge was recently announced to encourage players to train for, and participate in a 5k race. The EA Sports Active website provides community encouragement to meet the goal and find a local 5k race to participate in. This is appropriate as one of the exercises rumored to be included in EA Sports Active: More Workouts is a new running exercise. All told, there are rumored to be over 35 new exercises and stretches in the new expansion pack for EA Sports Active.

Based on the title, EA isn’t trying to hide that this is not an entirely new game but an expansion on the original game. EA is not the only company to do this for the Wii Fit. Nintendo recently released an update to their popular Wii Fit game called Wii Fit Plus, and for $19.99 it is a must have for Wii Fit fans. There are many EA Sports Active fans out there who opted to not purchase the Wii Fit, and for them EA Sports Active: More Exercises will be very appealing. However a suggested retail price of $39.99 may keep all but the most active fans from buying this game.

As we get closer to the release date I’ll be sure to keep all of my readers up to date with the details of the exercise, and as soon as I can get my hands on the game I’ll write a much more detailed review. In the mean time you can Pre-Order EA Sports Active: More Workouts from Amazon.com for $39.99.

Wii Fit Plus was released yesterday, October 5th 2009 for the Nintendo Wii with little fan-fare. This game is best considered to be an expansion pack for the original Wii Fit game. New Wii Balance Boards will come with Wii Fit Plus, and for those players who already own Wii Fit can purchase Wii Fit Plus for approximately $20.00 from Amazon.com, or their local video game store. Wii Fit Plus will import all existing data from Wii Fit and allow you to use all of the same excercises and play the same games, so you won’t need your Wii Fit disc anymore – you’ll just use Wii Fit Plus.

New Features

While Wii Fit Plus includes all of the same features as the Wii Fit, it also includes a number of additional features not previously available. There is now a My WiiFit Plus section which gives you the ability to configure a custom workout, view the calories in many foods, and set personal goals. There are also 3 new Yoga positions and 3 new Strength Training exerciseswith3 Strength Training Challenges. There are no new Balance Games, but there are 15 Training Plus games and exercises! While I haven’t tried them all yet, I was very impressed with the selection.

The weigh-in and fitness test features are relatively unchanged. You could always weigh in pets, babies, and other objects but now there is an ability to register you baby or pet as a player. This is a neat feature, but the only problem is that it takes up one of your player slots so if you have a lot of friends who use your Wii Fit you may not have room because the player limit is still 8 players.

Calories Burned

One of my biggest complaints about the Wii Fit game was that you couldn’t view your calories burned, but now the exercises and games show you the calories burned after completing them. The calories burned are calculated by the METs of the exercise, your weight, and the length of the exercise. METs are a standardized unit of measuring the number of calories burned, each exercise has a METs value assigned to it which lets Wii Fit Plus calculate your total calories burned. The calories are then tracked in your Wii Fit bank so you can see the total calories burned for the day as well.

Obstacle Course

The first game I tried out on the Wii Fit Plus was Obstacle Course, found under the new Training Plus section. In this fun game you have to walk between moving platforms, jump over obstacles, and run past wrecking balls. On my first attempt through the obstacle course I made it to the second stage and didn’t think walking on the Balance Board could possibly be a good workout. I tried it a couple more times and made it to the third board and found that all of the jumping was actually making my legs pretty tired. After 4 attempts Wii Fit Plus reported that I’d burned about 50 calories and it felt like it.

I can’t wait to try out some more of the games and explore all of the new features. When I setup my first workout routine I’ll be sure to post an update. For the $20 it cost this game was well worth it, or if you like to shop around for the cheapest price, Amazon.com currently has a discount on Wii Fit Plus.

Wii Fit Plus – $19.49

Not Just Cookies – Dinner Recipes are Critical

Siegal’s version of The Cookie Diet emphasizes a very structured dinner plan as well as only eating cookies throughout the day. In Dr. Siegal’s Cookie Diet Book he describes many meal options, but the core of the plan suggests that you eat 6 ounces of meat, and a cup of vegetables for dinner each day. Since red meats are higher in fat, Siegal suggests that you avoid those if possible. To hold you over until dinner you are required to eat 6 weight loss cookies the rest of the day. Between the cookies and the dinner most dieters will consume about 800 calories a day on The Cookie Diet.

Does the Miracle Cookie Diet work?

The question many people ask is whether or not the cookie diet actually works. This question is a little bit more complicated than that. Of course if you consume 800 calories a day you’re going to lose weight, if you can stick to this strict diet you are going to shed pounds quickly. Dr. Siegal’s advertisements say you can lose 15 pounds a month, which seems to be believable. The reason why so few people succeed on this diet is that while a cookie diet sounds good in theory, that isn’t all your body wants and needs.

The majority of people who try this diet start to ‘cheat’ within the first 2 weeks. While the cookies are tasty at first, soon you want more. Also, since the dinner recipes are so strict it makes eating out with friends and family impossible. For most of us, our biggest challenge is not eating out so much, and for those of us who struggle with eating out we should not even waste our time with this diet. Another problem many dieters have on The Cookie Diet is that when they change back to their normal diet routine they gain the weight back quickly. When you only consume 800 calories for a couple of weeks your body enters into ‘starvation mode’ and begins to conserve nutrients more. When you immediately jump back up to 1600 calories a day your body isn’t prepared for it and doesn’t fully utilize the additional nutrients you’re consuming.

Cookie Diet Side Effects

In addition to gaining the weight you just lost back, some people who try The Cookie Diet will experience other side effects. Dizziness and loss of energy are the most common side effects of any ultra-low calorie diet. Taking nutritional supplements and vitamins may help alleviate these side-effects, but until your body becomes used to that lack of food you may still experience these conditionals. Additionally the cookies do not agree with everyone, suffers of IBS (Irritable Bowl Syndrome) may be especially susceptible to diarrhea and stomach cramps. Before beginning this, or any other diet I would highly recommend you discuss it with your physician. Since your nutritional intake will change significantly you may be at a higher risk for disease or illness if you don’t supplement your diet with the proper nutrients. If you take Acai Berries or similar supplements while on this diet you may be at a higher to experience upset stomach, nausea, or diarrhea.

Smart for Life Cookie Diet

The Cookie Diet which has recently caught the attention of the media is the Smart for Life diet. Like Dr. Siegal’s Cookie Diet you buy a supply of cookies to eat each day to hold you over until dinner. The plans are very similar if you choose the Smart for Life Cookie Diet Lifestyle Program. On this program you’re given cookies and a recipe book, and you can get started right away. On the Smart For Life Medical Program you must live near one of the 11 Smart for Life Centers nationwide. You then go in and work with a physician to guide you through the program. For those who are concerned about the side effects of The Cookie Diet, this plan may be best for you.

If you or anyone you know has had success with, or experienced side affects from The Cookie Diet other readers would be interested to hear about it. Please leave a comment describing your experience with The Cookie Diet so other readers can be well informed about their diet choice.

Since an average 140 lb woman burns 1500 calories in a day without exercising, if she is adds in about an hour of cardio she can easily get her calories burned in a day up to 2400. When she is on this diet this is a result of 2250 calories lost in a day. One pound equals 3500 calories so  a 140 lb woman could easily lose 2 pounds in 3 days. This rapid weight loss technique is very appealing for the speed at which pounds can be shed, and some woman will continue on this diet for weeks.

Using the Watermelon Diet for prolonged periods of time is very dangerous. When consuming only 150 to 200 calories in a day you might as well consider yourself fasting. This minimal calorie intake is useless in sustaining your body, and you will soon lose the energy to exercise, and eventually your body will have difficulty fighting off disease and just maintaining itself. Typically after a few days on the strict version of this diet people will begin to experience diarrhea and bloating since they’re consuming large quantities of water as well. If used for too long this diet may even lead to serious health risks such as hypovolemic shock. As soon as you get off the diet the weight is typically gained back quickly since your body isn’t used to calorie rich food.

A healthier version of the Watermelon Diet requires you to substitute a cup of watermelon for one meal a day. As far as your body is concerned, this is just about the same as skipping a meal. While it can help you lose weight in a pinch, over the long term you will have many of the problems associated with the more strict version of the Watermelon Diet. If you have an event you need to lose weight for the most reliable and healthiest method to lose weight is to plan ahead. Set a goal for yourself two or more months out and identify how many calories you will need to burn in a day to meet your goal.

If you add an extra 30 minutes to your exercise routine each day you will find that you will not only lose more weight than you will on the Watermelon Diet, but over the long term you won’t gain it back. Diet and Cardio alone are not enough if you have a large amount of weight you want to lose. Add weight training as this will increase the number of calories your body burns at rest. Before beginning the Watermelon Diet or another other diet it is important that you consult your doctor as everyone has unique medical requirements, and your doctor is the expert at identifying them and suggesting a course of action that will not only result in you losing weight, but being healthier too.