Last week I had the pleasure of co-hosting a fantastic launch party with Erica for 12 of our lucky readers. We all had the chance to play the brand spankin' new Kinect for Xbox 360 and the ultra-cool Your Shape: Fitness Evolved by Ubisoft.
I completely embarrassed myself at the very end of the evening, when Erica so kindly suggested I challenge our co-host, one of the designers of Your Shape. He doubled my score and then laughed in my face.
Our mummy guests loved Your Shape! It was so gratifying for me to see a group of mommies, all of different ages, lifestyles and fitness levels, enjoying some active play. To up the intensity level, I took it upon myself to travel around the room and give the mummies some drill sergeant treatment while they waited their turns on the consoles.
I arrived home that night, exhausted (because I was up past my 8:30 bedtime... lame... so lame...) and excited. I told Sweaty Hubby just how cool Xbox 360 was.
The next day, true to hubby form, he went out and bought us an Xbox with Kinect.
I was all, "We don't need it. We just bought a Wii last year..." doing my fiscally-responsible, anti-consumerism wife thing.
But secretly, I was all, "YES! YES! YES!"
Because...
It.
Is.
Awesome.
If you haven't heard of the Xbox Kinect or haven't seen it in action, here's a gratuitously cheesy (but short) preview of our new favourite game, Kinect Adventures.
So... the real matter here is, of course... Is it a workout?
Yes!
It's not going to give you the workout that your regular step class or 5K is going to, but you'll be amazed how the Kinect can really get your heart rate up! One of my favourite mini-games on the Kinect Adventures game involves jumping, squatting, sidestepping and hopping so quickly that I was actually getting a cardio workout... albeit for the 2-3 minutes my turn lasted. There are other games that use various amounts of physical effort.
The Your Shape game by Ubisoft offers virtual personal training, cardio, and fun active games to get your heart rate up and train a variety of muscles. The key is to put some old fashioned elbow grease into it. As with most things, you'll get out of it what you put it. Move quickly, ai for the best form with the most effort you can muster and you'll definitely get a mild to moderate workout. Whether you play for 10 minutes or 2 hours, you've made a healthy choice and modeled an active lifestyle to your children.
Don't invest in the Xbox Kinect expecting to finally fit into your old prom dress. But, if you're looking for a great new family activity or a fun idea for Friday date nights, why not get off the couch, move your muscles and have a blast at the same time?
I'm all for it!
Now I'm going to email Sweaty Hubby and set up a Kinect date for tonight!
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