I’ve recently returned to the Fatosphere so forgive me if someone has already written a post on this topic.
A popular gift this past Holiday season was the Wii Fit by Nintendo. In case you’ve never heard of the thing, Wii Fit allows you to simulate yoga, strength training, balance activities and more. Sounds great right? Well, one of our readers found one flaw with the Wii that wasn’t so great: The Body Test. One of the features of the Body Test is a BMI Calculator which is designed for adults over the age of 20 to calculate BMI and weight.
The Body Test also allows you to track your “progress:”
During your first and subsequent Body Tests, you’ll be asked if you’d like to set a BMI goal for some point in the future which can be customized to fit your schedule. Check out the “What is Wii Fit?” section for more details on charting your progress.
Although this tool is seemingly harmless, I actually see it as one of the many subtle ways which reiterates the popular belief that fitness and health go hand and hand with weight and the BMI. That somehow, those magic numbers serve as a health-o-meter and can tell you all you need to know about your fitness level. Not to mention the idea that fitness progress is directly linked with whether or not your BMI is shrinking.
This is what the reader who called my attention to the Wii Fit Body Test had to say about it:
This game is played by people of all ages and my seven year old cousin (whom I was visiting over the holidays) was registering her height, weight, name, and DOB. After registering, she did a few balance exercises and after she was done, the Wii told her that her wii fit age was 21. Meaning she was not very fit for a seven year old. Mind you she is only SEVEN YEARS OLD and if she lost weight she would be hospitalized for malnutrition! I just can not believe a game that should be fun, can turn into a weight fest!
The main problem with the BMI and the scale for that matter is the fact that for so many women (myself included) these numbers have come to define who we are. They are so much of our identity and serve as a gauge of how we feel about ourselves from day to day.
As I stated before in this post, I have nothing against exercise, health or fitness. What I do have a problem with is this crazy notion that a number alone can actually determine a person’s health. And by including a BMI calculator as a part of a Body Test, it is only further contributing to the lie that weight and the BMI have everything to do with a person’s health.
One of my coworkers recently purchased Wii Fit and he told me the program calculated his “Wii Fit age” as 42… He’s 28!
I wouldn’t be surprised if the company rigged the ‘calculator’ to make everyone seem older than they are, thus encouraging people to play more (i.e. use their product).
That is what concerns me too that people take this too seriously. You know that as well people will try to stretch their limits, if they are 40 try to be as fit as a 16 year old. ugh!!
I asked for (and received) the Wii Fit for Xmas. I wanted it specifically for the balance games. I have a severe ankle injury from a car wreck. I have chronic joint pain.
My Wii Fit age is 57 even though I’m 34. I’m ok with that. Because it’s just a program. My BMI and weight are normal. I suck at the balance games but that’s why I wanted it. I also work on a regular “wobble board” to strengthen my ankle and help my co-ordination. I don’t base my self-esteem on a game.
I also do regular PT (physical therapy) three times a week at the hospital to build up my strength so hopefully I can avoid invasive surgery. I’ll look through my manual, but I think that there are settings that will allow you to turn off the BMI and Wii Fit age and Mii changes.
Another thing I would like to mention, weight and BMI aren’t the only things that factor into your Wii Fit age. If you do poorly on the balance test or if your posture is poor that factors in as well.
All I know is that you have to do whatever it takes to make you feel best. This helps me. Different strokes for different folks.
For what it’s worth, my little brother (who is in high school and has played Wii Fit at a friend’s house) told me that age 21 is the best score you can get, since the game is designed for adults. You actually state this in your post too- that the Body Test is designed for adults over age 20. So I’m not quite sure why you include the example of a 7-year-old girl scoring a 21. That’s not the Wii telling her she’s unhealthy or overweight- that’s a mathematical limitation of the formulas they use, right?
I totally agree that BMI is not a good indicator of health, and that including height and weight in Wii Fit just serves to reinforce the widespread misconception that health is all about losing weight. So I agree with the main point of your post, but your example just serves to confuse the issue.
The reason I hate the Wii Fit is that it tells me my BMI should be 22 because this is the “healthiest” BMI (for EVERYONE), and even people in the “healthy” BMI range should strive for it. If you are overweight according to BMI, your Mii will bulge out and be horrified. I hear from people who have played the game longer (I just tried out a friend’s copy) that if you gain any weight the game will force you to choose from a set of things you must have done wrong (e.g. eating too late at night).
Certainly some of the balance games are fun and balance-improving. But you can’t play them without jumping through the BMI hoops.
I don’t know that Japan has a concept of HAES. I suppose no one has ever written about it in Japanese. But the news services have probably translated plenty of our “obesity epidemic” stories.
I’m still confused as to whether this feature can be turned off. I think it sounds like fun, but I cannot have something that triggering in my daily life. Does anyone know for sure?
I looked through the entire manual. It seems that after the initial set-up, you aren’t required to take any other body tests where you will be subjected to seeing your BMI or weight. You can just play the games.
During the initial set-up you will see your BMI and/or weight and be asked to set a goal but you can choose to not make a change. At least from what I read.
I couldn’t find any information about turning off the changes on the mii. Sorry. There is a Trial Mode that has limited features and doesn’t save data that allows you to play games without having to log in and by-pass the BMI feature.
That’s all I could find for now.
No, you can’t turn it off. And it constantly offers you advice, like what to eat, and how you can always do more and always do better, and it berates you when you miss a day. I would NOT recommend it for anyone who is even remotely likely to be triggered.
Also, in at least one of the modules, the little trainer guy tells you to “fight the fat!”
We have a wii fit – and the agility tests consistently put my wii fit age as anywhere from fourteen years younger to (once) five years older. As far as I know, the wii fit age isn’t based only on the initial agility test, and not at all on the BMI calculation. Thus, my BMI is really high on the wii fit ( a tiny voice squeals, “that’s OBESE!” when it weighs me) but that doesn’t matter as much as my ability to stand properly and balance on one foot.
It’s kind of a schizophrenic message – because there is one element of the program that really, really emphasizes the necessity of being thin, but there are all these other elements that just reward you based on performance, not whether you conform to the ideal body type. And you have to be rally, really thin before the machine will tell you that you are underweight. I had to push my 110-lb daughter’s height up to almost seven feet before the wii fit told her she was underweight.
I don’t have a Wii Fit, but I would like to set a new BMI goal. Now the problem is, how am I going to get six inches taller?
Oh – one other thing – regarding Jessica’s comment on 21 being the prime age that you want to aim for – that was the case with wii Sports, where the fitness rating was calibrated to only adults. The wii Fit does take children’s age into account – so a seven-year-old should be getting an ‘age’ that is consistent with their youth. Again, the BMI reading is separate from the agility testing that determines your wii fit ‘age’ – but there are … ummm… six different tests, maybe? (I did take one this week, but it’s been a while since I was doing wii fit daily) Some tests are easier for different people – I ace the balance tests, but not the one where you have to shift your weight around really quickly.
Once you get past the OMG-my-wii-just-called-me-fat factor, it’s a pretty cool way of trying new things and improving core strength.
Yeah, the Wii fit caused quite a stir after its Great Britain release. It labeled a healthy 4′ 9″ 10-year old athletic daughter as overweight and she promptly started a diet. Her mom shared the experience on a message board and it sparked a lot of TV and news coverage about just how healthy it is for kids. I blogged about it here.
As a side note, the Wii’s BMI calculations aren’t even exact. In the messageboard thread started by the British mom, several people mentioned that the Wii game can be off by 12 pounds or so. They suggested carpet to be the reason for the inaccurate weights.
oh, thanks for the correction, Kimberley. I must have mixed up Wii Sports and Wii Fit. Sorry!
I was thinking the wii sounded cool until all this….ugh. They should definitely put an option for turning off the triggering BMI-progress-thingie.
Alternately: why not lie to the stupid machine? Tell it that you weigh 450 pounds, even if you don’t. Then when the “little voice” squeals ‘OBESE’ you can just be like, I know that, b!@tch! Now let’s play tennis! *hahaha!*
Alternately: why not lie to the stupid machine?
Because from what I’ve gathered you are standing on a thing that weighs you. So you can’t lie to it.
The strangest part is that most people gain weight when they start exercising because their muscles mass increases. And the Wii Fit thinks that’s bad? Eurgh.
I still wish I can get the WII fit.
I love exercise and totally need help with my balance but I refuse to get anything that weighs me. I threw the scale away three years ago and it has been a long hard journey to get it out of my head. So, yeah, no wii fit for me. (though I am cheap, so there is also no wii for me even without the stupid weighy thingy)
Its a balance board…you have to be weighed so that it will work. It uses your weight to sense your movements. Plus, the wii age is based more around your balance and reaction time, etc… its not all about weight. It gives advice because it is geered towards people who want to lose weight and don’t know how, hence the advice. Its not really meant for kids, although they can enjoy the games in it….
I can understand that it is hard to see the mii character become chubby…but if it is how I am is real life and I am fine with that then why would I let a game change that opinion. Why should I play with a skinny character. I think it speaks volumns that a women would be offended by playing a computer game that has a chubby cartoon instead of a skinny one.
We women really are our own worst enemies!!
I have read a few of your posts and they are all interesting and informative…keep up the good work.
Great stuff. Nice to read some well written posts that have some relevancy !
There needs to be a measure for Wii Fit to show progress and justify its existence/sales potential. Instead of continually bashing BMI, what constructive measurement would you suggest for a fitness program?