Wii Fit - Initial impressions

Santa brought the kids (myself included!) a new Wii for Christmas, and - once the supply backlog was caught up - a Wii Fit balance board as well. We're having so much fun with it, I thought I'd break my long silence on this blog with a review.

Just a touch of update. I've been a bad boy so far this winter. I've fallen into my usual sedentary habits, sitting on the couch, doing chores, lamenting the "bad weather", and not exercising much at all. The commuter bike has been languishing in the garage, and the road bike isn't even set up on the trainer right now. Shameless, I know. I'm more tired, have gained a few pounds, and my sugar levels are out of whack, too.

So, enter the new Christmas toy. I'll try to keep this review short, and to the point re: fitness and such. This review will cover the Wii system and the balance board hardware. I'll devote a separate report to the Wii Fit game itself.

Wii itself

First, the Wii itself is a LOT of fun. It may not have the high end graphics of the other systems, and might be missing the latest shoot-em-up, but there is a lot of family fun to be had, and the motion sensitive controls are a hoot! Even with the bundled Wii Sports games, you can get a quick workout. It's easy to work up a sweat with Boxing or Tennis, and the Bowling and Golf are surprisingly realistic.

We've also tried We Ski (awesome!) and Shaun White Road Trip snowboarding (also rocks!). These I highly recommend for some relaxing fun. They will get your adrenaline pumping.

The downside: Despite the many titles that do encourage you to get up and move, there are quite a few things that will also encourage you to sit down and vegetate in the traditional video game style. TwinBoy is addicted to LEGO Star Wars (admittedly a very fun game). It does allow you to initiate attacks (specifically Jedi moves and lightsaber attacks) with hand motions, as well as a few other things, but mostly it exercises your thumbs. Don't worry, he gets plenty of exercise jumping up and down and yelling at the game. He can't sit still to save his life.

It would be nice to have a game that does lightsaber duels by tracking your actual "blade" motions, rather than simply triggering a predefined attack move. This may already exist and perhaps I just haven't seen it.

It should be noted that Wii games are generally by nature cartoonish. If you are looking for hyper-realistic visuals, look elsewhere. This is the land of Mario, Sonic, and Miis, so you have to expect that sort of style.

Wii Balance Board (Hardware)

The Wii Balance Board itself seems well constructed. Solid, heavy, able to take some abuse. I would have preferred it come with a rechargeable battery instead of alkalines, but the starter kit (extra $$) included one. The standing surface is smooth and sturdy, and a nice, clean white color - for now.

This is the first downside I see. I'm not sure how to keep this clean. I can see why inexpensive covers for the board are a popular item. It is also just a bit slick if wearing socks, but works fine in shoes or barefoot. Again, an aftermarket cover would help with this issue.

The board dimensions are reasonable. It's small enough not to be overly obtrusive, but large enough to do its job properly. I'm 6 feet tall, and it is wide enough for me to place my feet shoulder width apart - barely. I could see an aftermarket "outrigger" cover with a stiff board that is wider for some games, or for very large or broad-shouldered people. It seems strong enough to hold quite heavy folk.

I have only one other major complaint so far. Apparently, only one board can be used at a time with the Wii, and it takes the place of one of the remotes. This is apparently a limitation of the way the balance board is recognized by the Wii system.

It would be nice to be able to use multiple boards for group exercise or multi-player games. For example, Shaun White Road Trip allows up to 4 players (with remotes) to zoom down the hill in multi-player mode. If you use the balance board, only one can use a balance board, and since that person also needs a remote (for tricks), only three can play. It would be nice to be able to use two boards.

Other than that, it's an incredible system. I can see why it is so popular and hard to get. The complaints I have are very minor, and do not detract significantly from the overall enjoyment.

Death By a Thousand Cuts

In politics, the title phrase refers to the tactical method of accomplishing a goal by taking many tiny steps to reach the end, so that the "victims" don't notice what is happening.  For instance, if one wanted to quietly repeal the 2nd Amendment, one way to do it is to progressively add more and more "minor" restrictions on gun ownership until eventually the right is effectively removed.

I'm not here to talk politics, though.  Just to use the phrase.  I've spent the last couple months now "recovering" from a series of ills.  First, the prostate thing (better now, thank you), and then a lingering virus that seems to not quite want to go away.  Plus there have been a number of work issues that have kept me quite busy, and the weather has been worse than normal for November.

The net effect is that I have not been able to commute at all lately.  Nor have I been doing much exercising at all.

What does this have to do with "death by a thousand cuts?"  Well, I've been observing my own behavior during this time, compared to the months prior when I was commuting regularly.  It occurs to me that every day we make a series of decisions, the sum of which have a lasting effect on our well being.  "What should I have for lunch?"  "Walk or drive?"  "Take the stairs or the elevator?"  "Work out today or tomorrow?"  "How about that night snack?"

Individually, none of these decisions are significant.  One cookie, or one trip on the elevator is of no consequence in the grander scheme of things.  Taken collectively, they can be literally life or death decisions.  Over the course of a year, I'll decide what to eat well over a thousand times.  I'll climb stairs or ride the elevator hundreds of times.  These "little" decisions add up to a pattern of habits.  These habits define, to an extent, who I am and what I become.

Since habits are formed as the sum of individual decisions, every decision becomes a life-or-death decision.  Every decision can become a furtherance of the habits that have gotten you where you are, a way of preserving the status quo.

On the other hand, every decision becomes an opportunity to change the status quo.  Every meal can be the first step toward  a new habit.  Every trip through the office door is a chance to choose the stairs.  Every dawn is a new opportunity to become someone different.  We are creatures of habit, but we can change those habits.  The challenge is to recognize and seize the opportunity for that change.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life.  What will it look like?

Hope! Change! Chain lube!

No... still not talking politics on this blog.

Yesterday I (finally!) got back on the bike and commuted. New saddle, new shoes, and new shades. Lots of change. The new saddle was much more comfortable, and there was noticeably less pressure where there isn't supposed to be pressure. I still need to adjust the saddle tilt a bit. And, with more weight on the "sit bones" (where it's supposed to be), I'll need to get that area toughened up a bit as well.

The new shoes worked flawlessly, except that I had the left cleat installed a tad crooked. Fixed that on my lunch break, no problem. Walking is much, much easier in these shoes. I could wear them all day at work in a pinch, and they're reasonably fashionable in a "lightweight hiker" kind of way.

The weather was gorgeous. Mid-50's on the way in, mid-70's on the way home, sunny and a light breeze. A wonderful day to ride. In all, an outstanding November ride.

Looking forward, it's going to get challenging. Today is another gorgeous day, but schedule did not permit riding. Tomorrow is supposed to be cooler and wetter (40's in the AM, topping out at 60, with chance of showers), and I'm sure next week will be cold, too. Still, it seems the hardest part of the whole ride is the part between the bed and the front door.

The other key thing is that while I was not riding, I managed to clean and lube my drive train. What a huge, HUGE difference that makes! Pedaling was nearly silent, shifting was quick and crisp, and there were no more problems getting into my #6 gear in the rear. It was like a bike upgrade for the cost of an old toothbrush and half an hour of my time. I'll write more on this in a separate post.

And so, there is Change - new stuff, new biomechanics, pressure relieved, wearable shoes, clean gears... and there is Hope - good weather and a promise of health improvement.

Just one word today...

VOTE!

Product Review: CamelBak Better Bottle

Funny how much the time spent meditating on my bike is/was a muse for this blog. I miss it. It seems while I was riding I had a neverending font of ideas to write about. Now that I'm in bike-exile, thoughts are more sluggish, ideas are harder to find.

One thing I have been wanting to do is the occasional product review. This one is about the CamelBak "Better Bottle." I've been searching for quite some time for a bottle that I will actually use to drink more water (and less Diet Coke) at work. I've tried several, and they all seem to come up short in some way or another.



(Photo courtesy of R.E.I. - a great place to buy one of these...)

The Better Bottle is basically a plastic bottle in one of two sizes (0.5 and 0.75 L) with a fancy screw-on cap. The bottle is made of BPA-free Tritan (looks/feels like Lexan, but it's not...) The cap includes a handy carrying loop and a flip-out, spill proof "big bite" sip valve. This is a larger version of the sip valve used in CamelBak's more famous hydration packs, and works quite well. You can hang a full bottle upside down and shake it with no leaks. An internal straw lets you drink (nearly) the whole bottle down without tipping.

I like the way the valve, when flipped closed, is fairly well protected from damage and dirt. I did notice when drinking from it that it tends to shoot cold liquid against the back side of my front teeth, which can be a bit uncomfortable at first. This is a minor issue, and seems to have gone away as my teeth got used to the cold.

My favorite part of the bottle is the hanging loop. Integrated into the lid, it's easily strong enough to hold a full bottle, and sized just right to hook a finger into. This makes the bottle easier to carry than a soda can -- an important feature when I'm feeling lazy. It can also be used with a carabiner to clip the bottle to a pack or belt loop.

One minor nit to pick: The 0.75L bottle is just a little bit too large to fit into a standard bicycle bottle cage or an automobile cupholder. If you intend to use it this way, I'd recommend going with the 0.5L size (which from the pictures appears designed to fit a standard cup holder).

Another nice thought: CamelBak claims the lid (also sold separately!) is built to match a standard size bottle, so you should be able to attach the lid to a standard bike bottle and solve the cage issue. I have not tried this yet, but it looks like it would work.

The Better Bottle comes in a variety of colors, including some interesting patterns, if you like to dress up your liquids. At $13 retail, it is quite an expensive bottle, which makes me worry about misplacing it, but here's the key. Unlike most of the other bottles I've tried, I actually tend to use this one... and isn't that the point?

Some musings on "reduce reuse recycle"

Hmm... my enforced sabbatical from the bike (symptoms improving slowly, btw) has left me reading a lot and thinking a lot.  Since at least part of my impetus for cycling to work - and hence part of the raison d'etre (did I spell that right? excepting diacritics?) of this blog - is at least some measure of environmental responsibility, I suppose I should wax a bit about the topic (and yes, I'm feeling a bit "wordy" today).

First, I don't consider myself an "environmentalist" or a "tree-hugger".  I'm certainly not a "liberal", either.  I think the current political labeling system is far too simplistic and ham-fisted, but I'd have to say I'm "conservative" or even "libertarian" on most issues.  I'm certainly not in favor of government mandates to force everyone to do things a certain way.  I think that runs essentially counter to the fundamental core of America's spirit - one of individualism, bootstraps and all that.

And yet, when I see the TV running with nobody watching, or I make another 2-mile trip to the store in my car, I wonder if I couldn't be doing better for myself, my family and the environment.

Nothing left but to explore some of the reasonings and rationalizations for voluntarily and individually living in at least a somewhat more "earth friendly" way...

I think in short it has to do with thinking long term and thinking about one's impact on the world around himself.  Sometimes the best thing long term isn't the best thing short term.

For starters, let's look at the obvious question of why bike everywhere (or even most or some places) instead of driving?  Here are a few practical thoughts:

* Less gasoline bought
* Lower maintenance costs
* Less net time spent exercising
* No health club fees
* Lower cholesterol and A1-C scores
* Overall better health
* Lower purchase price for the vehicle(s)

Just looking at the money aspect, all of these reduce the overall cost of living.  Any money saved in these areas can be redirected to savings and investment, or to spending on more "fun" things.  There is clearly, therefore, an economic benefit to biking over driving.  There are trade-offs, however:

* More exposure to the weather
* More exposure to "overuse" injuries
* Longer travel times, especially outside the urban core

I'm sure there are others.  However, for most folks, these downsides are not nearly enough to tip the balance.  A car can be retained (or rented!) for bad weather or long trips, and the exposure to overuse injuries must be balanced against the overall increased health due to increased exercise.  Again, for most people, biking wins.

There's a dubious argument, of course, that cycling is somehow more dangerous than driving.  However, the statistics don't bear this out.  In fact, studies done worldwide show that the health benefits of regular daily cycling far outweigh the risk of injury or death from accident, and that in fact cycling is no more dangerous than driving an SUV.

What about other "green" activites?  Simple things like keeping unused lights and other power drains off, wise choice of thermostat settings, and weatherproofing have long been touted as good ways to reduce home energy costs, and also contribute to reduced CO2 emissions at the power plant.  Money in  my pocket, and green!

We're talking about getting a rain barrel and having a small garden in the yard.  I don't know if we'll truly get any direct economic benefit... I strongly suspect that tending the garden will cost more in sheer $$$ than simply hitting the grocery.  On the other hand, the kids will learn something of hard work and tilling the land.  Again, I think the benefits will outweigh the costs.

It boils down to eliminating waste and focusing on what really matters.  Every watt a light bulb in an unused room burns is a penny my kids could be tossing in Trevi Fountain someday.  Every gallon of gas I burn between home and work is a movie we could be watching together and another hour of the day I have to carve out for exercise.

So, a little bit at a time, I suppose I'm turning green in my "old age"...

Grounded...

I'm off the bike for a couple weeks.

(CAUTION: Icky medical details follow...)

I was due for a checkup on my diabetes, and I've been having some, aah... urinary issues. Discomfort, flow problems, etc. So, after seeing one too many Flomax commercials, I popped in to see the family doctor. After the usual round of tests (cough! cough!), he sent me home with an antibiotic. Diagnosis: prostatitis, a rather annoying inflammation of the prostate gland. My wife dove into the Internet and uncovered the possibility that my cycling may be exacerbating the problem. More specifically, my 10 year old not-so-anatomically-engineered saddle might be exacerbating the problem.

So, just to be on the safe side, I'll be taking a break from the commute for a couple weeks while I treat the problem. Then, weather permitting, I'll ease back into riding (with the more-anatomically-friendly saddle moved over from my road bike) and see what happens. It could simply be a bacterial infection, but...

Why in the world would I put such a potentially embarrassing diagnosis on the web for everyone to see? Well, I bet I'm not alone... and besides, It would seem a bit weird for me to mysteriously stop posting for a couple weeks...

Worst case, I'll have to ditch my traditional bikes, grow a (full) beard and ride one of these:


(photo courtesy RANS Bikes... this is their popular Stratus XP model...)

Don't worry... I'll be chronicling my adventures with cross-training and maybe adding a few articles on cleaning and maintaining bikes during the interim. Besides, if I'm going to get back in to triathlons, I'll eventually need to learn how to run and swim!