It's a nice activity that will get you off the couch and moving a little bit but it is limiting if you're looking to get a serious workout. Most of the exercises just aren't challenging enough to get your heart pumping and don't burn many calories. It's no substitute for going to the gym.
That said, you can get a good workout from Wii Fit U if you plan right. I have used it when I couldn't get to the gym. If you're looking to burn calories and get a cardio workout, I'd create a custom workout consisting of something like this -
- Run all 4 obstacle courses (in my opinion the best and most fun exercise Wii Fit U offers)
- Hula Hoop (high a level as you can handle)
- 10 minute run. There's a few options, either do a straight run or play a running game where you have to find miis.
That alone will get your heart pumping for a good 30 minutes or so.
I've found it's pretty much pointless to use the game for the muscle building and yoga once you've learned how to do the exercises. Just write them down along with how many repetitions you need and do them without the game. Going through the game doesn't add anything, takes too long, and is unnecessary. I really don't need to hear "good job!" "great workout!" and have the game tell me when to start and stop. I've found that getting the balance board balanced on your TV for these exercises isn't much of an indicator of whether your form is correct. So overall using the balance board for yoga and strength exercises is pointless in my opinion.
A lot of the stuff in Wii Fit U is fun but doesn't give you a workout, particularly most of the balance board stuff.
I really like the pedometer functionality. If you're into walking, using the Fit Meter to track your steps and in turn synching it with the game can be very satisfying. If you're not very active, sticking to a goal of say 10,000 steps a day will really help you drop pounds even if that's the only activity you do.
But as with everything, remember that if you're looking to lose weight changing your diet is way more important than exercise.
Edited by alex15810, 10 July 2015 - 06:34 AM.