Wii Fit contributing to $40 million in yearly home damage

by Stevie Smith - Jun 17 2008, 10:06

The popularity of revolutionary ‘gamercise’ experience Wii Fit may be inspiring the lazy to abandon their sedimentary lifestyles in favour of vigorous interactive movement, but a new report suggests that Nintendo’s health and fitness regimen is also playing its contributory part in causing significant damage within the home.

More pointedly, a survey carried out by female-oriented insurance company Sheila’s Wheels has revealed that women attempting to increase their fitness from the comfort of the living room could be causing in excess of £20 million GBP’s (approx. $40 million USD’s) worth of damage to both their homes and themselves each year.

While the emergence of Wii Fit has led to a resurgent consumer interest in at-home exercise, which also includes the likes of more conventional celebrity-fronted fitness DVDs and workout videos, it would appear that an over exuberance when it comes to calorie burning is costing people more than just sore muscles and two showers a day.

Specifically, the Sheila’s Wheels survey revealed that almost 20 percent of all women who enjoy pursuing indoor fitness have been involved in some kind of related accident, with 30 percent of that figure injuring themselves against closely situated furniture, while 18 percent have fallen over pets and a further 13 percent have bumped their heads in some way.

In terms of collateral damage registered against inanimate objects within the home, the survey found that ornamental vases were the most likely to be broken during exercise, while television sets followed close behind.

The Nintendo Wii recently made the news with regard to energetic players losing their grip on the console’s motion-sensing controllers (the Wii Remote and Nunchuk), which has led to broken TV screens, overhead lighting, and even patio doors.

When it comes to totalling the potential damage being caused by women exercising at home, the survey suggests that the average cost per home is around £6.55 GBP ($13 USD), which, when measured against the UK Government’s female population estimate, equates to a sizeable bill of £20.1 million GBP ($39.4 million USD).

According to Jackie Brown of Sheila’s Wheels, the company’s research has shows that many women “are shying away from gyms and are increasingly keen to exercise at home” in order to save time and money while working towards that ideal summer bikini body.

“Although indoor fitness can be a great way to build some regular activity into your daily routine, exercise a little restraint and prepare your at-home keep-fit area thoroughly beforehand,” advises Brown.

Although the Wii Fit and its pressure-sensitive Balance Board are currently driving consumer interest in a more focused sense of healthy living in both sexes and across demographic age groups, the survey also found that most women are still drawn to the lure of home fitness DVDs and videos. Further to that interest, around 60 percent of those polled admitted to owning one, while approximately 50 percent of that number said they preferred to workout with an on-screen celebrity presenting and participating in the experience.

“Working-out indoors has been a popular craze for decades and it’s good to see people are still turning to their favourite instructors and celebrities on screen for inspiration,” commented famous TV fitness guru Diana Moran (The Green Goddess) in a Metro report. “However, it’s really important that people are adapting their workouts to the limited space they have in their homes.”

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