From escapistmagazine.com:

Michael Torchia, the health and fitness expert who hinted at using legal action against Nintendo over the Wii Fit, says he doesn’t have a problem with the unit itself but stands by his criticism of the way it’s been marketed as a fitness tool.

Earlier in February the fitness guru threatened a lawsuit against Nintendo based on the company’s promotion of Wii Fit as "a replacement for sensible exercise and sports activities." Torchia wanted distribution of Wii Fit halted until Nintendo began including warnings about the possibility of injuries as a result of its improper use and stopped "contributing to the epidemic of obesity" by promoting the balance board as a fitness tool rather than as an entertainment device. "Young and old are putting away their gym clothes and shying away from going outdoors to play sports, because [of] the addictive appeal to the Wii game products," he said.

In a new statement, Torchia stood by his criticism but says he is merely part of the class action lawsuit being put together against Nintendo, adding that he hopes changes are made to the game so legal action can be avoided. Among the specific changes he’s seeking are updates to the owner’s manual to include proper playing and breathing techniques, the imposition of time limits on Wii Fit gameplay, updates to balance board sensors that will help users avoid overexertion and the halt of marketing efforts that present Wii Fit as a fitness tool rather than a game.

From joystiq.com:

Is the female or effeminate male in your life looking a bit chub after the holidays? Then stop on in at GameStop and get them a fitness game and a free 12-month trial subscription to either Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Redbook, Good Housekeeping or O Magazine. GameStop’s "Sharpen the Mind, Shape the Body" promotion emphasizes fitness games and offers magazine trials on select purchases of over $35 until Feb. 22. We’ve listed a few of the "designated" products that are part of the promotion after the break.

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From marketwatch.com:

An independent study at the University of Cumbria found that nine in every ten youngsters want to play video games at the same time as exercising. The games reduce the boredom of exercise.
Fifty children aged 11 and 12 were asked to use exercise equipment combined with video games provided by a company called Gamercize.

The children could play their games only while they maintained movement on the fitness machines. If they stopped exercising, the games paused.

Researcher Jack Tyson said: “The results of this study show that 90% of children like combining video games with exercise.

“Only one in five of these children was achieving the recommended one hour a day of moderate physical activity, while three-quarters of them played video games for more than one hour a day.”

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From timesonline.com:

A study published late last year in the British Medical Journal shows exergames burn more calories than sedentary games or activities, but they don’t pack as much calorie-burning punch as the real games they’re replicating. The study, by England’s Liverpool John Moores University, involved six boys and five girls from 13 to 15 years old.

…

The exergames, which include Wii video games such as tennis, bowling and baseball in addition to the recently purchased Gamebikes and Dance Dance Revolution games, will never be a focal point of Moon’s curriculum.

Instead, they will complement the program’s more traditional sports and fitness activities, said Harry Watts, a Moon Area Middle School gym teacher.

Instead of standing on the sidelines during a sports game like angleball or waiting for a turn to work out on exercise equipment or do a fitness activity, students will be able to grab a Wii game controller or jump on a GameBike to fill the down time.

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From suburbanchicagonews.com:

During a week earlier this month, Glenbard South High School’s two Peer Tutor-Adaptive Physical Education classes piloted “C’motion,” a new fitness-based digital dance gaming program. Similar to “Dance Dance Revolution“, it pairs video dance game technology and high-energy dance moves.

“It’s a way to make fitness fun,” said Karen McMillan, adaptive physical education teacher. “They’re kind of dancing without realizing it.”

The program includes two 46-inch screens and scoring pads to be used by four students at a time. Players stand on a “dance platform,” and, using musical and visual cues, use their feet to hit colored arrows laid out in a cross pattern.

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From theappleblog.com (via iphonematters.com):

You may have caught our round-up of iPhone apps for your car from a few weeks ago.

Well, it’s time for another batch, so here’s our our list of 9 fitness-related iPhone [and iPod Touch] apps. Once again, each item on the list links to a full review with feature and pricing information. Enjoy!

Restaurant Nutrition
If you eat a lot of fast food, but you’re morbidly curious and you want to know what you’re putting in your body, then this is the app for you. I like it because it helps me eat reasonably well when I’m on the road.

LIVESTRONG.COM Calorie Tracker
You probably recognize the Livestrong name from Lance Armstrong’s charitable organization that made yellow bracelets omnipresent. Well, now they’ve given us an app that keeps track of your daily calorie intake/burn.

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