Best Nintendo Wii Game for Fibromyalgia Sufferers- EA Sports Active 1

One morning last summer when I was getting out of my bed, my body was so stiff and in such terrible pain, that my knees started to buckle and I nearly fell to the floor. I was 52 years old and my body felt like it was 92. I had had enough. These aches and pains had been going on for months and were getting worse. Something was wrong and I wanted to know what. If it was arthritis or some other debilitating disease, that was fine, I wanted to know, get the drugs to get rid of the pain, and get on with my life. After some tests and x-rays, I was sent to a rheumatologist who diagnosed me with Fibromyalgia. I knew a little about this condition as my mother and younger sister had it. I asked the doctor what the standard treatment was and he said antidepressants, exercise and diet (with exercise and diet being his preferred method of treatment). Being stressed out from the pain and unable to exercise, he suggested I try a low dosage of Effexor, (which I weaned myself from six months later). As my stress started to lessen, so did my pain, so I started reading about exercises for Fibromyalgia.

Most experts recommended walking, swimming or bicycling for Fibromyalgia sufferers. These were fine, but I had just purchased a Nintendo Wii the year before and enjoyed the workout it gave me, when I was not in pain and able to use it. I started researching the programs made for the Wii and that is when I came upon the EA Sports Active 1 Program. I read reviews, and watched demonstration videos regarding the different exercises, and how I could create my own exercise regime, work out with a friend and even set goals. My only concern was how much I would be able to use it if my Fibromyalgia was bothering me. It turned out buying the EA Sports Active 1 was the best Wii product purchase I have made thus far to help my Fibromyalgia.

EA Sports Active 1 is a great workout program for people with Fibromyalgia for several reasons; one being you can create your workouts to fit your locations of pain or pressure points. EA Sports Active 1 has preset workouts consisting of predetermined exercises ranging from levels of easy to hard and targeting certain muscles. There are also individual exercise segments that allow you to put together your own workout, choosing the exercises and duration you want. The ability to choose and group together exercise segments have allowed me to create a workout that compliments my Fibromyalgia pain. If I have pain in my shoulders, I will perform the lower body exercises and upper body exercises that do involve the shoulders such as bicep curls. I put the exercise segments together in a 20, 30 and 60-minute workouts, depending on how much time I have or can spend exercising. If I am experiencing pain in my knees, I have setup exercise segments in a workout program that targets the upper body area. However, Fibromyalgia can be a little weird when it comes to pain at the pressure points, in that squats may hurt my knees, but running does not, so I can include running as part of my upper body program.

EA Sports Active 1 also has a 30-day challenge that consists of predetermined exercises, levels and durations. I had been reluctant to begin this workout because if my Fibromyalgia started causing me pain, I may not be able to finish it. I gave the idea some careful thought and decided to try the challenge anyway. If I was unable to complete the challenge, at least I had tried. Halfway through the challenge, my fear became a reality when I started feeling pain in my left knee. However, because EA Sports Active 1 gives you the ability to change the impact level of each daily workout, I switched from a hard level to easy level, thus enabling me to stay with and complete the 30-day challenge.

EA Sports Active 1 may not be the answer for all Fibromyalgia suffers, but it has benefited me greatly with eliminating much of my pain, sleeping better and just feeling better overall.

Sources: Personal Experience, EA Sports