The original Wii Fit, released in 2008, contained a deep-breathing exercise and 14 yoga poses. The Wii Fit Plus disk that came out in 2009 added three more poses and allows you to string the poses together in a routine, thus more resembling an actual yoga class. While purists may balk at having to do Warrior II with one foot on the Balance Board, the board does enable Wii Fit to give you feedback, via a red dot in a yellow circle or oblong, on whether your balance is in the optimum range and to rate your performance of the poses.
Initial Poses
Wii Fit takes you through a deep breathing exercise, standing on the Balance Board with your hands on your abdomen, inhaling and exhaling, followed by half moon, warrior and tree. Half moon pose stretches your oblique muscles and improves posture. You perform a standing stretch with arms above head, biceps by ears, hands clasped with index fingers released, followed by bending to the left and then the right. Wii Fit's warrior pose is actually called warrior II in traditional yoga practice. It works to strengthen the thighs and hips and align the pelvis as you perform a bent-knee lunge with arms extended at shoulder height and gaze forward. Tree pose strengthens the legs and back, requiring you to stand straight with the base of your foot on the inner part of your opposite thigh.
Unlocked Poses
Wii Fit requires you to accumulate minutes in your FitBank to gain access to more demanding yoga poses, with the sun salutation available after 15 minutes and the shoulder stand after four hours and 10 minutes. Wii Fit Plus provides all its poses without unlocking. Sun salutation asks you to hold your arms above your head, then bend down and touch the floor. Standing knee involves standing on one leg with both arms wrapped around one knee in front of you. For palm tree, you stand on your toes and throw your arms behind you and your back forward. Your quads and abs feel quite tested the chair pose, which involves assuming a position as if sitting in an invisible chair.
Advanced Poses
Triangle pose requires you to place one foot off the balance board and behind you, twisting your body to bring the opposite hand to grab the ankle still on the Balance Board and directing your free arm toward the ceiling. For downward-facing dog, place your hands on the Balance Board and your straightened legs on the floor behind to make an inverted V, pulling your hips toward the ceiling. The challenging dance pose asks you to stand on one foot while pulling the other leg behind you, pulled toward your buttocks, with one hand.
Floor Poses
You won't need the Balance Board for these poses, so just follow along with the trainer on the screen. For cobra, lie face down on the floor, pushing your upper body up. Lie face-up for bridge, with your arms under your back as your bent knees pull your waist upward. For spinal twist, lie face up on the floor and twist your knee across your body. Straighten your legs into the air for the shoulder stand, supporting your lower back with your hands.
Wii Fit Plus
The spine extension, one of three extra poses on Wii Fit Plus, starts with a lunge, followed by bending of your upper body forward, arms behind your back. Wii Fit's version of the gate pose has you kneel off the balance board with the other leg straightened on the Balance Board and do a deep side-bend toward the straightened leg. In the grounded V, you sit on the board with your arms behind you for support and raise your straightened legs.
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