Knock-out cardio

Flex, Sept, 2009 by Greg Merritt

If you like to pound out some of your cardio by throwing punches at a sparring partner or a heavy bag, check out the new Gold's Gym Cardio Workout ($29.99) for Nintendo Wii. It's primarily a fat-burning boxing game (focused largely on arm and shoulder movement) with optional detours to such mini-workouts as running, jump roping and log cutting, some of which utilize the Wii Balance Board. The pugilistic interaction is not flawless (you may need to telegraph some jabs and hooks), but it's an entertaining way of working up a sweat and a welcome reprise from the tedium of StepMills and treadmills. Boxing is also featured in the hugely popular Wii Fit ($89.99) and the new EA Sports Active ($59.99), also for Wii; but, when it comes to building a burn, both feel like undercard matches compared to the main event of the more affordable Gold's game. We look forward to future advances in the rapidly changing "exertainment" field, but for now, the Gold's Gym Cardio Workout is the gold standard for serious aerobic gaming.

--Greg Merritt