While I’ve only tried it a few times so far (remember that knee injury I mentioned? The doc thinks it might be the beginning of a cartilage problem… which means I get to wear a brace for a few weeks, pop Tylenol Arthritis for pain and avoid stairs like the plague. In short? Bah.) it’s been a lot of fun! I started by creating my own avatar (complete with custom hairstyle and workout duds…Kinda like the one in the pic above) and completing my profile. Then it was onto the good stuff. You can either put together a custom workout or take the 30 Day Challenge. And since I’m a big fan of a good challenge, I chose the latter.

For the first session of the 30 Day Challenge, I worked out in the living room for 25 minutes and burned over 150 calories. Not too shabby, hmm? I got my sweat on, and I really had a great time doing it. In addition to boxing and inline skating, I got to jog, lunge, squat, row and do some bicep curls. Not bad for 25 minutes! It definitely doesn’t feel like work. And my favourite part? It lets you know if you’re not doing something quite right – a bonus for me, since I’m always pretty conscious about my form when it comes to squats and lunges. The instructional videos are a huge bonus, too (and feature an actual person, which helps). Another great feature is that the workout changes every day, so you’re not just doing the same exercises over and over (I’m looking forward to getting to the dancing part).

Last night, Brad and I decided to give the multi-player option a try. We had way too much fun hitting virtual tennis balls and baseballs, and competing to see who could sink the most shots in basketball. My only complaint about the sports activities is that there are no soccer-related options. Now, I know there is only so much that the EA team can squeeze into one game… But don’t you think that a little “keep up” could be good for the booty? Really now.

Bottom line? If you’re looking for an alternative to the Wii Fit, this is a fantastic option. It gives lots of positive feedback, comes with a handy resistance band, and gives really detailed instructions/demonstrations. Add to that a great website choc full of resources, and you’ve got a pretty good foundation for getting back in shape. For more on the EA Sports Active’s features, check this out.

Has anyone else tried the EA Sports Active yet? What do you think?

5 Steps to Make Your Own Album Cover:

1. Go to “Wikipedia” and click “Random Article” (or click here) The FIRST random Wikipedia article you get is the name of your new band. I was hoping for “Llama Face,” but no such luck.

2. Visit the Random Quotations page here. The last four to six words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album. Huzzah!

3. Go to Flickr and click on “explore the last seven days.” Need a shortcut? You can find it here. The third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover. As a side note, if I ever do put out an album, this is actually how I will choose my cover art. Because it’s fantastically random. And we all know how much I love random awesomeness.

4. Use Photoshop (or a similar editing program) to put it all together!

5. E-mail your fabulous creations to alicia@aliciamcauley.ca and I’ll post my faves on this very site!