Fans of yoga and those interested in improving their overall fitness and well-being will be able to practice Yoga from the comfort of their own home. Utilizing the Wii Balance Board and following step-by-step instructions from a variety of in game Yoga Gurus, players will be guided through a variety of popular Yoga exercises.

Players will be able to monitor their progress with a dynamic tracking system and set up a schedule to follow. The yoga guru, acting as your own personal trainer, will make suggestions to you based on your progress and computations taken from the Balance Board. The Wii Remote and Balance Board will be used for many poses to determine the player’s balance and any movements or shifts in weight by the player will be detected and recorded once the pose is complete.

Yoga for Wii has three play modes – Story Mode where players start the game as a beginner and finish as a yoga guru; Training Mode where players have the opportunity to learn new poses to add to their routines; and Routine Mode, a set of consecutive yoga poses either user-created or pre-created routines. There are mini-games to test the player’s knowledge of yoga and predetermined routines created to help alleviate common ailments. Yoga for Wii is beneficial to anyone wanting to try Yoga and discover its unique way of providing strength, flexibility and endurance training while at the same time creating a powerful connection between mind and body.

A very enthusiastic yoga practitioner, top model Anja Rubi will not only grace the cover, but also accompanies players during numerous relaxing Yoga exercises, providing player motivation throughout the game. Anja Rubik is considered one of the upcoming stars of the model scene and is ranked among the top 15 international supermodels.

A total of 30 Yoga poses bring you mental and physical well-being and health for soul, spirit and body. Top model Anja Rubik, currently ranked third in the international Model Ranking, offers a short preview of what is in store for “Yoga” players:

• Mountain Pose - Tadasana: The standing posture Tadasana is one of Yoga’s most important and basic poses – it is the beginning and end point for most standing poses, and is well-suited for beginners. The Mountain Pose helps one achieve an upright posture: The balls of the feet and the heel are placed firmly on the ground, the arches raised slightly, and the toes spread. The back should be straight with the arms held straight down to the sides. Thoughts are calm and the body is calm and stable – like a mountain. The mountain pose can easily be integrated into everyday life and helps you train good, correct posture – the huge benefits of which, both on physical and mental well-being, can be felt immediately.
• Corpse Pose - Shavasana: Shavasana, the Corpse Pose, is a basic Yoga posture: You lie back, completely relaxed, and feel the contact with the ground with all body parts that touch the Earth. The head and neck should be straight. In order to relax, concentrate your mind on each body part, one after the other, and pay close attention to everything this body part is feeling. Any tension present is thus released automatically. Shavasana is frequently used as a relaxation exercise at the start of a Yoga session, or as a meditative finish to a challenging practice session.
• Lotus Position - Padmasana: The Lotus is probably one of Yoga’s most well-known positions. The triangle formed by the rump, knees and arms forms a stable foundation. The Lotus position is a perfect pose for meditation since it allows one to remain utterly motionless and concentrated for a long time. The heels of the feet, each resting on the opposed thigh, activate important energy spots in the abdominal area, the hands rest comfortably on the knees, the head and neck are straight and help upright, but relaxed. Slow and measured breathing helps to relax muscles and lower blood pressure. There is increased blood flow to the abdominal area, which helps activate nerves near the Os Sacrum and tailbone. This also has positive effects on the digestive tract.
• Lord of the Dance - Natarajasana: Natarajasana (also known as Natarajasan, Nataraj oder Nataraja Asana) is one of Yoga’s simpler balance exercises. To perform this pose, stand upright and set your eyes on a fixed point. The pelvic and abdominal muscles are tensed. Now move your weight to your left leg, then grasp your right leg with your right hand and gently guide it upward, while the left arm extends horizontally. The upper body leans forward or back and up. Advanced practitioners can bring their foot up to the head. This Yoga pose is beneficial to balance, strengthens the rump muscles and vitalizes the entire body.

Yoga for Wii is under development and set to be released Nov. 2009