New, big, and I've got a question...

[alcoholswabs]

I'm 16 and over 200 pounds. I haven't really thought about losing weight till recently. I've had DDR for about three years and I'm still only pretty good on light mode. I was wondering if playing on light mode (I jump around, sweat a lot, and legs start hurtin) will be good exercise? Also, about how long do you think I should play a day?

[peanutpeach]

DDR is very good exercise, even on light. You will start to get better and you'll be able to move up to harder difficulties that burn more. I play for about 30 minutes to an hour a day and so far I've lost about 30lbs. As long as you are moving, anything is good

[Dakota]

alcoholswabs said:

I'm 16 and over 200 pounds. I haven't really thought about losing weight till recently. I've had DDR for about three years and I'm still only pretty good on light mode. I was wondering if playing on light mode (I jump around, sweat a lot, and legs start hurtin) will be good exercise? Also, about how long do you think I should play a day?

I'm 210 and I've almost AA'd the game on heavy though, so it's hard for me to give advice on light. I don't understand how light mode can be a workout at all. I guess if you move around a LOT when you play it.

Just yeah, play a lot.

[alcoholswabs]

Jeez, thats something I just can't imagine being able to do, I'm horrible at standard.

[abrannan]

Nobody playing at the Light level can imagine themselves playing at Standard or (heaven forbid!) Heavy. But you keep playing, and light gets easier, and you find a Standard song with a lower difficulty rating than some of the Light songs you're playing, and you try it, and you almost make it. And you keep trying, and suddenly you can pass one Standard song. Then somewhere along the way something "clicks" and you finally figure out how those cursed 8th note patterns work, and BAM! You're playing 6 and 7 footers like they're nothing. Then you start working on a Heavy song or two, and before you know it, you're trying to figure out which 10 footer to try to pass first (Hint: It's 'Sakura').

[alcoholswabs]

I guess that makes some sense, maybe I should try and find some Standard songs to play. I've been playing light songs for years.

Also, do any of the DDR versions have a mode where I can pick a bunch of songs and just keep playing? I hate having to stop when the song is over and find another song to play.

[talon]

Sakura is probably my favroite song for DDR, my best so far is AA on standard, I keep trying it on heavy but I just cant keep up yet. anyways on to the question:
when I first started playing I couldnt go for more than ten mins with out a break, but I would do ten on and two off to catch my breath and stuff, pretty soon I didnt need the two off as often, now I play for anywhere from 2-4 hours on standard and I take a breather every hour. this might seem extreme but I lost 20 pounds in a month, I dont know if its good for me or not but I did start out at over 300 so I guess its ok. anyways basicly what I am trying to say is do what feels right for you, then do just a little more. Thats how I push my limits and force my body to work with me, that last song of the day is always tough and quite often I just want to quit early but I force myself to muscle through it, it builds endurance and helps you in the long run. I think so anyways.

best wishes all.

[urbanjunglekitten]

alcoholswabs said:

I guess that makes some sense, maybe I should try and find some Standard songs to play. I've been playing light songs for years.

Also, do any of the DDR versions have a mode where I can pick a bunch of songs and just keep playing? I hate having to stop when the song is over and find another song to play.

That entirely depends on what console you are using. If you have an Xbox, Ultramix 2 has their workout mode set up so you don't select the songs . . . it randomly selects them and you just keep playing until you have to stop. You won't get scores for your songs but if you are looking just for long periods where you dance and dance and dance until you drop, you can get it with UM2.

I don't have a PS2 so I can't give you much insight there. I believe there is an option where you select songs on some of the games to keep playing for a while but I'm not the person to ask.

Also, I thought I would never move up from Light Mode, but as Abrannan said . . . trying the easier songs in Standard until you get the 1/8th note patterns down seems to be the way to go as far as learning Standard. Some of the games include Light Mode songs that also have 1/8th notes, which is easy to learn. And, since the games usually include a Training Mode, take advantage of it! You can slow down the songs and get help with difficult step patterns until you can gradually speed them up.

I still get a pretty good workout from Light Mode tho. Some of the harder Light Mode songs make me sweat just as much as Standard and the few Heavy songs I can do. I like to do Light Mode when I'm in the mood for a long workout . . . I save Standard for when I need a quick workout before I have to go somewhere. But that's just me.

UJKitten

[alcoholswabs]

talon said:

now I play for anywhere from 2-4 hours on standard and I take a breather every hour.

I wish I could play that long, I get to about 30-45 minutes minutes and I'm dying.

[talon]

as you play more your endurance builds up, unfortunatly it goes away quickly if you take a break so you have to play atleast a little as often as you can, I took a month off by "acident" before and it took me two months to get back to my previous play level. just a warning is all.

[alcoholswabs]

Well so far I've been able to get about two 30 minute sessions in each day, I'd play more but I get tired fast.

[fuzzybutton]

If you play alot, you will get better faster than you ever would've thought. I went from light to heavy in two months. Then I stopped, and now I struggle on standard. D: Sooo, practice all the time.

[DDRMom]

alcoholswabs said:

Also, do any of the DDR versions have a mode where I can pick a bunch of songs and just keep playing? I hate having to stop when the song is over and find another song to play.

Endless Mode in DDRMax2 for PS2 is great for that - When you set up Endless you can either pick "regulation" which doesn't offer any modifiers, or you can turn off regulation and customize your game with the songs you want and pick how often you want a break. Great for building up stamina gradually!

[asylumzero]

Oh, I definitely remember my days on light mode. I lost 10 pounds in a month (I'm really short, so that's like.. A lot for me XD) just by playing on light mode then going to standard, and so forth