Fun Exercise Ideas: Dance Dance Revolution (DDR)

About Dance Dance Revolution:
Dance Dance Revolution, a.k.a. DDR, is a dance video game controlled by the player’s feet. It’s played on a dance pad with eight panels. These panels are pressed using your feet in response to the arrows that appear on the screen.

The object is to synchronize your movements to the beat of a chosen song, in other words: Match the arrows on the screen with the movement of your feet on the dance pad.

See DDR In Action:
To see DDR in action check out these two great videos:

Video 1: Awesome DDR Moves
Video 2: Malcolm in the Middle - Dance Dance Revolution Parody - This is a hilarious skit taken from the sitcom Malcolm in the Middle which will also give you a very good idea of how DDR works

Exercise & Calorie Burning Potential of DDR:
You’re guaranteed great exercise each time you play DDR. The game essentially pushes you to dance fast. After a few days, when you get better at the game, you will be burning at least 300-400 calories/hour.

There is also a calorie counter with DDR games which estimates how many calories you’ve burned while playing DDR, so that will give you an even better estimate.

Let’s say you play the game for 15 hours/week for 4 months (17 weeks):
300 Calories x 15 Hours x 17 Weeks = 75,000 Burned Calories (22 lbs, 10 Kg lost).

DDR Playing Options:
There are two ways to play DDR:

At an arcade
At your home, using a video game system

DDR Machine Locations:
DDR Freak has a great list of DDR locations across America and around the world. Simply choose your state or enter your zip to get information for your local arcade. They also list: