The gift that kept children playing golf, baseball and bowling in front of the family television set last Christmas brings that same fun to older adults recovering from strokes and joint replacement surgeries.

Nintendo’s Wii Sports is a video gaming system that uses a television screen and handheld controls. Last spring, the more advanced Wii Fit exercise version was introduced. It has both hand controls and a balance board.

The controls and balance board link players to a virtual version of themselves on the screen doing everything from aerobics to yoga.

After having both of her legs amputated below the knee earlier this year, Vickie Allen, 55, struggled to regain her balance and learn to walk again. Now, in that process, she positions herself on the balance board and “skis” in the rehabilitation unit at Life Care Center of Mount Vernon.

“Call me Sunshine,” Allen says as we talk. “That’s what they call me at rehab.”

On screen, Sunshine is dressed in bright colors, smiling and swishing down the slope. She shifts her weight from one ski to the other. She executes a slow, slightly awkward slalom movement continuing her journey with a modicum of thrills and absolutely no spills.

“I love it,” she says. “I’m not very good at it but I keep trying because it’s so important that I learn to keep my balance and walk safely.”

Even after being released from the care center and sent home, she returns three days a week for therapy. If the Wii console is in use, she hangs around, hoping it will be free so she can add it to her therapy regime that day.

Life care center physical therapists Kevin Hill and Paul Nichols use both Wii Sports and Wii Fit as they work with patients. That includes amputees as well as folks who’ve had joint replacements or strokes.

Most are 60 or older.

Nichols says he uses the Wii Fit programs with patients who, like Sunshine, have advanced in their initial therapy and are ready to work on weight shifts and other balance skills.

“The Wii is much more enjoyable for them and just as effective as a much more expensive balance retraining program we’ve used in the past,” he says.

As patients work in front of the 42-inch TV screen they focus more on the exercise and can see their progress, he adds.

Occupational therapist Gordon King uses the easier Wii Sports more, especially with his stroke patients. It helps the gain upper body strength and improves eye-hand coordination, he says.

“People who couldn’t stand up for 15 or 20 minutes get so involved and focused the time goes by quickly for them,” King says.

Kevin Hill, who decided to bring the Wii system into the center’s therapy programs, says many of the older patients were hesitant to use a video game. Others weren’t motivated to exercise at all.

That’s changed. Participating in a game or sport they’ve enjoyed in the past or always wanted to try gets them interested in exercises, Hill says.

Therapists use myriad tools to motivate patients and help them return to a normal, active life; this video gaming system is just another tool in their work kit.

Some seniors are even purchasing the system for their personal use at home. However, like any exercise program, it’s best to check with your physician first.

In the case of older adults who have issues with balance and stability as they walk, starting with a fall prevention program under the direction of a trained therapist is a good solution.

That’s because the physical therapist will evaluate how you move, listen to your concerns and then plan a program geared toward your body and strength, explains Betsy Baker of Olympic Physical Therapy of Everett.

“We help clients challenge their body by attempting different movements and learning ways to balance so they can stay safe on their feet and feel safe in their environment,” she said.

“If you walk only on a smooth surface or stand on a smooth surface, you body won’t know how to keep you safe on any other surface. We help people learn to move in a dynamic way, indoors and outdoors.”

For older adults, learning how to walk and move safely is as essential to quality of life as remembering to take your meds each day.

If your grandkids, like mine, have Nintendo’s Wii Sports and they offer to let you bowl or play baseball, give it a try. It’s fun to learn something new.

It turns out I’m just as bad at bowling on Wii as I am in a real bowling alley. Gutter balls count the same in both games.

Linda Bryant Smith writes about life as a senior citizen and the issues that concern, annoy and often irritate the heck out of her now that she lives in a world where nothing is ever truly fixed but her income. You can e-mail her at ljbryantsmith@yahoo.com.