Dr Gill Barry Department of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation

Physiological Cost of Exergaming

What is Exergaming?

Exergaming and Physiological Cost

• It’s recommended that adults should complete 150 minutes of moderate

intensity activity per week (Haskell, et al., 2007; ACSM, 2014), however these guidelines

are not currently met.

• Video games are played 3-7 times per week, each session lasting on average

1.9 hours among 11-15 year olds (Pratchett, 2005).

• Active Video Games (AVGs) may offer a potential solution.

• Recent evidence suggests AVGs may be physiologically effective to increase

fitness (Bosch, et al., 2012; Graves, et al., 2008; O’Donovan and Hussey, 2012), however the

majority of research has been conducted on the Wii

• The activity must be fun and enjoyable to encourage intrinsic motivation (Atkins,

et al., 2013; Ullrich-French and Smith, 2009).

• Advances in AVGs have led to the development of the Xbox Kinect - a freely

moveable, hands free gaming system which promotes full body movements.

MET’s

Conclusion/discussion

90 minute gaming – too long?

METs could have been higher intensity and dropped over the 90 minutes

Wii control flicking of wrist could have impact on EE

Assessing the physiological cost of active video games (Xbox Kinect™) versus sedentary video games in young

healthy males

METHODOLOGYSample

Single Player: 19 healthy male participants (Age: 23 ± 3 years, Height: 178 ± 6cm,

Weight: 79 ± 15kg).

Multiplayer: 9 healthy male participants (Age: 24 ± 4 years, Height: 178 ± 7cm,

Weight: 79 ± 16kg)

Protocol

Participants visited lab on 3 occasions :-

1. O2max Test

2. Single Player Gaming sedentary versus AVG

Protocol

O2max Test

• 5 minute warm up

• 10kph start

• 1kph increments every 3 minutes

• 1% inclination

• Continuous expired gas and heart rate collection

• RPE gathered after each 3 minute stage

Gaming

• Played FIFA and CoD on Xbox 360 and River Rush, Reflex Ridge and Boxing on Kinect.

• Continuous HR and gas collection

• FIFA and CoD played for 15 minutes (RPE collected every 3 minutes, last 30 seconds of each 3 minute stage

averaged for HR and O2)

• 3 rounds played on exergames (RPE collected after each round, last 30 seconds of each round averaged for HR and

O2).

• Game order randomised

RESULTS

  RPE METs %HRmax %O2max Kcal/min

FIFA 6 ± 1 2 ± 1 39 ± 6 10 ± 2 2.0 ± 0.4

CoD 6 ± 1 1 ± 0 38 ± 6 9 ± 2 1.8 ± 0.3

Boxing 12 ± 2ab 7 ± 2ab 69 ± 12ab 48 ± 14ab 9.3 ± 2.6ab

Reflex 13 ± 2abc 8 ± 2abc 72 ± 9abc 55 ± 14abc 10.8 ± 3.2abc

River 11 ± 2ab 6 ± 2ab 64 ± 11ab 42 ± 12ab 8.2 ± 2.5ab

Data for each individual game during single player gaming (N=19).

a = significantly different from FIFA (p<0.01).b = significantly different from CoD (p<0.01).c = significantly different from River Rush (p<0.01).

  RPE METs %HRmax %O2max Kcal/min

Sedentary 6 ± 1 1 ± 1 39 ± 6 10 ± 2 2 ± 0

Exergaming 12 ± 1** 7 ± 2** 69 ± 9** 49 ± 12** 9 ± 3**

Average physiological responses during single player gaming

** Significant at the p<0.01 level.

Discussion

Main Findings

• Exergames caused significantly greater physiological

responses than sedentary gaming (p<0.01)

• AVG elicited moderate levels of exercise intensity (64-

72%HRmax) in line with current recommended

physical activity guidelines.

• Reflex Ridge was the most physiologically demanding

game

Acknowledgements

Susan Allsop (PhD Student, Northumbria University)

Dr Penny Rumbold (Northumbria University)

Dr Caroline Dodd-Reynolds (Durham University)

Lisa Board, Daniel Tough, Racheal Dawe, Phillip Sheeran and Oliver Mattinson (UoS).