Check out this great video featuring Gamercize GZ Pro-Sport for Xbox 360 by Zach Fodor
Active Gaming: Gamercize from Zach Fodor on Vimeo.
Showing posts with label phyical activity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label phyical activity. Show all posts
Friday, February 8
Gamercize Pro-Sport for teaching PE
Tuesday, December 7
Top 5 Reasons Kids get Bored of Exergaming
Health and fitness need sustainable interest!
The reason why it is important to keep interest in exergaming is the side effects are improved health fitness and weight management. These benefits don't come overnight, so kids need to be engaged in the long haul.
If you are putting exergaming in front of kids in schools, youth clubs or at home, here's the top reason kids get bored of certain exergames;
1. The "game" is just not fun -
Could you imagine the stereotypical teenage boy putting down his copy of Mario Kart Wii and picking up a copy Daisy Fuentes Pilates? If you can imagine that then - you are sure to make this mistake when implementing exergaming in any setting. The whole point of exergaming is making exercise fun for people that don't like or don't do exercise. Looking for an activity that is engaging and fun for kids is a very easy - video games. Looking for an activity that is physical, engaging and fun is the shortest step away - exergaming (where the game is the focus). Drop those fitness titles, kids find them boring off the bat!
2. Fit kids keep winning -
Ever seen a kid picked last when a PE class is split into teams? The kids last across the line in a running race? Do you think they feel motivated to improve, committed to the team, confident in their abilities? Probably not, so why re-enforce this experience in exergaming? Unfit kids will get bored and disinterested very quickly if they need to bring fitness and skill to the party. Exergaming can be the environment where "un-sporty" kids can succeed in a physical challenge. Exergames that rely on pre-existing skill and conditioning doesn't hold interest for the majority - and that's fast becoming "vast majority" as kids exercise less and weigh more. Forget exergames that are simply electronic sport by any other name.
3. There are no rewards -
In school, there are always objectives, learning objectives, development objectives or some other form of progression. Video games equally are full of progression; scores, trophies, achievements, leader boards, fastest laps, power ups, new levels, bonus content, upgrades, the list goes on. One of the addictive aspects of video games is the objective of progression. Many exergames lack the basic progression design aspect and get very boring after a short period of time. BUT; even with these flawed exergames it's possible to make off-screen rewards and build structure around exergaming in schools and clubs. Exercise buddies, tournaments, cross curriculum learning - there is so much more to exergaming than dropping equipment into a setting and "letting the kids get on with it".
4. There is no variation -
How boring would this blog be if every week I posted the same post? Ok, I'm not saying this blog holds fantastic interest, but I bet I'd lose all 5 readers in 2 weeks without variation. It's common knowledge kids get bored easily. Kids even get bored of a video game... eventually, but they never get bored of their video games console. They can vary the game they play, and that's what keeps them interested. Consider an exergame where you can't update the game - disaster! In a club or school the implementer can prolong the engagement of a single exergame, but not forever.
5. It doesn't work! -
Badly designed exergames rely on hype for sales, not quality experiences, and leave the player frustrated and quickly bored of it. Have you ever watched a broken TV? For how long? (Hopefully less than a few seconds!) The same usability and functionality goals exist in exergaming, if the game controls are too hard, not responsive or just don't work - kids will get bored in an instant. Exergaming is supposed to make exercise easy, and not difficult or frustrating.
What these factors lead to is an investment in fitness technology that gathers dust, moving further and further towards the back of storage.
Do you think you know how to resolve these issues and counteract those reasons? I do, and I'll let you know next week... but for now a clue - exergaming needs to put the "game" first and the "exercize" just needs adding on the end!
Tuesday, November 17
Exergaming Research in Shambles
Study Results from Professionals or Puppets?
Last week the American Council on Exercise released a study that showed Wii Fit didn't come up to it's standards of moderate to vigorous physical activity. This week Nintendo released a study showing that Wii Fit does meet the standards. Who is right?
The moderate to vigorous physical activity standard is very important. It's the basis behind every single country's government health advice. It's the sustained target at which fitness levels improve and overweight health risks can be reduced. Irrespective of METs and V02MAX measurements the basics are "activity that makes you sweat after 5 minutes duration".
Wii Fit is bringing researchers and active gaming (and governments) into disrepute with the constant commercial push and pull with science fact. Largely this is all irrelevant when you look at figures from the Nintendo channel that show a half hour use per month average. Is it MVPA or not, it doesn't matter if you don't use it.
Ask people what they consider good exercise and you'll probably come back with running, swimming, cycling, sport and the number one answer - the gym. Think about what you find in a gym that makes people give this answer - that's right, cardio fitness machines. Now take a look at the picture below and ask yourself - why isn't this exergame (and others like it) being studied?
The reason is awareness, or rather lack of it, in the wider community. There are so many active gaming options available to suit all abilities and interests. Just take a look at the Interactive Fitness and Exergaming wiki site. It's time for researchers to research a bit more before starting trails to make sure they have right equipment under test.
Looking deeper into the work that ACE has done reveals a good tempate for results with easy, medium and hard settings tested, and the full range of biometric data. In looking forwards perhaps the standard needs to be set (or maybe ACE has already set this?) and the different options need to be explored.
Tuesday, September 1
Are video games sport?
Health Promotion in the Golden Decade of Sport
When you watch sport on TV how would you choose to participate, join a local club or go buy the video game?
This presentation explains what the Golden Decade of Sport means, and how it relates to increased physical activity and healthy lives. If video games steal the show, how can this be of benefit to health promotion? Find out more...
Monday, July 20
More to Come from the Calorie Burn Benefits of Exergaming
Wii and DDR show the trend!
It's good to see the recognition that DDR has given exergaming in the raising of awareness that active video games can burn calories. BUT, there is more to come.
As you can see from the chart Nintendo Wii and DDR (Dance Mat) are indeed good exercise, something that we published in 2006, so it's not really news to us. What I'm waiting for is the researchers to pick up on Gamercize, with it's whopping calorie burn of over three times Nintendo Wii.
But that's not the full story, Gamercize is configurable, so if you can't kick out 650+ calories per hour, then you can tune it to your level. In the case of the Power Stepper you can bring back the effort to DDR levels, and with the Endurance Cycle, back down to Wii/Eyetoy levels.
It's important that you (or your personal trainer) sets the level of effort required, because everyone is different, and everyone should be allowed to achieve at their current ability and given the chance to improve.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
