Polechoński Jacek, Przepiórzyński Alan, Polechoński Piotr, Tomik Rajmund
Institute of Sport Sciences, Academy of Physical Education in Katowice, Katowice, Poland.
Student Scientific Circle of Physical Activity and Tourism in Virtual Reality, Academy of Physical Education in Katowice, Katowice, Poland.
JMIR Serious Games. 2024 Jul 16;12:e58411. doi: 10.2196/58411.
One of the main contemporary forms of physical activity (PA) involves exercises and games in an immersive virtual reality (VR) environment, which allows the user to practice various forms of PA in a small space. Unfortunately, most of the currently available VR games and workout applications are mostly based on upper body movements, especially the arms, which do not guarantee sufficiently high exercise intensity and health benefits. Therefore, it is worth seeking solutions to help increase the exercise load during PA in VR.
The main aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of elastic arm resistance in the form of latex resistance bands of different elasticity levels on the intensity of students' PA while playing the BoxVR game. We further assessed the satisfaction of this form of exercise and its associations with PA intensity.
A total of 21 healthy and physically fit men (mean age 22.5, SD 2.0 years) were included in the study. The tests consisted of 3 10-minute games. One game was run with no load and the other two were run with 1.5-meter latex resistance bands (low and high resistance). The order of the tests was randomized and the participants rested for 20 minutes after each exercise. Exercise intensity was estimated using objective (heart rate monitoring) and subjective (Borg scale) methods. The Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale was used to assess satisfaction with the PA. The effect of elastic resistance on exercise intensity and user enjoyment was estimated using ANOVA for repeated measures.
The ANOVA results indicated that incorporation of elastic resistance caused a significant change (F2,40=20.235, P<.001; η²p=0.503) in the intensity of PA in VR, which was low while playing without resistance and then increased to a moderate level with additional resistance. The use of elastic bands also changed participants' perceptions of the enjoyment of exercise in VR (F2,40=9.259, P<.001; η²p=0.316). The students rated their satisfaction with PA in VR on a 7-point scale highly and similarly when exercising without an upper limb load (mean 6.19, SD 0.61) and with slight elastic resistance (mean 6.17, SD 0.66), whereas their satisfaction declined significantly (mean 5.66, SD 0.94) when incorporating a higher load.
The intensity of PA among students playing the BoxVR game is at a relatively low level. With the added resistance of elastic bands attached to the upper limbs, the intensity of the exercise increased to a moderate level, as recommended for obtaining health benefits. Participants rated the enjoyment of PA in VR highly. The use of slight elastic resistance did not negatively affect satisfaction with the BoxVR game, although user satisfaction declined with a higher load. Further research should be undertaken to increase the effectiveness of exercise in VR so that regular users can enjoy the health benefits.
当代体育活动（PA）的主要形式之一是在沉浸式虚拟现实（VR）环境中进行锻炼和游戏，这使得用户能够在狭小空间内练习各种形式的体育活动。不幸的是，目前大多数现有的VR游戏和健身应用主要基于上肢运动，尤其是手臂运动，这并不能保证足够高的运动强度和健康益处。因此，有必要寻求解决方案来帮助增加VR体育活动期间的运动负荷。
本研究的主要目的是评估不同弹性水平的乳胶阻力带形式的弹性手臂阻力对学生在玩BoxVR游戏时体育活动强度的影响。我们进一步评估了这种运动形式的满意度及其与体育活动强度的关联。
共有21名健康且身体健康的男性（平均年龄22.5岁，标准差2.0岁）纳入本研究。测试包括3次10分钟的游戏。一次游戏无负荷进行，另外两次游戏使用1.5米的乳胶阻力带（低阻力和高阻力）进行。测试顺序是随机的，每次运动后参与者休息20分钟。使用客观（心率监测）和主观（Borg量表）方法估计运动强度。使用体育活动享受量表评估对体育活动的满意度。使用重复测量方差分析估计弹性阻力对运动强度和用户享受程度的影响。
方差分析结果表明，加入弹性阻力导致VR中体育活动强度发生显著变化（F2,40 = 20.235，P <.001；η²p = 0.503），无阻力游戏时强度较低，增加阻力后强度增加到中等水平。使用弹性带也改变了参与者对VR中运动享受程度的认知（F2,40 = 9.259，P <.001；η²p = 0.316）。学生们在无上肢负荷锻炼（平均6.19，标准差0.61）和轻微弹性阻力锻炼（平均6.17，标准差0.66）时，对VR中体育活动的满意度评分很高且相似，而在加入更高负荷时，他们的满意度显著下降（平均5.66，标准差0.94）。
玩BoxVR游戏的学生的体育活动强度处于相对较低水平。随着上肢附加弹性带的阻力增加，运动强度增加到中等水平，这是获得健康益处所推荐的。参与者对VR中体育活动的享受程度评分很高。使用轻微弹性阻力对BoxVR游戏的满意度没有负面影响，尽管随着负荷增加用户满意度下降。应进一步开展研究以提高VR运动的有效性，以便经常使用的用户能够享受健康益处。
