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Liverpool John Moores Study (LJMU)
A study by the LJMU suggests that playing computer games may
improve health and lead to weight loss in overweight and
sedentary children. The research, compared activity levels
reached during gaming using the motion-sensor controlled Wii
Sports home console with those achieved using traditional
seated joy pad controlled consoles.
The study compared four computer games being played by six boys
and five girls aged 13-15. The eleven participants were
required to play four computer games for 15 minutes each. Three
of the games were active mini games in Nintendo's Wii Sports
and the fourth game, Project Gotham Racing 3, on Microsoft's
Xbox 360. All participants were fitted with monitoring
equipment to measure their energy expenditure.
The results indicate that more active forms of gaming, promoted
by consoles such as the Wii Sports, increased energy
expenditure to a level that, if sustained, could help shift
27lbs in weight over a year. The three key measures tracked
throughout the study were levels of energy expenditure,
calories burned and heart rate across both an active and
inactive console format.
During 15 minutes of play using a traditional joy-pad operated
console, energy expenditure increased above resting values by
an average 60%. In comparison, when using the Wii console,
where the player uses body movements to control the game, the
participants' energy expenditure increased 156% above
resting.
Based on the average gaming week of 12.2 hours, this translates
to a potential 1,830 calories burned per week when using Wii
Sports , 40% more than when using a traditional format console.
In both conditions the energy expenditure of boys was greater
than that observed for girls. Heart rates were also much
greater when using the active console, reaching values of 130
beats per minute, compared with 85 beats per minute for the
traditional console.
In a typical week of computer play for these participants,
active gaming rather than passive gaming would increase total
expenditure by less than 2%. According to Cable 2007 this
figure might seem trivial but it may contribute to weight
management.
The study concluded that motion sensor technology used with the
Wii can accurately simulate the real movements found in sports,
such as boxing and tennis, which can consequently provide
positive health benefits, providing the activity is carried out
over a prolonged period.
In addition the children found the activity-promoting console
exciting to play and particularly enjoyed the sensation of
performing. However, the active games used less energy than
authentic bowling, tennis and boxing and the exercise was not
intense enough to contribute towards the recommended amount of
daily physical activity for children.
The LJMU study provided positive outcomes and statistical
significances in energy expenditure comparing physically active
game consoles to seated controlled game consoles. However, the
study was limited in size and methods used to obtain the data.
The sample population used for the research was small (n=11)
and composed only of lean 12 - 15 yr old sports competent
adolescents who were normal weight for that age group and were
experienced gamers.
There was no randomisation in selection of games for each of
the participants, no measurement of arm movement and there was
no control group. Additionally, there were no comparisons made
to other similar studies or between authentic equivalent sports
such as boxing, tennis, bowling, baseball and golf.
Summary
The Nintendo Wii
Sports and similar video games were designed primarily
for entertainment purposes using physical actions as a
novel form of interaction. The Nintendo Wii Sports and
Fit has shown that exercise games can be both fun and
popular while integrating fitness, balance and
co-ordination. Likewise the study on the Wii Sports by
LJMU has demonstrated that weight loss is possible from
playing new generation wireless operated computer games
due to the number of calories burnt compared to inactive
gaming but the long-term energy expenditure from the
study of 2% was insignificant.
The LJMU study did have its
limitations such as the sample size, lack of comparisons and
availability of similar research. Additionally, young average
weight adolescents would already have a high metabolism and
little weight to lose. A larger study of different sample types
and a wider variation of video games may have revealed more
significant results. Furthermore, there are numerous games that
require players to engage in physical activity such as cycling,
dancing or swinging the virtual tennis racquet. The variation
in calorie expenditure for each of these games could be
significant.
There is currently no research on
the Nintendo Wii Fit and so no comparisons can be made on this
piece of software. The Wii Fit does train core stability,
balance and strength and is the first line of new software
products specifically aimed at improving fitness, balance and
co-ordination as well as providing health based
measurements.
The major benefits of using this software is
the interactive support element such as the virtual personal
trainer, health related feedback and goal setting. This part of
the software is designed primarily for exercise motivation and
exercise adherence and this may encouraging users to take up
the authentic version of the sports or exercise.
In the field of sports
psychology, there has been extensive work in attempting to
understand how to motivate people to start and maintain
exercise programs. Additionally, there has also been
significant work in integrating physical activity into video
games. However, there has been as yet little attempt to
understand the link between what motivates people to perform
exercise and the design of exercise
games.
According to
research by Yim 2007 on co-operative game play, what
successfully motivates some people to exercise are the
availability of interactive games that are fun, that
provide strong guidance, provide access to peers and
fosters a supportive and un-intimidating
environment.
Patricia
Meira
05 Sep 08
Source: http://meirafitness.com
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