NEW ORLEANS — Video and arcade games that require physical activity can increase heart and metabolic rates enough to elicit a training response, Andrea Brandt reported at the annual meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine.
A training response requires a minimum heart rate increase to 50%–85% of heart rate reserve, and a minimum caloric expenditure of 150–400 Kcal per day through physical activity, according to guidelines from ACSM.
Ms. Brandt, a student at California State University, San Bernardino, reported her findings in poster at the meeting. In her study of 13 adults with a mean age of 26 years, participants burned an average of 226 gross Kcal per 30-minute game session (for a net expenditure of 184 Kcal) and were able to attain a heart rate well above 60% of calculated heart rate reserve.
The study was conducted at an arcade where participants used games, including 3-Kick, a kick-boxing game in which the player hits or kicks stacked pads on posts as they light up; Jackie Chan Studio Fitness Power Boxing, a game in which the player wears boxing gloves with sensors and is matched against a virtual opponent, and Disney's Cars Piston Cup Race, which involves the use of a stationary bike to propel a car in the video game.
Mean resting VO2 was 3.74 mL/kg per min, and mean resting caloric expenditure was 1.39 Kcal/min, compared with 7.54 Kcal/min during exercise. Mean resting heart rate was 82 beats per minute, compared with 163 beats per minute during game playing, which was equal to an average of about 72% of heart rate reserve.
The findings suggest that such games could be recommended as an alternative form of exercise, and could be incorporated into an overall aerobic exercise program, Ms. Brandt concluded.