Virtual Reality “exergames”: A promising countermeasure to improve motivation and restorative effects during long duration spaceflight missions (original) (raw)
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Augmenting Exercise Protocols with Interactive Virtual Reality Environments
2021 IEEE Aerospace Conference (50100), 2021
The exploration of space will require ever-increasing exposure to microgravity environments. The human response to this exposure has been categorized and mitigated via countermeasures, principally exercise. However, additional constraints to future mission design minimizes the allotted space and modalities for exercise, creating a risk for psychological fatigue, a reduction in motivation, and a suite of other categorical factors that could, taken together, present a risk for reduced adherence to the countermeasures and/or mission performance.
Application of virtual reality for crew mental health in extended-duration space missions
Acta Astronautica, 2018
Human exploration of the solar system brings a host of environmental and engineering challenges. Among the most important factors in crew health and human performance is the preservation of mental health. The mental wellbeing of astronaut crews is a significant issue affecting the success of long-duration space missions, such as habitation on or around the Moon, Mars exploration, and eventual colonization of the solar system. If mental health is not properly addressed, these missions will be at risk. Upkeep of mental health will be especially difficult on long duration missions because many of the support systems available to crews on shorter missions will not be available. In this paper, we examine the use of immersive virtual reality (VR) simulations to maintain healthy mental states in astronaut crews who are removed from the essential comforts typically associated with terrestrial life. Various methods of simulations and their administration are analyzed in the context of current research and knowledge in the fields of psychology, medicine, and space sciences, with a specific focus on the environment faced by astronauts on long-term missions. The results of this investigation show that virtual reality should be considered a plausible measure in preventing mental state deterioration in astronauts, though more work is needed to provide a comprehensive view of the effectiveness and administration of VR methods.
Astrojumper: Motivating exercise with an immersive virtual reality exergame
2011
We present the design and evaluation of Astrojumper, an immersive virtual reality exergame developed to motivate players to engage in rigorous, full-body exercise. We performed a user study with 30 people between the ages of 6 and 50 who played the game for 15 min. Regardless of differences in age, gender, activity level, and video game experience, participants rated Astrojumper extremely positively and experienced a significant increase in heart rate after gameplay.
The Biological and Motivational Effects of Aerobic Exercise With Virtual Reality
Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 2020
Purpose: There is no significant evidence of both biological and motivational effects between virtual reality exercises to traditional/conventional exercise. The aim of this study is to assess the biological and motivational effects of aerobic exercises with virtual reality and traditional exercise methods. Methods: 20 students participated as control and 60 students were divided randomly and equally into two groups, virtual reality exercise group (VRE) and traditional exercise group (TE). Two groups completed the exercise training. Tests were applied to the three groups at the beginning and in the end of the study. An activity monitor and pulse oximeter were used to measure energy expenditure during exercises. Results: After eight weeks, the data from pulse oximeter showed no statistical significance between the exercise groups. The active energy expenditure, PAL and step counts were statistically significant in TE group. There was a statistically significant increase in the sleep quality of the TE group (p = .000). There was no statistical significance among the anxiety scores of all groups. In the spring semester, there was a statistically significant increase in both VRE and TE groups compared to the fall semester (p < .05). Conclusion: The virtual reality exercises produce greater motivational effects, whereas traditional exercises bring greater physical improvements.
Frontiers in Physiology
Objectives: This cross-sectional, randomly assigned study aimed to assess the influence of immersive virtual reality (VR) on exercise tolerance expressed as the duration of a submaximal exercise test (ET) on a cycle ergometer.Methods: The study enrolled 70 healthy volunteers aged 22–25years. Each participant performed an ET with and without VR. Time- and frequency-domain heart rate variability (HRV) parameters were analyzed for the first 3min (T1), the last 3min (T2), and the time at which the shorter of the two tests terminated (Tiso). In the time domain, a SD of R–R intervals (SDNN) and a root mean square of successive R–R interval differences (RMSSD) in milliseconds were computed. The following spectral components were considered: low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF), total power (TP), and LF/HF ratio. The study was registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04197024).Results: Compared to standard ET, tests in immersive VR lasted significantly longer (694 vs. 591s, p<0.00001) and...
Virtual Reality-Based Exercise with Exergames as Medicine in Different Contexts: A Short Review
Clinical Practice & Epidemiology in Mental Health, 2019
There is enough evidence that, nowadays, the sedentary lifestyle is one of the major health problems worldwide, linked to many chronic diseases, including mental comorbidities, systemic hypertension, metabolic dysregulation, and cancer. Although health societies recommend engagement to physical activities, there is an overwhelming number of people remaining sedentary, even knowing the health benefits of regular exercises. One of the main factors that justifies this scenario is the lack of motivation, which is a barrier to people intended to start new habits for health. Considering this previous information, new alternatives for exercises may help people engage in a healthier lifestyle. Technology has contributed to this with devices that allow movements based on virtual reality approaches, including the exergames. These are games available even in commercial devices, as video-games, that allow people to work with different physical components. Furthermore, exergames add cognitive ga...
2021
Objective: Exercise with virtual reality (VR) is a novel approach to the promotion of health and the components of fitness. Our objective was to investigate the effects of exercise with VR on physical performance, mental fatigue, and physical fatigue in single-stage aerobic and anaerobic running.Materials and Methods: Twenty physically active, healthy, age-matched male university students executed the exercise test in aerobic and anaerobic groups in two separate sessions of VR (first-person perspective in a simulator) and non-VR (traditionally in the laboratory). The simulated environment was a graphic tunnel route. The aerobic and anaerobic groups engaged in the Bruce protocol and anaerobic speed test, respectively. Exercise test duration, blood serum lactate concentration, rating of fatigue (ROF), and heart rate were recorded at the end of both sessions.Results: Intragroup comparisons using the dependent t-test indicated that the exercise test duration significantly increased in t...
Virtual-reality exergaming improves performance during high-intensity interval training
European Journal of Sport Science, 2018
To determine if: i) mean power output and enjoyment of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) are enhanced by virtual-reality (VR)-exergaming (track mode) compared to standard ergometry (blank mode), ii) if mean power output of HIIT can be increased by allowing participants to race against their own performance (ghost mode) or by increasing the resistance (hard mode), without compromising exercise enjoyment. Methods: Sixteen participants (8 males, 8 females, VO2max: 41.2 ± 10.8 ml-1 • kg-1 • min-1) completed four VR-HIIT conditions in a partially-randomised cross-over study; 1a) blank, 1b) track, 2a) ghost, and 2b) hard. VR-HIIT sessions consisted of eight 60 s high-intensity intervals at a resistance equivalent to 70% (77% for hard) maximum power output (PMAX), interspersed by 60 s recovery intervals at 12.5% PMAX, at a self-selected cadence. Expired gases were collected and VO2 measured continuously. Post-exercise questionnaires were administered to identify differences in indices related to intrinsic motivation, subjective vitality, and future exercise intentions. Results: Enjoyment was higher for track vs. blank (difference: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.6, 1.3) with no other differences between conditions. There was no difference in mean power output for track vs. blank, however it was higher for track vs. ghost (difference: 5 Watts; CI: 3, 7), and hard vs. ghost (difference: 19 Watts; 95% CI: 15, 23). Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that VR-exergaming is an effective intervention to increase enjoyment during a single bout of HIIT in untrained individuals. The presence of a ghost may be an effective method to increase exercise intensity of VR-HIIT.
Effect of virtual reality-simulated exercise on sympathovagal balance
PLOS ONE, 2020
Discovery of therapeutic avenues to provide the benefits of exercise to patients with enforced sedentary behavior patterns would be of transformative importance to health care. Work in model organisms has demonstrated that benefits of exercise can be provided to stationary animals by daily intermittent stimulation of adrenergic signaling. Here, we examine as a proof of principle whether exposure of human participants to virtual reality (VR) simulation of exercise can alter sympathovagal balance in stationary humans. In this study, 24 participants performed 15 minutes of cycling exercise at standardized resistance, then repeated the exercise with a virtual reality helmet that provided an immersive environment. On a separate day, they each controlled a virtual environment for 15 minutes to simulate exercise without actual cycling exercise. Response to each treatment was assessed by measuring heart rate (HR), norepinephrine, and heart rate variability, and each participant's response to virtual exercise was compared internally to his/her response to the actual cycling. We found that neither post-exercise norepinephrine nor post-exercise HR was significantly increased by VR simulation. However, heart rate variability measured during virtual exercise was comparable to actual cycling in participants that engaged in moderate exercise, but not in those that engaged in high-intensity exercise. These findings suggest that virtual exercise has the potential to mimic some effects of moderate exercise. Further work will be needed to examine the longitudinal effects of chronic exposure to VR-simulated exercise.