JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

One of the contemporary forms of physical activity (PA) is exercises and games in immersive virtual reality (VR), which allow the user to practice various forms of physical activity in a small space. Unfortunately, most of the available games and workout apps 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.

Objective:

The main aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of elastic arm resistance in the form of latex resistance bands of different elasticity on the intensity of students' physical exercise while playing the Box VR game. The study assessed the attractiveness and usefulness of such a form of exercise and the relationships between the use of elastic resistance and user satisfaction.

Methods:

The study included twenty-one healthy and physically fit men (age: 22.5±2.0 years). Exercise intensity was estimated using objective (heart rate monitoring) and subjective (Borg scale) methods. The Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES) was used to assess the attractiveness of PA.

Results:

The analysis of variance shows that elastic resistance caused a significant change (F=863.870; p<0.001; η²p=0.503) in the intensity of PA in VR, which was low while playing without resistance whereas it increased to moderate with the use of additional resistance. The use of elastic bands also changed participants' perceptions of the attractiveness of exercise in VR (F= 9.259; p<0.001; η²p=0.316). The students rated their satisfaction with PA in VR on a 7-point scale very similarly and highly when exercising with no upper limb load (6.19±0.61) and with little elastic resistance (6.17±0.66), whereas their satisfaction declined significantly (5.66±0.94) for higher load.

Conclusions:

The use of a small elastic arm resistance increases the intensity of PA during boxing training in VR without affecting its attractiveness, but user satisfaction declines under higher loads. Research should be undertaken to increase the effectiveness of exercise in VR so that regular users can enjoy the health benefits.