OK so most of us have a Nintendo Wii console or even the new Xbox Kinect and many of us use these consoles for our workouts more than traditional exercise routines. Well if you are one of those that say "I worked out on my Wii fit today" you should consider some of these findings.
While these exergames have become very popular they can be a very very mild form of exercise. The suggested exercise guidelines from the American Council on Exercise are "exercise most days of the week 30-60 minutes of moderate activity." These guidelines specifically state moderate activity so if you are working out using the Nintendo Wii you may be cutting yourself short. Don't get me wrong, any activity is better than none but consider it an excellent supplement to your moderate exercise program. You shouldn't focus on getting your Wii fit time in everyday but rather use it as an added bonus to your weekly activity goals.
Everyone is different when working out so your Wii workout could yield better results than others. Have you realized the lapse in time between instruction and actually performing the game on your console. This lapse in time is detrimental to your workout so choose a game with less instruction and longer challenges. One study showed that most people didn't even reach 60% of their HRmax using the Nintendo Wii fit with an average calorie burn of 3kcal/min. This is a third of the number of calories you would burn with a more traditional workout such as walking for 30 minutes or running for 20 minutes. I tested this study With my Xbox Kinect program and I was able to maintain 72% of my HRmax which is considered moderate exercise. This for me was about 140 bpm. I believe that the Xbox Kinect was able to provide a moderate workout. My suggestion is to monitor your heart rate while working out and determine for yourself if it is an effective workout.
How do you gauge your Gaming workout effectiveness?
Calculate your HRmax:
What is your HRmax? It is your max heart rate. I'm going to keep it as simple as possible for you. You can calculate your HRmax by subtracting your age from 220. This is a basic calculation but it will give you a guage on the maximum bpm your heart should pump. You wouldn't want to reach this heart rate during exercise but you do want to hit your target heart rate which is 60-80% of your max HR.
This is what it would look like:
I'm 25 years old so I woud calculate 220-25 (my age) = 195 bpm = HRmax
I will then take 65-85% of my HRmax of 195 bpm = 127 bpm-166 bpm = Target HR range
Moderate exercise should increase your heart rate to around 65%-75% of your Target HR range.
Moderate exercise for me at age 25 should increase my heart rate between 127-146 bpm.
Monitor your heart rate by using a heart rate monitor watch or check your pulse on your wrist for 15 seconds and multiply your bpm by 4 (30 beats in 15 seconds x 4 = 120 bpm).
If your heart rate is below 65% then you're exercising at a mild intensity and if you're workout brings your heart rate about 85% or above then you may be working out too hard and your body is not ready to work at that workload.
Use this tool to evaluate whether or not you really are getting the workout you think you are using exercise video games. If you are not getting a moderate workout then find ways to increase your intensity (change the challenge settings or really get into the game more and don't cheat yourself) or just use your gaming as an additional tool. Hope this gives you a good perspective on exergames!
Comment below on how you feel about your Wii or Kinect workouts!
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