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Exergaming has another ‘voice’ so to speak with our newly introduced Interactive Fitness and Exergame Network Skype Discussion Sessions – phew : IFEN Skype Sessions

If you are curious or you are already a convert to the amazing fitness potential that exergaming offers, then you are very welcome to be an active ‘vocal’ participant in the Skype session. You are equally welcome to follow proceedings as a silent spectator in the background should you feel more comfortable. We can only take a max of 24 people for the event, so please get in early as you may miss out otherwise.

The next session is on Saturday 12th 9pm GMT and will be our 5th discussion. The major topic relates to defining exergaming; what is it, how do we describe and define it, what’s its purpose etc. These discussions are informal and far from elitist, so join in and have a say in the direction of exergaming globally.

Exergaming and the Wii begin another beautiful relationship. Two days before the ‘official’ release in Australia, I got my mitts on the game and have just now finished two 25 min workouts. One a preselected workout and the other customised. So I’ll give a very brief overview of my findings:

In short, it does so many things right, that you can excuse most of what it doesn’t do, or what it does poorly. Comparison with Wii Fit is inevitable, and you can well understand the logic behind the comparison, but they are apples and oranges. Wii Fit is light-hearted, with its BMI heart in the right place and a fantastic, simplistic and joyous sense of humour. It’s a fitness game, but certainly more of a game than a fitness solution. EA Active is its polar opposite. For the very hard too please or those people needing exceptional motivation and incentive to train, a morphing of EA Active and Wii Fit would be near perfect, as both have ingredients which would work very well together.

However , there is no doubt about it, what ‘Active’ does well it does very well. It is instructional perhaps overly so, but it must err on the side of caution for a multitude of ’safety and litigacious’ reasons.  The graphics suffice, they don’t offend but aren’t terribly inspiring either; best described as ‘functional’.
One thing Active does well, is with exercise choice. It has dozens of variations and months worths of combinations before boredom would settle in. It has four main areas from which you can choose your activities, one of which is a ’sports’ catagory which I played volleyball and tennis. Both games were fast paced to keep the heart rate elevated, and for me, fun, but I’m easy pleased with sports sims and very forgiving. By blending combinations from all 4 zones you have a great selection of aerobic and anaerobic exercises.

This is definitely not a ‘game’. It is an instructional, interactive fitness program. That isn’t a complaint merely a fact. If you were expecting gameplay then look elsewhere.

Oh, you’ll need more room than you think as well, so give yourself a larger area to move round to avoid jumping on all the ‘bits n pieces’ you use during the program.

Standard comments over with, now let’s talk about re-engineering, adaption and a tad of innovation. In other words, let’s critique this baby from the Hardcore Exergaming perspective Quite simply, EA Sports Active has MASSIVE ‘Exergaming’ potential. How so? Well first of all, throw out the ‘elastic band’ that comes packaged with the game (it would suffice for few weeks for the very beginner, at best). Go out and buy more effective bands. Sure, that’s more money but it’s worth it. Exercise bands can be found at any Sports shop, just ask the staff as they often vary in resistance. My band of choice is the outstanding Finnish designed GymStick. This ups the intensity of all upper and lower body exercises dramatically, get one now!!
For the ‘track exercises’ (running, kick backs, knee raises etc), use a minitrampoline and your own treadmill for running if you have one. I have an adaptor which allows use of any Crosstrainer for running simulations, it works incredibly well. For Active, I’ll be making adaptors to fit standard dumbells, to which I can attach the Wii mote and nunchuck. This will allow a much superior workout and infinitely adjustable resistance and intensity as a result.  Put all these adaptions together and you will have a superb workout that would make the most hardened cynic weak at the knees, literally.

If you haven’t already, buy a wirelessly connected nunchuck and wiimote. That cable dangling between the two is just too short, especially when doing jump squats and full extension movements.

With some adaption and lateral thinking, Active has the potential to be a VERY serious fitness alternative even for the ’serious’ trainer! As it is, it’s an excellent intervention, and will certainly get people off the couch and on a very well laid out fitness course (the 30 day challenge).

As I said at the outset, what it does well, it does very well. The worst I can say about Active is it’s ‘functional’. In the next few weeks I’ll be giving it a serious ‘Exergaming overhaul’. It will then rise from functional to fantastic…Let the  Games / Exergames begin!

Innovation, evolution and revolution are human imperatives, no doubt. In the realm of technology, these imperatives extend across the entire software/hardware process, from conception to manufacturing and roll-out. However, when you apply these mainstays to more ‘emotive’ areas of our lives, it becomes all too easy to ‘box’ or package arising trends and technologies, in an effort to understand what may initially seem odd, alien or even ridiculous. Exergaming certainly engenders a diversity of reactions, often resulting in bewilderment or confusion, depending on the listener’s background. Thus presenting Exergaming as an innovative, evolutionary if not revolutionary fitness alternative, can be quite a challenge. At the very least, you have to be mindful of your audience, and tailor your explanation accordingly.

So what, you say, content customization is standard fare for many products and services, that’s true of course, however Exergaming’s rubbery nature compounds the difficulty in characterizing it. Ironically, it’s a victim of it’s strengths in that respect. Exergaming’s inherent adaptability and ease in adopting technologies, create a chameleon like identity, which morphs to suit its environment readily and rapidly. This was exemplified recently when my business advisor asked me to choose a business plan based on two ‘fitness challenges’ and a commensurate solution and strategy for each. Since our business model can incorporate any ‘Exergaming product’ and we use a flexible method of service delivery, I found choosing just two challenges VERY difficult. One challenge seemed patently obvious – PE alternatives for primary school aged children. An Exergaming Hardware/Product based solution would be an effective strategy. However, with a little thought, and broadening the scope of the model, Exerlearning offers a cognitive, behavioural and fitness benefit that is hard to ignore. Thinking further, and an ‘Active Playground‘ solution, from companies such as Smart Us, in Finland, are an exciting alternative. Which to choose?

We are spoilt for choice and our choices are increasingly steadily, if not daily. How we apply the plethora of available options becomes more important than any one particular product or service, this wasn’t necessarily the case in the recent past. Exergaming must remain innovative and adaptable and not be labelled a niche fitness alternative. This is somewhat problematic in establishing a ’standard’ or even a definition forExergaming. We currently have a number of serviceable definitions for Exergaming, but as the genre is in constant flux, creating a concrete definition becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible. So whether we define this new ‘chameleon’ fitness alternative as Active gaming, Exergaming or Interactive gaming is perhaps irrelevant. Identifying the ‘fitness problem’ or challenge, case by case, and applying the imperatives of innovation, evolution and revolution will see this new genre continue to expand and become an entrenched, accountable fitness alternative.

I welcome your feedback, and please remember, this is purely my opinion and I’m certainly not precious about being criticised or questioned, far from it. If nothing else, I wish to merely continue the debate on the what, who, where, why and how of Exergaming.

In Part 2, I’ll look at how Exergaming can be integrated into conventional fitness environment, thereby transforming the fitness experience creating a highly motivational and effective training session that is effective at any existing fitness level! Enough theorizing and speculation, it’s time to get down and dirty

The UK government has released a new anti-obesity ad using the services of Aardman Studios (of Wallace and Gromit fame). This in itself isn’t so interesting, other than seeing the Aardman crew’s intelligence and unique skills directed into a Health initiative, but seeing how they are promoting active gaming/exergaming in the ad certainly is!
This seems to be an about-turn for the UK government but regardless of its motivations, the current ad is certainly a welcome endorsement for exergaming. The full report is at the Guardian

Rhythm games can be somewhat of an oxymoron in that they are more epileptic than rhythmic. Still, the point from a fitness perspective, is motion, preferably full-body with scaleable intensity. Now, being somewhat ‘feet challenged’ and always seeming to find the section of the dance mat that doesn’t have an arrow, I thought I’d experiment with ‘upper body’ driven rhythm games. Enter PS2 & ‘Eyetoy Groove’. I was in my element, finally! I began to relax into the rhythm much more effectively which made the game more fun and the fitness component more effective. What I hadn’t expected was the extent to which my entire body was utilized. Arm rotations and placements were a given, its the basis of the game, but my lower body had time to ‘freestyle’ as I wasn’t obligated to place my feet in any given ‘zone’. This raised my heart rate, again increased the fun factor and drove the game to an whole body, full motion experience!

In recent times, the Wii has released several rhythm based games centred around the sport of Cheerleading. The reviews seemed encouraging but of course the games are reviewed for the mainstream game user with only cursory reference  to the fitness component of the game. The games did seem to offer a workout component, due to the choreographed dance/aerobic/calisthenic nature of cheerleading, I just hoped, as I normally do, that the game didn’t get in the way of the fitness experience (I really do judge games from a very different perspective).

Step up Namco Bandai’s ‘We Cheer’. Obviously marketed to the youth-tween market, driven by Bratz type animations and storyline, and fair enough….but did it have the scaleable, cross-generational, age irrelevant and dual gender appeal? In short – a resounding YES! A youtube search for the We Cheer shows a multitude of ages, genders and skill levels plodding, pounding and bounding their way through the choreographed scenes. Have a look here at a random example of two guys (most videos show teen to early 20’s adult men!): Beng and Chris

The game is extremely scaleable offering no to low impact moves, rhythm enhanced with the predominance of movement in the upper extremeties. With an increasing skill base, the lower body is utilised more increasing the cardio effect commensurately. To increase intensity, it is a simple matter of applying weighted resistance (aerobic wrist and ankle weights).

The game requires concentration to play effectively but is inherently fun to play and even moreso as a spectator it seems The multiplayer aspect allows up to 4 people to join in with the choreography. This raises the fun/motivation level accordingly and allows for scheduled ‘group/family’ fitness activity…another winner.

It is all too easy to dismiss games based on cursory or superficial analysis. Try this game, rent it if you can, and apply a fitness bent to its use. There are practice and workout modes within the game which are repeatable and fast loading. Put a sincere effort into utilizing your whole body and not just synchronising your upper body. Give it 30 minutes, and then tell me you havent broken a sweat! Just be careful you don’t unconsciously start humming ‘walking on sunshine’ and whooshing mini pom poms at family and friends at every opportunity.

A four year old technology is still at the forefront of Exergaming methodology, and four years is a long time in this arena. In conjunction with Kinetic SCE London Studio and Nike Motionworks, the Eyetoy and Kinetic are a credit to its designers. Many of todays game producers could do much worse than to use this inception as a yardstick for successful Exergaming implementation.

At Exergaming Finland we’ve been promoting the outstanding high intensity workout that can be achieved by the Eyetoy, particularly in relation to Kinetic and Kinetic combat. Exergaming can offer a total body workout which will tax the fittest of individuals…don’t believe me!? Watch this: Exergaming Finland Eyetoy Solutions

Like everything in life and fitness, you get out of it what you put into it. Eyetoy/Kinetic is a symbiotic fitness relationship that has the potential to get the very best out of you. If you’re after muscular endurance and a cardio maximised workout, it is hard to beat…period!

The Scandinavians produce some fantastic Exergaming products and services…check out these two I found recently: Virtuagym (still in Beta) http://www.virtuagym.com/about.php and their video at http://www.vimeo.com/3455005 and Positive Gaming at http://www.positivegaming.com/

The Eyetoy has been a favourite and a workhorse of our companies stratergies. It has a wealth of software available and fits well with our modular and portable service delivery. However, it can be finnicky or just a bloody nuisance  to set up. Varying environments, creating varying result on the Eyetoy accuracy.  I guess it has bad days just like the rest of us mere mortals.

I’ve been fortunate in the past of being able to create highly effective testing areas. This has allowed me to experiment at will with various exergaming models and programs across multiple hardware platforms. However, I’ve yet to create the ‘perfect Eyetoy environment’.

I’ve had indifferent results with different lighting techniques: ceiling lights alone, wall lights, standing lamps, spot light, very bright lighting down to quite dull plus combinations of all the above. I also experimented with reflective gloves and ankle bands. It seemed possible that the camera may track more accurately if it follows the extremeties more easily and reflective material seemed the obvious and easiest to test.

Unfortunately, moving back to Australia hasn’t allowed me the time to test its effectiveness further, has anyone else used reflective material with the Eyetoy? Or found a the ‘perfect’ lighting coverage?

I’m also curious to know if anyone has experienced any quality differences between the earlier ‘black’ bodied Eyetoy and the more recent ’silver’ bodied unit. It could be a single instance, but I noticed the wideangle lens (used for Kinetic and Kinetic Combat) seems to fit on the black bodies Eyetoy more snuggly?!

If you haven’t tried the Eyetoy yet, then do yourself a favour, DO IT!

Our startup company, Exergaming Finland, like many commercial and semi-commercial enterprises, relies heavily on investment, research and resources. Our single largest resource is our own Exergaming service. We are a fitness service provider, first and foremost, equipment utilization runs a distant second. I chose this format as I wanted the service to be delivered onsite, to the customer/s, rapidly and unobtrusively (and removed just as expediently). This pretty much dictated my choice of equipment from the outset. Creating customer programs from that point on became very clear, and our program variations have been finely honed over time, but of course, we have a LOT more to learn. As more Exergaming options arise (hardware and software), we have to filter and blend them to suit our needs, plus adapt them to suit our specific methodology.

In that regard, research becomes paramount. I have built a massive database that encompasses: digital offline PDF binders, online with Google Bookmarks all carefully catagorised, and mirrored with Mozilla Bookmarks, and good old fashioned printouts in indexed Folders. Plus of course, two websites, 3 blogs sites, twitter and our online 37 Signals Basecamp Project site, not to mention innumerable Skype and MSN sessions….phew. I’m not alone in having such a compilation, far from it, however its becoming increasingly difficult, if not impossible, to keep up with every development happening in Exergaming worldwide, especially in relation to clinical research work. When I first began ‘investigating’ Exergaming around the world (late 2005), just a google search alone was ample enough, nowadays, its imperative to become active with Exergaming networks to stay vaguely up to date. This is still problematic, as the networks are disjointed – by nature of the online applications themselves, although twitters and blogs are very cooperative.

An ‘Exergaming Repository’ or Library if you prefer, seems the ideal solution for Exergamers and interested parties. A single ‘online presence’  to find articles and research of interest. I therefore applaud the NMSU for creating the Exergames Advisory Network and hope it goes someway to achieving this ‘centralised’ thinktank and resevoir of knowledge for Exergaming…..my god, and I used to hate visiting libraries, my how ones habits do change