TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2017//
TI  - Acute effect of virtual reality exercise bike games on college students' physiological and psychological outcomes
JO  - Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking
A1  - Zeng, Nan
A1  - Pope, Zachary
A1  - Gao, Zan
SP  - 453
EP  - 457
VL  - 20
IS  - 7
N2  - Commercially available virtual reality (VR) exercise systems are extensively used in many health domains among clinical populations. However, evidence regarding the efficacy of this technology on healthy adults' health-related outcomes is unknown. This pilot study compared physiological and psychological responses following exercise on a VR-based exercise bike (VirZoom) and traditional stationary exercise bike. Twelve healthy college students (9 females; Mage = 25.01, SD = ± 4.74; MBMI = 22.84, SD = ± 3.68) completed two separate 20-minute exercise sessions on the VR-based exercise bike and traditional stationary exercise bike. Blood pressure (BP), ratings of perceived exertion, self-efficacy, and enjoyment were assessed as primary outcomes. Dependent t-tests indicated no significant differences in mean systolic or diastolic BP changes from pre to postexercise between the VR-based exercise and traditional stationary biking sessions (all p > 0.05). Notably, participants reported significantly higher ratings of perceived exertion (p < 0.05, Cohen's d = 0.68) during the traditional exercise biking session compared with VR-based exercise biking session. However, participants had significantly higher self-efficacy (p < 0.05, Cohen's d = -0.83) and enjoyment (p < 0.05, Cohen's d = -0.89) during the VR-based exercise biking session compared with traditional stationary biking. The commercially available VR-based exercise bike (VirZoom) may be considered an effective, enjoyable, and motivating physical activity tool. Further interventions with larger and more diverse samples and examinations of more health-related outcomes are warranted to determine optimal application of VR-based exercise programming among various populations.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2152-2715
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2017.0042
ID  - ref1
ER  -