Fun and Games
Mike Hansen, CEO and president of iTECH Fitness, contacted me more than a month ago about an interactive fitness research lab that was opening at the University of South Florida in Tampa, FL. Not much research has been done on interactive fitness in general (mostly just some research on individual equipment) so I was interested in hearing more about the lab. Mike let me know that the XRKade Research Lab in the university‘s School of Physical Education, Wellness and Sports Studies held an open house last Friday with about 100 Y operators, school district personnel, manufacturers and other interested parties on hand throughout the day.
Today, I spoke with Lisa Witherspoon, the doctoral student who is heading the lab. The lab started because of Lisa’s interest in interactive fitness (which includes exergaming or screen/video-based equipment). She has a background in physical education and had helped open a fitness facility in New Jersey that offered some interactive fitness equipment. She was amazed at the way the children played with the equipment, she said. Then, she met Dr. Steven Sanders, the chair of the School of Physical Education, Wellness and Sports Studies at USF, who encouraged her to come down to Tampa and do her doctorate in this area, promising that they‘d find space for a lab somewhere on campus.
Well, they certainly did. Now, Lisa is working with several other departments on campus (psychology, physiology, behavioral science, special education and others) to create studies related to interactive gaming. She hopes to publish the results in various journals.
Several Ys and school districts attended the open house on Friday, and several already expressed interest in installing some of the equipment in their facilities.
The XRKade lab was created through donations from iTECH Fitness and the company’s corporate partners. Equipment included in the lab (and used once a week by the 5th grade student subjects from three schools located on the campus of the university) are X-Board, Dance Dance Revolution, Game Bikes, 3-Kick, Trazer, iJoy, CoreTrainer and Korebalance.
Lisa hopes to develop curriculum around interactive fitness for schools, and she says that if her studies prove that interactive fitness keeps children motivated and energized about exercising, that fitness facilities will also become more interested in installing this equipment for children. In fact, they might even install the equipment for adults, since many of the parents of the children participating in the studies have visited the lab and want to use the equipment while their children are in school. Lisa even has difficulty keeping the college students who are helping her with the research off of the equipment.
I think some solid research in this area could help convince more Ys, JCCs, university and for-profit facilities that they should invest in more interactive fitness to help keep adult and children members motivated. What a great boost in the retention area if the research shows these products can help.
Do you have interactive fitness equipment installed at your facility? If so, what has the response been? If not, what would make you install the equipment? Use the comment button below to let us know your thoughts.
Read the February issue to find out more about the lab and the open house. - Pam
Related Topics: Behind the Scenes
January 31st, 2007 at 10:03 pm
I find the xrcade fitness equipment highly effective. I think that the variety of fitness equipent should be used in all schools’ phisical education programs. Xrgaming is good for kids because they have fun while getting exersize. It also developes healthy habits, because kids can bring they’re friends over and play the game while getting a highly effective workout.
January 31st, 2007 at 10:45 pm
This may seem like a “new idea”, but one of my many interactive fitness customers is about to celebrate their 1 year anniversary. The X-Zone fitness arcade opened about a year ago to kids ages 8 to 18 to help get them physically active through gaming. They have Game Bikes, Dance Dance Revolution, Sportwall, a batting cage, Aeroball, and many other gaming stations in their 6,000 square foot facility. They sell memberships with an hourly rate attached. They are helping others in various parts of the country to open similar facilites. I believe they have trademarked their name and concept. The last time I checked they had over 500 members and growing steadily. The concept works but having the right mix of product and motivating members to use them regularly through healthy competition is key.
February 1st, 2007 at 7:57 am
The combination of exercise, gaming and education looks like a natural winner. If you can find a way to create learning opportunities and increase fitness, while performing activities that are inherently fun, then you have found the sweet spot.
February 1st, 2007 at 9:55 am
Obviously interactive technology is one of the few ways to get kids motivated when they aren’t one of the small percentage of children who are involved in athletics. We have 2 fitness facilities open which are interactive in nature and which are dedicated to children ages 6-14. The response from the media, parents, and the kids has been overwhelming. As a result, we have begun franchising the model to potential individuals around the U.S. If you are interested in seeing this type of technology in action, you can visit www.nexgym.com .
February 1st, 2007 at 11:27 am
This is a great opportunity to finally make a difference in the fight against childhood obesity! Thanks to Mike and the whole group from iTECH (and vendors) to establish such a program. Hopefully the industry will take notice and get involved in such an outstanding program.
February 1st, 2007 at 7:32 pm
San Diego State University has had a Dance-Dance revolution game installed in their campus’ student recreation center for several years and the students love to use it along with the traditional treadmills, stationary bikes and elliptical machines.
February 2nd, 2007 at 7:57 am
Sesame Street was the first to research how children learn and what gets and holds their interest. They did exhaustive experimentation with their program which was integral to their success. Blues Clues and others have learned much from the groundbreaking work of the Sesame Street group. Childrens fitness should use the same lessons learned and incorporate it into interactive technology. I believe iTECH, Mike, Andrea and their team are leading the way in this area.
February 3rd, 2007 at 11:40 am
it is clear to me that the concept of an interactive program that takes advantage of technology and entertainment is a great way to engage the increasing population of youth who are not involved with athletics. With childhood obesity as the health epidemic that it is, this approach can do nothing but have a positive impact on our youth and their future.
February 6th, 2007 at 3:44 pm
A year ago we started working with interactive fitness equipment, and the response has been great. Kids love playing,action and music, and the best part of it is that they are exercising without having to tell them to do the exercise! It’s a good thing that more researches on this topics are being made.
February 7th, 2007 at 8:09 am
As a Middle School level HPE instructor, it sometimes seems as though video games are my archrival in the battle to keep kids moving. Xergaming is a marriage of gaming and fitness that has the potential to ignite student’s interests in being active. Martial arts philosophy is rather than fight the resistance, use it to your advantage. That’s what exergaming does; I no longer have to compete with video games for students’ interest-I can use them to make activity enticing to the “tweens” I teach.
As a recent PEP grant recipient, our HPE staff did exhaustive research trying to find the best ways to improve our program, thus improving the wellness of our students, as well as that of their spheres of influence. Ultimately, our decision has been to create an “xrkade” for our middle school, complete with equipment such as Makoto, DDR, gaming bikes, FunRock, iJoy boards, 3 Kick, X-boards, Aribounders, and a core trainer.
Both students and staff are excited about using the “xrkade” and we are looking forward to the research coming out of USF. Andrea, Mike, and the crew at itech have been an invaluable tool in our planning/implementation process.
February 7th, 2007 at 11:45 am
From my previous experience in the fitness industry and now currently researching Interactive Fitness and exergaming in The University of South Florida XRKade research lab, this innovative phenomenon is going to be a great compliment to traditional exercise in the fitness industry, in schools, and at home for not only children but adults as well. iTech Fitness has put a team together of not only experienced but knowlegeable individuals in all areas of fitness that will continue to pioneer this new approach to making fitness fun!
Interactive Fitness is already growing and will continue to expand as there becomes a huge demand for fitness alternatives for this new generation of children and the present society we are living in that has now become technology driven! Looking into the future a few years, I can’t imagine a PE classroom or fitness facility that does not provide an ‘XRKade’ in some manner for their children or adult population.
February 10th, 2007 at 10:24 pm
If our industry can embrace the products and solutions that iTech provide us, we will certainly improve retention, member engagement and subsequently lifestyle improvement. As a club operator, I am always searching for economical and successful programs that our facilities can utilize to engage the member. I am looking forward to seeing the research findings and conclusions so that the applications can then be used with our members.
February 15th, 2007 at 5:41 pm
Having this type of fitness equipment in our new fitness center has really motivated my high school PE students to workout. They all fight over who gets to go on the DDR and the gamebikes. This is the first time in 11 years teaching PE that I have had to kick students out of PE at the end of class. They love it! iTech has been a wonderful assest to Woodside High School in Woodside, CA.
February 15th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
We are so thrilled to be part of iTech fitness. The study at USF is the beginning of a very successful ride. Kids grow up in front of video games. It is amazing to have kids exercising while playing their favorite video games. For those that are not aware…Korebalance(TM) is interactive fitness equipment that is not only just fun, but backed by 15 years of medical use. Korebalance(TM) is the latest interactive balance testing and training device that uses a 17″ Touch Screen and has 3D games along with balance tests and assessment. Kids and adults alike stand on the platform which has a pressure system that can be adjusted to any level. Ergonomic handlebars are included for safety and allow for weight lifting and other balance exercises.
Korebalance(TM) is a great addition to the XRKade because each session provides a score. After several weeks of training in the XRKade with Korebalance(TM) and all the other fabulous equipment, participants can re-test to see their improvement.
It was so exciting to visit USF and witness kids in this lab having so much fun! We should all be proud to be a part of this tremendous endeavor benefiting our future!
February 17th, 2007 at 12:38 am
The key is to get involved and stay involved. We can’t see results with the children if they don’t participate. If they are having fun, they are staying in the hunt so to speak. Staying with exercise and the proper exercise is our goal. Interactive fitness is a wonderful subcortical approach to improving the nervous system of the kids which improves their balance, coordination, stabilization and of course, burns calories in a non threatening way. With childhood obesity and Diabetes in the danger zone, this is a direction we should all pursue!
February 20th, 2007 at 3:12 pm
Having seen this program in it’s infancy I am very excited to see it come full circle. Making strides in youth fitness is not only important for our industry, but is crucial for our society. Children are bombarded with new ways to become more sedentary year after year. Our society has become more child-centric, but there has not been an answer fot fitness activtiy that meets the needs of all children regardless of their physical abilities. This program is merging the world of fitness with our society’s need for more entertainment. Interactive fitness is not something that should be taken lightly, the leaders of the fitness industry need to support this programming for it to flourish and grow!
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