@misc{10498/28866,
year = {2022},
month = {10},
url = {http://hdl.handle.net/10498/28866},
abstract = {Long duration spaceflight missions will require novel exercise systems to protect astronaut crew from the detrimental effects of microgravity exposure. The SPRINT protocol is a novel and promising exercise prescription that combines aerobic and resistive training using a flywheel device, and it was successfully employed in a 70-day bed-rest study as well as onboard the International Space Station. Our team created a VR simulation to further augment the SPRINT protocol when using a flywheel ergometer training device (the Multi-Mode Exercise Device or M-MED). The simulation aspired to maximal realism in a virtual river setting while providing real-time biometric feedback on heart rate performance to subjects. In this pilot study, five healthy, male, physically-active subjects aged 35 +/- 9.0 years old underwent 2 weeks of SPRINT protocol, either with or without the VR simulation. After a 1-month washout period, subjects returned for a subsequent 2 weeks in the opposite VR condition. We measured physiological and cognitive variables of stress, performance, and well-being. While physiological effects did not suggest much difference with the VR condition over 2 weeks, metrics of motivation, affect, and mood restoration showed detectable differences, or trended toward more positive outcomes than exercise without VR. These results provide evidence that a well-designed VR "exergaming" simulation with biometric feedback could be a beneficial addition to exercise prescriptions, especially if users are exposed to isolation and confinement.},
organization = {This project was funded through an internal seed grant mechanism by the College of Engineering and the Human Clinical Research Facility at Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States.},
publisher = {FRONTIERS MEDIA SA},
keywords = {sprint protocol},
keywords = {HIIT (high intensity interval training)},
keywords = {resistance exercise},
keywords = {aerobic exercise},
keywords = {biometric},
keywords = {exergaming},
title = {Virtual Reality "exergames": A promising countermeasure to improve motivation and restorative effects during long duration spaceflight missions},
doi = {10.3389/fphys.2022.932425},
author = {Keller, Nathan and Whittle, Richard S. and McHenry, Neil and Johnston, Adam and Duncan, Colton and Ploutz-Snyder, Lori and González de la Torre Benítez, Gabriel and Sheffield-Moore, Melinda and Chamitoff, Gregory and Diaz-Artiles, Ana},
}