Whether at work or play, humans just want to have fun. And for good reason—studies show that people tend to experience more success when they enjoy what they’re doing. That enjoyment can translate to higher engagement, greater commitment to a routine and ultimately, more time working out. Thus, at Aviron we built a rower that delivers a truly enjoyable workout and maximizes health benefits—all in 30 minutes or less.
So, why games? Starting with the obvious, finding ways to get people motivated and excited about fitness can drastically change their lives. Far from being just window dressing or the latest fitness trend, gamification of one’s workout presents fundamental advantages for short-term and long-term health.
“Participating in regular physical activity is effective for the primary and secondary prevention of several chronic diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, cancer, obesity, hypertension, osteoporosis, and depression,” asserts a paper published by the National Institutes of Health.
“In recent years,” the paper continues, “games have been used in a variety of settings to motivate and change health behaviors. Games not only provide performance feedback to the user but can also provide incentives for achieving goals in a context that is fun, intrinsically rewarding, and easy to understand. ‘Exergames,’ or active video games that require physical movement while playing, have been shown to result in significant increases in energy expenditure.”
It makes sense, doesn’t it? Gamification reduces your focus on the negative aspects of a workout—in this case, pain and fatigue. Whether you are super competitive and want to beat your high score (and others’), or you’re into studying your metrics on a deeper level, we bet you’ll go to your happy place.
When studying the physical play and gaming habits of young people (because habits start early), it’s apparent that children need to view an activity as a fun way to learn and grow, or they will be less likely to adopt it in the long run. Not surprisingly, in a recent study, 86.2 percent of adolescents rated “having fun” as the most important concern in their lives.
And according to the American Journal of Play, the same information proves to be accurate for older people. If a person enjoys an activity, they’ll be more likely to adopt it as a part of their lifestyle. “Active gaming bridges the gap between the popular technology-driven games children enjoy and physical activity. These tech-driven activities require participants to move their bodies to control the game's actions,” thus making them ideal for incentivizing physical activity.
We’ve talked about the physical benefits of gaming and exercise for young kids. But it’s also becoming well known that the cognitive benefits of combining gaming and exercise are enormous for all age groups. Shockingly, gamified workouts show indicators that they can extend a person’s cognitive health and delay cognitive decline
“Human aging is associated with structural and functional brain deteriorations and a corresponding cognitive decline. Exergaming (i.e., physically active video-gaming) has been supposed to attenuate age-related brain deteriorations and may even improve cognitive functions in healthy older adults,” says the US Library of Medicine. The combination of exercise and gaming or exergaming “seems to be equally or slightly more effective than other physical interventions on cognitive functions in a healthy older adult.”
So if you want your body and mind to be involved in your workouts—and reap the effects—exergaming—might just give you the tools to succeed.
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, more and more people are craving social interaction. If that’s you, look no further than gamified fitness. “Exergame studies demonstrated promising results for enhanced social well-being, such as reduction of loneliness, increased social connection, and positive attitudes towards others,” says a JMIR research team.
Overall, combining games and exercise has many benefits both mentally and physically. The impact changes from person to person, but there are benefits regardless of your background. Need a little extra motivation? For that, few things are better than peer pressure and recognition within one’s community. And both can be found in the Aviron community.
So what are you waiting for? Experience the science behind gamified workouts for yourself and reap the benefits. The best part? With gamified workouts, there’s something for everyone—whether you’re trying to get into shape and create a healthy lifestyle, or love to work out but want to mix up your routine.
When you’re ready, a super-inclusive community is waiting to welcome you and cheer you on. It doesn’t matter if you have 5 minutes or an hour—the benefits are there for you to claim, along with your new high score!
