Reality and Virtual: Hemodynamic Variables and Rating of Perceived Exertion Between Dance Sessions and Active...

To analyze the hemodynamic variables and the rating of perceived exertion (RPE) between an active videogame (AVG) session and a dance session. The sample consisted of 30 university women between 18 and 30 years of age, physically active and having some kind of experience with dancing. The volunteers participated in the two sessions held on different days, the first with an active dance videogame and the other with a dance instructor, both lasting 50 minutes, with a sequence of songs and moderate intensity. For the evaluation of the two sessions, heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), and RPE measurements were taken before and every 10 minutes, until the time for each modality (AVG or dance) was completed. The Shapiro-Wilk and Levene test were used for normal data. For the comparison of two sessions, the two-way ANOVA test was used for repeated measures, and were considered to have a significance level of P < 0.05. There were significant differences in HR [F(6, 96) = 2.606, P = 0.02, η² P = 0.140], from 10 to 50 minutes (P < 0.01), and diastolic BP [F(6, 84) = 1.858, P = 0.10, η² P = 0.117], as well as, in the 20th minute (P = 0.02) between Just Dance 2016^® and a dance session. All the variables analyzed showed an effect size as large in the classification of the degree of magnitude. There are similarities between the virtual and real dance sessions regarding hemodynamic variables and RPE. Thus, AVGs, especially Just Dance^®, may be a favorable option for individuals who wish to exercise at home.