High-intensity exergaming for improved cardiorespiratory fitness: A randomised, controlled trial

ABSTRACTExergaming has been proposed as a promising alternative to traditional endurance training since many experience exergaming as more enjoyable. Therefore, the aim of this trial was to determine the exergaming-induced effect on cardiorespiratory fitness. This parallel-group randomised controlled trial, investigated the effects of regular exergaming among healthy adults (aged ≥ 18 years) who were not endurance-trained. Participants allocated to the exergaming group (n = 13) used the Playpulse exergaming platform for a minimum of 45 min twice weekly for eight weeks, whereas the control group (n = 17) received no intervention. The primary outcome measure was the between-group difference in peak oxygen uptake (V̇O_2peak) after the intervention. V̇O_2peak increased significantly from baseline (43.9 [SD 7.0]) to after the intervention (45.3 [SD 8.2] mL kg^-1 min^-1) in the exergaming group, compared to the control group (42.4 [SD 7.0] to 42.0 [SD 5.7] mL·kg^-1·min^-1) with a between-group difference of 2.1 mL kg^-1 min^-1 (95% CI: 0.2-4.1; p = 0.04). The average score on the Feeling Scale reported during exergaming was 3.4 (95% CI 3.2-3.6), with 3 being "good" and 5 "very good" and was not related to the participants' exergaming skills. There were no adverse events during this trial. Two weekly sessions using the Playpulse exergaming platform can improve V̇O_2peak. This finding suggests that exergaming can be an efficient form of endurance training. Furthermore, our findings indicate that participants' enjoyed exergaming irrespective of exergaming skills.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04112329..