Institute For The Future

Taking virtual laps on a stationary bike

I've been working on a private client project recently, thinking about how games and elements of gaming can be used to promote physical activity and improve health outcomes.  I am a sporadic gym go-er myself, and I tend to prefer the rowing machine to any of the other cardio equipment, even though it doesn't have a television or any bells and whistles.  But this morning, as I was leaving, I noticed that my gym has two brand-new Expresso Fitness stationary bikes, which I had just been reading about for my project.

These bikes provide an interactive work-out experience for the user, set in a virtual world.  They offer about 30 different rides--from a track to a forest to the California coastline--each with impressive graphics displayed on a 17" screen.  Handle bars that steer you around other virtual cyclists and a gear shift that that allows you to adjust resistance as you encounter climbs and descents on your ride make the experience "virtually" realistic.  Given that I was already on my out the door, I decided to take a few minute "to go onwent" on an easy, 1 mile ride (Rolling Thunder, above). I gotta tell you, it was pretty cool.  So if you want to add some fun to your workouts, look for the Expresso equipment next time you are at your gym.