Examining Energy Expenditure in Youth Using XBOX Kinect: Differences by Player Mode
in Journal of Physical Activity and HealthClick name to view affiliation
Background:
Replacing sedentary time with physical activity through new generation exergames (eg, XBOX Kinect) is a potential intervention strategy. The study’s purpose was to compare youth energy expenditure while playing different exergames in single- vs. multiplayer mode.
Methods:
Participants (26 male, 14 female) were 10 to 13 years old. They wore a portable metabolic analyzer while playing 4 XBOX Kinect games for 15 minutes each (2 single-, 2 multiplayer). Repeated-measures ANOVA (with Bonferroni correction) was used to examine player mode differences, controlling for age group, sex, weight status, and game.
Results:
There was a significant difference in energy expenditure between single player (mean = 15.4 ml/kg/min, SD = 4.5) and multiplayer mode (mean = 16.8 ml/kg/min, SD = 4.7). Overweight and obese participants (mean = 13.7 ml/kg/min, SD = 4.2) expended less energy than normal weight (mean = 17.8 ml/kg/min, SD = 4.5) during multiplayer mode (d = 0.93).
Conclusion:
Player mode, along with personal factors such as weight status, may be important to consider in energy expenditure during exergames.
Barkman (barkmanj@msu.edu), Pfeiffer, and Diltz are with the Dept of Kinesiology; Peng is with the Dept of Media and Information; Michigan State University.
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