Research & Development World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

Virtual Reality Could Make Exercising Easier

By Kenny Walter | October 1, 2018

This is a visual of VR exercise environment during test. Credit: Maria Matsangidou

Virtual reality (VR) might help athletes and others perform better on the track, field, court or weight room by reducing the perceived pain associated with the given activity.

Researchers from the University of Kent have found that VR tools can aid in performance during exercise in a number of factors, including heart rate, pain intensity, perceived exhaustion, time to exhaustion and private body consciousness, one’s awareness of internal body sensations.

“It is clear from the data gathered that the use of VR technology can improve performance during exercise on a number of criteria,” lead researcher Maria Matsangidou, a PhD candidate, said in a statement. “This could have major implications for exercise regimes for everyone, from occasional gym users to professional athletes.”

The researchers monitored 80 participants performing an isometric bicep curl set at 20 percent of the maximum weight they could lift. Each volunteer was asked to hold the weight for as long as they possibly could.

A control group performed the exercises in a room with a chair, table and yoga mat, while a second group wore a VR headset and saw the same environment, including a visual representation of an arm and the weight. At the end of the exercise, the volunteers filled out a questionnaire where they described their feelings of pain and fatigue.

While both groups performed the same exercise, the VR group reported a pain intensity 10 percent lower than the control group after one minute. The time to exhaustion was also about two minutes longer for the VR group than it was for the control group and the VR group had a lower heart rate of three beats per minute than the group performing conventional exercises.

Previous research found that individuals with a high private body consciousness are generally able to better  understand their body and perceive higher pain when exercising. In the current study, the researchers found that virtual reality tools are effective in reducing perceived pain without lowering the private body consciousness.

 The study results could point to VR as a way to encourage less active people to exercise more by reducing the perceived pain associated with exercise, while ultimately improving performance regardless of private body consciousness.

The study was published in the Psychology of Sport and Exercise.    

Related Articles Read More >

2025 R&D layoffs tracker tops 92,000
Eli Lilly facility
9 R&D developments this week: Lilly builds major R&D center, Stratolaunch tests hypersonic craft, IBM chief urges AI R&D funding
Five cases where shaky science snowballed into public confusion
Caltech, Fermilab, and collaborators test quantum sensors for future particle physics experiments
rd newsletter
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest info on technologies, trends, and strategies in Research & Development.
RD 25 Power Index

R&D World Digital Issues

Fall 2024 issue

Browse the most current issue of R&D World and back issues in an easy to use high quality format. Clip, share and download with the leading R&D magazine today.

Research & Development World
  • Subscribe to R&D World Magazine
  • Enews Sign Up
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Drug Discovery & Development
  • Pharmaceutical Processing
  • Global Funding Forecast

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search R&D World

  • R&D World Home
  • Topics
    • Aerospace
    • Automotive
    • Biotech
    • Careers
    • Chemistry
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Life Science
    • Material Science
    • R&D Management
    • Physics
  • Technology
    • 3D Printing
    • A.I./Robotics
    • Software
    • Battery Technology
    • Controlled Environments
      • Cleanrooms
      • Graphene
      • Lasers
      • Regulations/Standards
      • Sensors
    • Imaging
    • Nanotechnology
    • Scientific Computing
      • Big Data
      • HPC/Supercomputing
      • Informatics
      • Security
    • Semiconductors
  • R&D Market Pulse
  • R&D 100
    • Call for Nominations: The 2025 R&D 100 Awards
    • R&D 100 Awards Event
    • R&D 100 Submissions
    • Winner Archive
    • Explore the 2024 R&D 100 award winners and finalists
  • Resources
    • Research Reports
    • Digital Issues
    • R&D Index
    • Subscribe
    • Video
    • Webinars
  • Global Funding Forecast
  • Top Labs
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE