TEN is a not-for-profit and non-affiliated Games for Health advocacy promoting an active and healthy lifestyle by combining video games technologies and exercise, known as Exergaming. TEN is an international collaboration of dedicated health and fitness practitioners, exergame developers, researchers and clinicians, health and fitness entrepreneurs and passionate individuals devoted to highlighting the best solutions offered by exergaming.
Children are supposed to get 60 minutes of exercise a day, and that's often not happening. With child obesity rates rising and kids interest in physical education dropping, educators are constantly trying to craft new and exciting ways to get kids pumped about fitness.
Lisa Hansen is leading the way with research and practical application of exergaming in schools. The USF Research Labs are showing that technology and PE can co-exist with results that the kids love!
Active Gaming - Video games aren’t just about mindless button pushing anymore, as systems like the Nintendo Wii and the Xbox Kinect are encouraging players to get up off the couch and get moving.
University Beat on WUSF TV takes you to USF’s Active Gaming lab as the Executive Director of President Obama’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition visits researchers who are looking at how these games can help fight childhood obesity.
Experts at USF are looking at how video games and “active gaming” can be used in schools to battle childhood obesity, and their work recently caught the attention of the nation’s top physical fitness director.
Please click here to see more information on Dr. Lisa Hansen Ph.D. Assistant Professor at USF’s School of Physical Education & Exercise Science
University Beat on WUSF 89.7 FM has the story. WATCH VIDEO
Asst. Professor Lisa Hansen, the Co-director of the USF Active Gaming Research Lab, talks about the purpose of the lab—both for the children and the researchers. She also talks about the kinds of games in the lab, including the Gamercize “stepper” device.
Dr. Colleen Kennedy, Dean of the USF College of Education, talks about the kind of interdisciplinary research the lab is involved in, as well as what the students thinks of the lab.
Shellie Pfohl, Executive Director of the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition, says the Active Gaming Research Lab ‘enhances’ regular physical education.
What can Gamercize and active gaming do for health and fitness, after all it's just a game isn't it? There's a serious side to exergaming, even the White House is taking a look to find out what the benefits of "gamer burn" can be.
Reported by WTSP 10 News, executive directors of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, Melissa Johnson and Shellie Y. Pfohl (pictured left), had a first hand experience of exergaming at the University of South Florida’s active gaming laboratory in Tampa.
The USF Active Gaming Lab was started by Asst. Prof. Lisa Witherspoon Hansen three years ago with full support of the universities College of Education department. The lab facilites on campus are used to educate PE students in active gaming with another facility "in the field" at a local local elementary school.
The kids in the practical environment get moving."Why not take what everyone is deeming the enemy [video games], why not let them play the games that they love just make them more active?" says Lisa.
Students are not just playing games, they are having fun, being active and learning too.
Jasmine says, "When you play the game it increases your heart rate, makes your legs stronger." 10 Year old Edgerrin James has taken more than 1,400 steps in 25 minutes. "I feel great. I know I worked hard but I feel very tired," describes Edgerrin. Does he feel energized? "Yes Ma'am," he adds.
It's not just the kids that love the onsite lab, "The more we can push the fact exercise is fun with friends, social type of thing, the more likely they will do it," says Lynda Correia, PE Teacher at Witter Elementary.
Check out the video from Ch10 here, and see Gamercize and exergaming in action improving health, fitness and awareness! Lisa also contributes to PE Central as the editor of the Active Gaming section for PE educators.
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