Game Time

VIRTUAL REALITY FITNESS IS MAKING WORKOUTS FUN FOR MOVERS OF *ALL* LEVELS. READ ON FOR THE IRL GAINS OF SWEATING IN AN EXCITING NEW WORLD.

- Jasmine Gomez

The high-tempo music comes on while a trainer tells me to get ready. I hop into a boxing stance and take in the grassy park under my feet and the bright blue skyline above me. Colorful targets zoom in my direction. I squat, bob, and throw jabs, causing the targets to burst into beams of light, earning me points. Thirty minutes later, sweaty and satisfied, I remove my headset-and the world dissolves back into my quiet living room. I almost forgot I was there.

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Hooked on a Feeling

That scene is a taste of what it's like to work out using a virtual reality (VR) headset. It all started for me after I received a headset last year and got into dance workouts via the FitXR platform. It was pure fun with a workout bonus, so I kept coming back for more.

Exercise-centric games via existing VR systems (such as Oculus and Meta Quest, and HTC Vive) have exploded in the past couple of years. Some games plop you into a virtual studio, while others are adventure-based and don't seem like a workout at all, with your body acting as the controller. "Even those who've never worked out before can put on a headset and let time disappear," says Tine Gulbrandsen, CPT (known as Viking Princess VR), an exercise physiologist who reviews VR fitness games on YouTube and uses them in client workouts.

An Evolving Boom