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May 06, 2004
Another shot at making cardio fun
Journalists like to write about . . . but I don't see the innovation here. From what I can tell, this system is no different from X; it's a s Hasn't this been done? In my own family gym there are two such systems: Netpulse and Increase motivation or reduce barriers -- reducing barriers is the key. multiplayer version of DDR -- a community that meets each day to play -- and you do it from home. As business students I hope they see where the real opportunity is: Making this system affordable for home use. I don't see the innovation in MIT's Jon Bruck, a captology student, emailed me this article about a motivational exercise bike. It reminded me of a simpler creation I made in While she was living with me, I wasn't happy with how much she watched TV. So we made a deal, she could watch TV all she wanted as long as she pedaled an exercise bike. I hired an engineer to make the device ($45) that did the trick. These types of motivations systems are not new. But none has broken through to the mass market, except DDR. The bottom line is that people don't like to exercise. As I heard in various "I don't like to sweat; just give me a pill." Off the top of my head . . . netPulse, DDR appears to be the biggest hit. he latest entry in making exercise fun is Frankly, this approach is not new. But it does have promise. Eventually someone will find the right combination of rewards and distraction to an exercise device that is widespread. http://belab.mit.edu/~cyclescore/CycleScore, a project out of MIT.
netPulse, fitness trainer, cyclething in my book. Maybe it's not about fun but putting fitness A simple device I created 10 years ago did the trick: I hooked up the TV to an exercise bike. If my sister wanted to watch TV, she had to ride the bike -- not fast, really. You just needed to keep the pedals moving. This simple device cut back her TV time, kept her boyfriend at bay, worked. She watched less TVcutting back on her TV time, keeping her boyfriend (now husband) at bay (they would trade off riding the bike), and put her into the best shape of her life.
The key to making a successful motivational machine isn't a better video game; It's getting the damn thing in front of the user. Even better, put the system between the user and content they want.
In laboratory studies, these types of machines work: they motivate people to exercise more; they make the time pass faster; they help people ignore the pain; they cause people to say they'd work out more often if this were at the gym.
In reality, real-world barriers wash out the motivational effects. Think about it: Are you going to drive to the gym so you can play a video game? A fun video game is not going to be sufficient motivation for most people to make the effort. Granted, once you're at the gym, you may work out harder and longer (and that's good). But if you want to play video games, you'll do it at home.
The real breakthrough in these types of devices will come not from a clever game but from marketing: you've got to make these devices out of the gym and into the home. Low price, easy to use. DDR is the best example so far.
Until prices come down and ease of use goes up,
Why MIT's CycleScore will fail (unless . . .)
CycleScore will fail unless . . .
(but here's how to fix it) If at gym, then it will get people to work harder. But it will motivate only a small percentage of people to go to the gym. (why not stay home and play better games?) If at gym, then must focus on system that motivates consistency, probably making social dependencies key. The mistake MIT makes is assuming that more motivation leads to more behavior. More motivation has diminishing returns. At some point you need to reduce barriers for the behavior. This is what they miss. To reduce barriers you need to make it easy to do: easy to buy, easy to set up, easy to start up, easy to use (and this means at home). $39.99 and networked.
CycleScore will fail unless . . .
(but here's how to fix it) If at gym, then it will get people to work harder. But it will motivate only a small percentage of people to go to the gym. (why not stay home and play better games?) If at gym, then must focus on system that motivates consistency, probably making social dependencies key. The mistake MIT makes is assuming that more motivation leads to more behavior. More motivation has diminishing returns. At some point you need to reduce barriers for the behavior. This is what they miss. To reduce barriers you need to make it easy to do: easy to buy, easy to set up, easy to start up, easy to use (and this means at home). $39.99 and networked.
Posted by at May 6, 2004 11:34 AM
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