Getting gamers to the gym

Whatever you do, just don't call it exercise.

"The more you can make it seem less like fitness, the better, for some of the kids these days," said Angie Dehart, talking about North St. Paul Community Center's brand new XRKade, set to open next week for demonstrations.

The first of its kind in the state, the XRKade combines video games with fitness equipment in an attempt to coax the expanding number of gamers - young and old - off their couches, helping them to increase their physical activity without giving up their games.

Feeling more like an arcade than a gym with its graffiti-style walls and flashing lights, the area features 20 stations for virtual athletes to hone their skills, from boxing to mountain biking to shredding on either the skate-, surf- or snowboarding simulators.

As part of a broader effort to revamp the nearly 16-year-old community center, the city approved the $70,000 project in the hopes of bringing more kids back into the center.

"There is nothing in there for kids," said Dehart, the center's health and fitness coordinator, pointing to a large room with exercise equipment. "How many kids are going to want to run on a treadmill?"

By incorporating video games, the XRKade is tailored for more inactive children, Dehart said.

"Only about 1 percent of kids are athletic, and only .5 percent are elite," she said. "What are the rest going to do?"

"We make fitness fun again, and that's the biggest thing we set out to do," Humphrey said. "With today's kids, the connotation of fitness is it's boring, it's not fun."

While a price structure to use the center hasn't been set, the goal is to make it affordable, Dehart said. The public can get a free peek next week.

Donald Dengel, a University of Minnesota kinesiology professor, says kids' aversion to exercise is a big
problem, and it's not something that will be suddenly fixed by combining video games with exercise.

"I don't think it will be the answer," Dengel said. "I don't think it's quite that simple.

"Eventually, kids are going to outgrow a game or activity or whatever, so then what? Then they retire from physical activity? I think we're always going have the same problem of motivating kids to be physically active."

And while any amount of exercise is good, he said, that doesn't mean playing an active video game is the same as doing a more continuous activity, like playing sports.

"Getting kids some activity is better than them sitting on the couch getting no activity," Dengel said. "But is it going to make them want to be active just for sake of being active? Probably not, and that's what we really need to do, is get kids to want to be physically active for the rest of their lives."

Dehart said her goal is "getting people to smile while they're working out."

"If we can take those chores and make them fun ... then there's no reason why we can't make them healthier," she said. "I think it's so important for somebody to enjoy themselves while working out because it creates much better habits." IF YOU GO

The XRKade will open for free public demonstrations Monday. To sign up, call Angie Dehart at 651-747-2479. The community center is at 2290 First St. N., North St. Paul.

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