The Quest for the Perfect ExerGame

How exactly do you define “ExerGaming”? This post has been a while coming in that it has taken me some to try and come up with a coherent answer. In the past I have tended to favor the term “Active Video Games” as being more descriptive of the phenomenon that I was researching. Having now broadened my interests, the simple concatenation of “Exercise” and “Gaming” (or “Game Play”) seems to me to sum things up clearly and succinctly.
However, when you consider that the term “Gaming” is in fact generally held to be taken from “Video Gaming” then it becomes harder to define what an Exergame is. Is it a video game that is controlled by body movement? What about electronic games that require exertion but don’t have a video display component?
I would like to propose an alternative approach to defining “ExerGaming” based on functional outcome rather than game play mechanics. In formulating this proposal, I recalled a while back when I completed the first qualification in training to be a ski instructor. Given that alpine skiing is an adventure sport we were taught that our primary consideration was the safety of our class and that second came the development of technique and our final consideration was fun such that the class members enjoyed themselves. However, the “secret” of being a good instructor was that each pupil experienced fun, had a chance to improve their technique and developed some safety awareness. Put simply the instructor planned technique and fun that order, but the pupils experienced fun, technique and safety in the opposite order.

Extending this functional approach to defining “ExerGaming”, health professionals etc. are concerned are intending to improve health by promoting exercise using a gaming medium.
From the individual player’s point of view, “ExerGaming” is an engaging and challenging game play activity which is facilitated by some physical exertion and is likely to be in some way good for their health.

So there you have it, except that this functional definition might now be considered too broad. For me the key is the phrase “engaging and challenging”. Carefully designed ExerGames have the potential to match an individual player’s skills and abilities no matter what they are – something which is not easy to do with conventional exercise and sporting activities.