Some days it is difficult to take time to exercise. Those of us who have taken health and fitness into our own hands know the battle. Work, family, and the stresses of life can really hinder your sweaty time. However, since we have taken on the task of being fit and healthy, we have to find the time. It would be nice to devote several hours a day to a great fitness routine, but for most of us this is a luxury we don’t have. So I have a great solution to this universal problem, FitXR.
What is FitXR?
If you’re like me and started your VR fitness journey with PCVR, then you probably know a fitness game called BoxVR. BoxVR has gone through a number of developments and found its way to the stand-alone Quest and Quest 2 headsets under the name FitXR. There are some key differences between FitXR and BoxVR, so it wouldn’t be fair to say that it is a Quest port, any more than it is a reinvention.
FitXR is primarily a boxing workout, but they also added some dance workouts to really get the cardio going. The boxing workouts I find result in the best quality calorie burn, but the dancing is great for a low impact workout. You can also train with others in group classes and this makes for a fun experience. Nothing motivates you to take a VR training course more than seeing someone score higher than you!
To begin
Since this is about time management, I sacrifice 45 minutes of sleep to get a 30 minute sweat session. With any workout, it is important that you prepare. Before I get started, I like to drink at least half a gallon of water and usually have a light breakfast. You need to be hydrated and have some fuel to work with, but you also don’t want the discomfort from a big breakfast.
I’ll do some stretches then. FitXR can train the entire body. So, be sure to do more than just stretch your arms well. You need to bend and bend your back, arms, legs, and knees. So be sure to be nimble or you are sure to regret it later. I tend to drink water while doing my stretches.
I usually train barefoot, but with FitXR I usually put on some running shoes. The first times I did this routine I noticed some pain in my feet and I’m sure this was due to not having the proper support.
This workout will make you sweat a lot. So take precautionary measures and protect your head-mounted display. VR Cover offers a variety of solutions to protect your HMD and keep you going without the sweat in your eyes. And if you’re anything like me at all, you’ll want to play games in VR later. Using VR covers and replacing them will prevent you from putting on a cold and wet headset.
Done, practice!
To save time and to maximize calorie consumption, I have divided the training into 3 phases. The warm up, PUSH HARD and the cooldown. Each session is divided into 10-minute sessions. I keep a water bottle handy so I can take some time between sessions to drink some water. So the entire exercise takes about 33 minutes. So let’s dive into each of these sessions that make up our complete training.
The warm up
In order to get the ball rolling and get the heart going, I chose the training called “Metal137” in the FitXR application. This workout is labeled as moderately intense, and I find that it starts off a little light and becomes much more intense over time. To get the most out of the workout, I’ll swing my punches pretty hard, but be careful not to overstretch my arms. For the “jabs” I’ll step into them and bring the power from my back foot and transfer them forward into my arms. On the “hooks”, I’ll twist my hips and shoulders and bring the power out of my body instead of just my arms. When it comes to the evasive maneuvers, I’ll really crouch and try to focus on my form as much as possible. I’ll wait for the bar to almost hit me so I can move quickly. With the “Side Dodges” I do a lunge step to the left or right, depending on which direction I take. This engages the core and legs. I told you it was more than just guns!
PRESS FIRMLY!
Here we put in a high gear with the exercise “Paranormal”. This will be an intense 10 minutes. Personally, I had an average heart rate of 130-150 during this workout. Granted, I’m not in the best of physical shape. If I keep training like this, I’ll be there sooner rather than later. As with the previous exercise, I hit, move, and crouch similarly. I like to move my feet a little more with the beat and beating just to get a little more movement. The music makes it a lot easier to get lost in the game and a byproduct of that is your feet move a lot more. Make sure no one is watching, so get in and swing your hips. If you are worried that someone is watching, give them a show! Then inhale and drink some water. We are nearly finished!
The cooldown
Remember when I said this was only a 30 minute workout. Well, it’s as close as possible, so don’t hang me up for a bit of fiddling. The cooldown is divided into two different exercises: “Aceller8” and “On the clock”. We took the time and tried to build a great workout and we need to make sure we cool down properly. Aceller8 takes about 9 minutes and is marked as moderately intense. It will still keep the heart rate high and the calories will continue to burn, but it is a far cry from the previous workout. When the clock on Aceller8 runs out, I’ll go straight to On The Clock. On the Clock is marked as light training and is very good for the cooldown. With this you can catch your breath, keep moving and lower your heart rate to a “more normal” level. So you’re still exercising and burning calories!
The proof is in the puddle of sweat
The results speak for themselves. To me, I burned just over 500 calories during this workout. I was soaking wet, sweaty, and out of breath. I have followed my progress with the Yur Fitness App and I can only recommend this program to you. This was a great workout, it was great fun, it kept me busy and before I knew it I was done.
So if you’re pressed for time, hit FitXR on Oculus Quest or Quest 2 and try this routine out for yourself. Feel free to adjust the routine and find workouts that work for you, if these aren’t what you’re looking for. Please let us know what changes you’ve made in the comments below so I can try them out for myself!
Follow us on social
Stay up to date with the latest VR fitness news
This article may contain affiliate links. When you click on an affiliate link and buy a product, we may receive a small commission to help publish it. More information here.
Comments are closed.