Left to Right: Jennifer, Ernie, Biray, Genevieve

Earlier this week I attended the Health People 2010 conference in Loma Linda University in California. I was asked by Dr. Ernie Medina, MD and “exergaming evangelist” (and LLU alum) to be part of a panel on “Technology and Behavior Change”. Ernie was moderator and other panelists included Jennifer Shapiro, PhD (Scientific Director, SanTech) and Genevieve Dunton, Phd (Assistant Professor of Research, Department of Preventive Medicine, USC).

Dr. Shapiro discussed an interesting pilot research based on her company’s Text4Diet program (see her full abstract here) where participants were sent SMS/text messages during a weight-loss intervention. The results showed that those who received text-messages during their intervention lost up to 6lbs over the control group. Since text-messaging is such a personal way to reach people, it just goes to show you how it can be effectively utilized to influence people’s decision to make healthier choices throughout their day.

Dr. Dunton’s research was a bit different. It was more of an observational study about children’s level of physical activity and sedentary behaviors in their natural settings. Her research team used mobile phones as a tool to ask and gather data via text-messaging. For more on her research, check out the full abstract here.

My presentation was about how internet use influences behavior change (full session description here). The messages we receive, the social networks we participate in and the content we create online all play a role in how we adopt and maintain certain behaviors (good or bad). With so much of our image/identity being blurred between our online and offline presence, it is important to understand not just the tools available online – but the culture surrounding those tools.

Overall, it was a great conference. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend a lot of the sessions because I was in-out within 24 hours (and those cross-country flights ate up all my time!). As always, it was a pleasure to catch up with my exergaming colleagues, Ed and Tommy, from Exergame Fitness who also showed their support at the conference!

Although I will be attending as presenter this year, I am looking forward to being educated, as well. So often we are wrapped up in our own field that we neglect to follow-up on research in other areas. Since exergaming and fitness technology are the main focus points of this blog, I often enjoy going to sessions that complement my knowledge – such as, lectures on stress & nutrition, workshops on creating successful boot camps, and cycling workouts that make me sweat.

This year I will be presenting the following sessions:

#105 and #185: R-KAIDE: The Newest Way To Score Points (Workout) (co-presenter Fred Hoffman)
#405: From R-KAIDE to the Aerobics Room: Video Games Get Active (Workshop) (co-presenter Fred Hoffman)

#248: Blogging Basics (Lecture)
#278: Marketing Your Blog in All the Right Places (Lecture)

#474: Managing a Multi-Generational Staff (Panel with Amanda Vogel and Fred Hoffman)

Over the next few days, I will be blogging my adventures here. Feel free to join me there!

I will also be delivering a short-short presentation about the similarities between Web 2.0 and Games for Health audiences and platforms. Below is a description of my session:

How do certain Web 2.0 technologies impact people’s health and fitness decisions? Are the audiences who spend hours of screen time in online destinations like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Second Life similar to the audiences who are drawn to exergaming and other games for health? Which outcomes from playing video games parallel those who micro-blog, engage in online social networks and nurture their avatars in virtual worlds? As programmers and researchers, what can we learn from making these observations?

Since the advent of broadband technology and the increased prevalence of wireless networks, the web has evolved into a powerful, interactive and ‘real-time’ environment – allowing content to be much more user-centric and user-generated. And because of this shift in digital culture, more fitness professionals are embracing online tools to create everything from fitness podcasts to cyber coaching sessions.

The objective of this brief, informal session is to bring these ideas to the forefront of our conversations, as they relate to games for health. More research is needed in this area and potential collaborative efforts could benefit from having gaming/web-based hybrids.

Session Description: Similar to the aerobics phenomenon of the 80’s, the coming decade will mark a turning point in group exercise with Interactive Technology playing an important role. Learn how these up-and-coming trends will affect your future programming, budget planning, staffing, and marketing. Discover 5 essential technology ‘must-haves’ that will guarantee success in the next 10 years.

Last year when I attended SXSW Interactive, I was sitting on the audience side of this panel. A panel of four presenters (whose tech-geek lifestyles had hindered their health) shared the non-tech related things they did to reverse the ill-effects of their sedentary behaviors (such as walking, yoga, etc). While panelists’ insights came from experiential perspective, at some point they entertained discussions outside the scope of their expertise (like diet and exercise prescription) and neglected to focus on anything tech-related or its potential interactivity in fitness.

My hope was to go back this year and share the ‘fitter’ side of tech by showing how people could actually *use* web 2.0 tools to jump start their personal fitness journey. In a way, my goal was to pick up where last year’s session left off. I suggested a wide-array of fitness-related (and non-fitness related, but web-based) tools available. Check out the list here.

My co-facilitator for the session was David Eckoff, a ‘tech-guy’ into fitness. He shared his experiences on how he overcame the barriers of sedentary, techno-driven lifestyle in order to adopt healthier habits.

Several conference attendees at our session wrote the following reviews. Feel free to check them out: Omar Gallaga, Tracy Russo, and Laura Moncur.

[Also, here is a picture from the session.]

Last week I was the keynote at the Major Moves in Physical Activity Conference in Birmingham, UK duing Leisure Industry Week. My presentation entitled “Do Your Eyes Flickr and Your Head Twitter When You Hear The Words Facebook and Second Life?” was about using social software (Web 2.0 tools) in the promotion of physical activity (and other health & fitness behaviors).

Statements like ‘Google it’ and ‘upload to YouTube’ is a clear indication that the web we know today is significantly different from the one ten years ago. Websites have become more user-friendly and user-centric. Online participation has turned into a cut-and-past, click-n-drag interaction. This shift from being the world’s ‘information superhighway’ to being a platform for dynamic interaction has captured the attention of more online users. And now, conversations about its relevance and application to health promotion and physical activity are becoming much more prevalent.

Despite the advancement in internet technology, what do these tools mean in the world of health and fitness? Its appeal is understandable: powerful mobile phones in the palm of your hand, addictive nature of networking on Facebook, the freedoms of the avatar lifestyle. But these things aren’t going to solve the increased incidences of cardiovascular disease, Type-II diabetes in children, and obesity rates.

Or are they?

Could our efforts online play a significant role in impacting health and wellness of a society? The long-term effects of using web 2.0 for health promotion and physical activity initiatives are inconclusive due to the fact that most of these tools are still in their infancy. However, the enthusiasm behind their potential application warrants further exploration. This may be why health organizations and fitness experts are embracing these online tools. Perhaps they are hoping to engage a greater audience, enhance their current professional efforts, and expand their field of expertise.

Today’s cutting edge technology is preparing professionals to think laterally in this next generation of health promotion and fitness programming. Carly Fiorina, ex-CEO of Hewitt-Packard, once said that “the past 25 years in technology has been a ‘warm-up’ act. What we’re entering is the main event, and by ‘main event’ I mean an era in which technology will truly transform every aspect of business, of government, of society, of life.” The question is not whether or not technology will evolve. The question is how will health professionals adopt and apply these technologies in order to determine their future evolution. Could these web-based tools be integral in those efforts to help people adopt healthier lives in the next era? I sure hope so!

Below is a glimpse of the presentation:

Tonight I will be on a plane to spend a week in the UK. I wish I could tell you it’s for a relaxing vacation, but alas, it is a professional excursion. Most of my activities will be business-related.

As many of you may or may not know, the week of September 23 – 25 is dedicated to UK’s largest events: Leisure Industry Week and Sports Development Week (aka. UK’s recreation and fitness industry). More than 10,000 people are said to attend Birmingham’s National Exhibition Centre to participate in various conferences, seminars, clinics and workshops.

The conference I’ve been invited to present at is the Major Moves In Physical Activity Promotion Conference, put on by SportEx, which will focus its efforts on the use of technology. To find out more about the session I will be presenting, click here. I will be posting a summary of my session in the days to come.

I will also reconnect with fellow colleague and exergame physiologist Alasdair Thin, who came to visit me back in May of this year. He will be presenting a session after me on exergaming. As well as, Richard Coshott from Gamercize, whom I met at the Exergaming Summit this past August. He will show me how exergames have penetrated the commercial gyms and health facilities.

I look forward to getting a different perspective in the sports and leisure arena. It’ll be interesting to see the UK’s approach fitness and innovation.

This year I was invited as a presenter to speak on various web 2.0 technologies and how they related to wellness. My first presentation “Stop, Blog, and Roll” discussed how health and wellness professionals could utilize blogs to enhance their professional efforts. I was happy that many who attended had heard about blogs (and/or blogging), but surprised that a few knew about the steps in creating one and the benefits/limitations to its implementation. I hope, now, we’ll see more professionals in our field embracing blogs as a way to connect to more people.

My second presentation “It’s URLife, Make It a Healthy WWWone!” was about health behavior change (HBC), specifically referencing the Transtheoretical Model of behavior change. People go through various stages of change when it comes to adopting new behaviors. I wanted to explore the effects of web 2.0 technologies with HBC, wondering if ’stage-matching’ various web-based tools might be more effective in creating change in a digital audience.

I also led an activity session on exergaming, since video games are more frequently being used to promote and increase physical activity levels. I did a demo with Dance Dance Revolution and shared a few techniques on how a worksite wellness program could be cost-effective and exciting with a little ‘game-time’!

My goal was simply to get more conversation about web 2.0 and exergaming within the health and wellness communities. Overall, all presentations seemed to have done just that… get people talking…

I presented a session entitled “Take Your Offline Presence, Online. I discussed the importance of creating an online presence, especially as health and fitness professionals. We, as instructors and trainers, have found success with our ‘offline’ efforts that we haven’t really explored the potential of what new Web 2.0 technologies can really do for us. In fact, compared to healthcare industry, non-profit health organizations, and wellness educators – the fitness industry has been behind in the adoption of new technology. I hoped my session was able to generate some enthusiasm and creative energy! You can view the abbreviated version of the presentation here.

I was impressed with how the IDEA staff covered the event. Blogs were created and updated daily. YouTube videos and photos highlighting various sessions and member experiences were also posted. And, opening ceremonies were streamed live via UStream.tv! Thanks to the accessibility of these technologies, IDEA was able to share the conference experience with their online community!

Next year IDEA is scheduled a month later: August 11-16, 2009. And it will be held in Anaheim, CA!
Disneyland, anyone?

I am leaving today and taking 2 months off to live and play in Istanbul, Turkiye! I am dedicating a separate ‘Be Fit In Turkiye‘ blog to journal my travels. Please feel free to stop in on my adventures and drop me a comment there!

I will still maintain this blog and continue posting on my Second Life blog. I will periodically guest blog for Unleash the Power of Group Fitness, as well.

Although my text-messaging service and cell phone will be temporarily frozen, I still plan on providing Flickr updates and Twitter rants (just not as regularly). Anyone needing to contact me can do so via email (befitwithbiray [at] gmail [dot] com) or Skype (name: befitt).

Have a safe and pleasant summer to everyone – I hope to see most of you in Las Vegas at the IDEA World Fitness Conference or the National Wellness Conference in Stevens Point, Wisconsin when I return in July!