It’s easy to look at the intersection of fitness and technology and see only disturbing signs: Studies have linked technology, particularly social media, with unrealistic body image, eating disorders, low self-esteem, and more. But according to some fitness experts, the “disembodied workout” provided by virtual reality might be a step toward evening the scales. They say it can do more than just get housebound folks moving—it can help people struggling with body image issues work toward feeling good about their skin and bones while becoming healthier.
What makes a workout “disembodied”?
Virtual reality fitness apps and games, whether they’re focused on martial arts or soccer goalkeeping, put users in a situation where they move their bodies, but aren’t able to see them. This can this can be a transformative experience according to Leanne Pedante, the head of fitness for virtual reality workout program Supernatural.
“When I was introduced to Supernatural, I’d never heard of VR, but as soon as I started to move around a little bit, I said, ‘This is going to change so many people’s lives,’” Pendante said. “Because I’m able to move my body and not see other people. Not see mirrors. I’m not even thinking about what my body looks like in this experience. I’m just immersed in the movement.”
The next logical step from the mirrorless workout
The disembodied, VR workout could be seen as the extension of an existing trend in fitness: The rise of mirrorless workouts. The full-length mirrors that were once a staple in every gym are disappearing—you won’t find a looking-glass at most Crossfit gyms, and they’ve never been common in gyms where people do heavy lifting.
According to Pendanete, fewer mirrors is a godsend to some. Before she became a virtual workout coach, Pendante led group fitness classes focused on people with eating disorders. She says the number one request was finding places to work out where there were no mirrors. “They wanted to move their bodies, but were terrified of connecting with it in a dark way,” Pendante explained. “They told me, ‘The mirror is going to be the number one trigger for me to start to associate my movement with my aesthetics, with my bigness or my smallness.’”
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For gym-goers who feel they need a reflection to “check their form,” (or just check themselves out) not having a mirror can be a challenge, but according to Pendante, that’s a feature of virtual reality fitness, not a bug.
“I think many people have been conditioned to think that they don’t have the answers about their own bodies,” Pendante said. “A mirror feels like it gives the answers, but I don’t think it does ... we end up deferring what feels right to us to an outside source. We look at other people. We look at the angle that our joints are making compared to the shape that other people’s joints are making, rather than thinking, ‘I’m the authority on what I’m experiencing in this body, so I’ll know when I hit the end of my range, because I’ll be able to feel it.’”
Looking ridiculous but feeling good
Virtual reality workouts are new enough that there isn’t much research yet on what effect VR has on users’ body image vs. more traditional ways of exercising, but Pedante provides some compelling anecdotes from Supernatural users.
“One of the most common things I hear from members is that they’ve shifted from judging a workout based on how they look to how they feel,” Pendante said. “They come out of an experience and say they felt powerful, or that they felt their confidence boosted … They say, ‘My husband says I look like I’m fighting invisible bees, but I feel like I’m a total warrior.’”
If you want to give disembodied workouts a shot, Lifehacker senior health editor Beth Skwarecki put together this list of seven of the best VR workout games.
