Table 1. The three exercise games performed during the VRTT and CTT sessions.
During the CTT sessions, participants did not encounter the visual distractions, as the video and auditory components were turned off. For each game, participants performed an easier and a harder version.
| Game | Description |
|---|---|
| Boardwalk | Self-paced walking game on an ocean boardwalk. Participants control their walking speed by walking more quickly, causing the treadmill belts to accelerate, or more slowly, causing the treadmill belts to decelerate. Participants must match and maintain their walking speed to different target speed ranges, based on percentages of their self-selected overground walking speed. Participants must attend to the speed monitor at the center of the screen, which shows the participant’s current speed and the speed range that they must stay within, while ignoring the distractions in the surrounding ocean and air space. • Easier version: three broad speed ranges (0.5*self-selected– 1.0*self-selected speed) • Harder version: five narrower speed ranges (0.5*self-selected– 1.25*self-selected speed) • Each version of this game was performed for five minutes |
| Italian Alps | Self-paced walking game in an Italian village street. Participants control their walking speed while also shifting center of mass, depicted by a wooden cart avatar, to walk on the left and right sides of the treadmill. Participants must walk and move around the treadmill while gathering needed pizza ingredients to make pizzas and avoid obstacles in the virtual walking path. Participants must modulate gait speed and maintain dynamic balance to gather items and avoid obstacles, while utilizing quick information processing and planning. • Easier version: needed items placed farther away from obstacles (0.5*self-selected– 1.0*self-selected speed) • Harder version: needed items placed immediately before and after obstacles that needed to be avoided (0.5*self-selected– 1.25*self-selected speed) • Each version of this game was performed for five minutes |
| Step on It | Set-speed walking game on a plane runway. Participants must adjust their step length, step width and cadence to accurately step their avatar’s feet into boxes on the screen. The walking speed is based on self-selected overground walking speed, and the system records baseline step length and step width during a baseline walking period. After the baseline period, step length and width are changed as a percentage of baseline measures each minute to prompt participants to take long and wide steps, long and narrow steps, short and narrow steps, and finally short and wide steps. Participants must modulate their spatiotemporal gait parameters, utilize quick information processing, and attend to the accuracy of their foot placement on the screen. • Easier version: long and wide (110% and 140% of baseline length and width, respectively), long and narrow (120% and 70%), short and narrow (90% and 80%), and short and wide (80% and 150%) steps • Harder version: long and wide (130% and 140% of baseline length and width, respectively), long and narrow (140% and 60%), short and narrow (80% and 90%), and short and wide (70% and 140%) steps • Each version of this game was performed for five minutes |