Children over “-enty,-rty,-fty”: Gamification and autonomy as an environmental education leitmotif for “children of all ages” using a new workplace narrative

Abstract

The "Pocket Trainer" research project is part of a more comprehensive project, the "Ufficio Proattivo 150" project, which aims to assess a new workplace concept as an opportunity for individual development and health promotion, which differs from frequent beliefs that consider the workplace itself the cause of sedentarism or stress. By this rationale, new workstations plan to substitute the natural environment. Owing to innovative architectural solutions and specific equipment designs, the employees can exercise without interrupting the usual workflow. Individualized and adapted training programs support this user–place interaction in the spirit of gamification and distinguishing factories oriented at promoting the awareness of proper health practices of their employees. We designed a new portable and straightforward equipment, the cube fitness test (CFT), which is based on exercising at submaximal intensity. It can be used in several environments: at home, in the office, indoors, and outdoors. A preliminary investigation assessed the validity and reliability of CFT. A total of 54 individuals (21 females and 33 males, 20.0 ± 4.2 years old, 65.0 ± 11.4-kg body weight, 1.74 ± 0.09-m stature, 22.0 ± 2.4-kg·m−2 body mass index) participated in this study. They were tested on cardio-respiratory and muscular endurance, flexibility, core muscular efficiency, shoulder mobility, and upper body strength; the obtained results were related to measurements performed using CFT. Overall, acceptable and good reliability were obtained in single tests (r > 0.66; p < 0.001), and moderate to good validity was observed (r > 0.50; p < 0.001). Low validity was found in the core muscular efficiency (r = 0.44; p < 0.001). CFT is a reliable instrument that contributes to developing consciousness, culture, and motivation toward physical activity. It provides knowledge of the advantages of good behaviour on the health status and quality of working life. This study confirmed that even mild and minimal exercise contributes to improving physical and mental health. Hence, the use of CFT in the Pocket Trainer intends to promote health at usual workplaces and in particular: i) higher wellbeing levels (actual and perceived), ii) new awareness on properties of physical activity on health prevention and healthy lifestyle promotion.