Biomechanical fidelity of athletic training using virtual reality head-mounted display: the case of preplanned and unplanned sidestepping

Virtual reality has recently been recognised as an effective tool for investigating visual-perceptual tasks. To develop a sport-specific virtual environment with realistic locomotion, it is crucial to examine the effect of using virtual reality devices on athletes performing intense and complex movements. Twelve collegiate football players were instructed to perform pre-planned and unplanned sidestepping in both environments with the same dimension and experimental setup in the virtual environment as in the real one. Analysis of the performance and knee biomechanical parameters showed that movements performed in the two environments were generally comparable. Consistent changes in approach velocity and knee angle/moment under unplanned conditions (compared with preplanned conditions) were also found in the virtual environment as in the real one, except for the significantly larger peak flexion angle (p <.05) observed in the virtual environment. Interestingly, half of the participants changed from producing abduction to adduction moment at the weight acceptance phase in the preplanned condition (p <.05). These findings suggested that while it is generally feasible to use virtual reality head-mounted displays for designated experiments and training, the effect of wearing virtual reality devices could be somewhat subject-specific.