Research on the influence of virtual reality on muscle fatigue during rowing ergometer exercise – pilot study

by Natalia Daniel, Jerzy Małachowski, Kamil Sybilski, Dariusz Siemiaszko, Kamil Klicki

The growing popularity of virtual reality (VR) applications has been reflected in numerous studies, particularly those examining the effects of VR on the human body, physical activity, and sports training. Comparative research suggests that simulated environments can influence physiological and psychological responses in distinct ways. The integration of VR with electromyographic (EMG) systems opens new opportunities to study biofeedback and muscle activation during exercise in real-time. However, only a limited number of studies have provided quantitative data on muscle fatigue. In the present research eight healthy male participants from previously described studies were examined using a VR environment to explore muscle fatigue. EMG signals were recorded from three muscle groups, and knee flexion angles were monitored. A VR simulation developed in Unreal Engine 5 was designed to reproduce a natural river scene for rowing training. The Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) was applied to both previously collected and VR-based data, calculating median frequency (MDF) distributions and linear regression for lower extremity muscles. Wilcoxon signed-rank tests comparing VR and non-VR conditions for the measured muscles: the Rectus Femoris, Biceps Femoris, and Gastrocnemius Lateralis, did not reveal statistically significant differences (all p > 0.05). Although no significant differences were observed, the proposed methodology introduces a valuable framework for quantitative fatigue assessment. By integrating VR with EMG analysis, this approach provides new perspectives for investigating muscle fatigue and its modulation in immersive environments.