How the Meta Quest 3 made for the perfect workout partner

❘ Published: 2024-05-23T15:51:21

Dexerto

Working out has always been a hassle, but ever since I tried using a Meta Quest 3 as a part of my workout routines, it’s been transformative: Here’s why.

For most of my life, my day-to-day involved strenuous activity inside of a hot and sticky factory, running around for eight to ten hours a day, so I never really had to worry about making sure I was active.

Now that my life doesn’t consist of so much daily activity, I’ve had to focus more on what I’m doing and how often I’m staying active. Getting a gym membership is the most obvious answer to my needs, but leaving the house and going there is a whole different challenge.

I started learning karate back in December 2023 as a way to get some exercise, but only having class two days a week left me without any form of activity, more often than not.

Gamifying fitness has been something I’ve enjoyed for most of my life — Dance Dance Revolution, Wii Fit, and Ring Fit Adventure being just a few popular ways to do so — but they’ve all been fairly limited with what you could do in-game.

So when Meta asked me to test out the Quest 3 with some of the platform’s most popular apps, trying it out was a no-brainer.

Meta Quest 3 fitness first impressions

Meta provided the headset and a handful of apps to try out, and I immediately started setting up everything from boxing apps like Supernatural to Les Mills Bodycombat and meditation-focused games like Tripp.

Getting everything set up was a breeze across all apps, and I was quickly able to jump into Meta’s own Supernatural for my first session. The flagship VR boxing app offers both boxing and a Beat Saber-esque mode that they aptly call flow. Both modes allow you to work out to some of the most popular songs from popular artists like Green Day, Queen, and even Eminem and 50 Cent.

After my first 30 minutes of boxing, the cloth face seal became drenched in sweat, and the stock headband began hurting my head. The sweaty face seal was easy to get used to, but I quickly replaced the headband with the Kiwi Design comfort strap.

While upgrading the overall feel, I decided to also add in Kiwi Design’s knuckle grips to elevate the boxing experience, which was well worth the sub-$30 asking price.

Outside of a few monitor issues with comfort, though, it was easy to get into boxing using a Meta Quest 3, thanks to each app’s in-game instructors offering quick tutorials for everything introduced in the game.

Meta Quest 3 fitness apps

There are plenty of options for fitness apps in the Quest Store, which is very welcome when trying to find the best one for my interests.

Since the karate classes I’ve been taking have a major focus on boxing — apps like Supernatural, Les Mills BodyCombat, and Litesport were my favorites to use during off days.

While supplementing my weekly workout schedule with these apps, I tested my (lack of) dance skills with OhShape and even took some mental health breaks with Tripp.

All of these apps include some sort of instructor — whether it’s a VR hologram of popular fitness gurus or simply a calm voice in the background telling you what to do — and they all make it super easy for a beginner to get into the groove of working out.

Making it a habit

Starting a regular workout schedule with the Meta Quest 3 was tricky at first — largely because it’s much easier to sit around and watch TV than it is to put on a VR headset and work out for 30 minutes to an hour.

After about the first week of doing it each day, though, it turned into something I wanted to do instead of something I felt like I had forced myself into doing.

It wasn’t long, though, until my sole boxing app became Supernatural, but it’s not because the others weren’t suitable. Having good music to listen to while working out helps tremendously with staying motivated, and Supernatural just does it best for my interests.

While the Meta Quest 3 is great for physical health, the same apps (and a few others) also allow you to take care of your mental health with various meditation options. I used Tripp for this, and after using it just one time, I found myself reaching for it nearly every night.

Since getting into the habit of working out with the Quest 3, it’s become one of my favorite ways to work out. The ability to do it at nearly any time of the day makes it significantly easier to make sure I’m active each day, which helps a lot.

But, the Quest 3 isn’t just limited to being a fitness device when I use it, thanks to the massive library of apps available on the store, in addition to the high quality of the device itself: Just remember that if you plan to work out using one, you might want to invest in some aftermarket accessories.