• USA Today, Monday, December 4, 2006 12:15 PM

McDonald's is testing high-tech mini-gyms for kids at seven stores in California, Illinois, Colorado and Oklahoma and could roll out "a significant number" over the next year if they are a hit, according to a company spokesman. The RGyms would replace PlayPlaces, of which there are 5,500 nationwide.

Dubbed R Gyms (after Ronald McDonald), the equipment includes bikes that are hooked to video games that kids can only play while peddling; a mini basketball court that gives electronic feedback like cheers; climbing equipment, such as rocks of molded plastic, monkey bars and ropes; and electronic pads for dancing that signal video screens to show the moves.

Not everyone is a fan of the new R Gyms. Parents may overestimate their benefit, and presume kids can eat more junk food, says Kelly Brownell of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University. "A kid can burn 20 calories from the exercise, but take in 200 calories from a milkshake," she says.

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