I think I can, I think I can ... exercise

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We might be a little closer to knowing the secret to what propels people to start exercising, and then maintain that healthy trajectory.

The subject has been puzzling healthcare and fitness professions for eons — what does it take to help people start and continue to exercise? A study recently revealed two important factors that could make a difference: having home exercise equipment, and believing that success is possible.

About 200 study participants (the majority women) were involved in a physical activity program. They were given questionnaires at six months and a year into the program that were designed to measure a dozen psychosocial variables, such as self-efficacy (the belief that one can perform in a specific way to succeed or meet goals), physical activity levels, expectation of outcomes, enjoyment of physical activity, and access to exercise equipment.

Researchers at the Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I., used the data to find out which factors at six months would forecast the participants’ activity levels at one year. The major predictor of maintaining exercise was self-efficacy; that alone was responsible for a 139% increase in the odds of being active after a year. Other noteworthy predictors were decisional balance (what people perceived about the pros and cons of physical activity), outcome expectations and enjoyment. Having access to home exercise equipment was a big predictor of starting an exercise program. The data were published in the current online edition of Annals of Behavioral Medicine.

Researchers believe that understanding more about these factors may make it easier to design better interventions that help people start exercising, and continue it.

So for all of you whose treadmills, elliptical trainers and stationary bikes have morphed into clothes hangers, maybe it’s time to dust those things off and crank them up. And believe you can.

-- Jeannine Stein