Emotional benefits of exercising outdoors 'more appealing'
17/02/2010 Emphasising the fun aspects of exercising outdoors is more likely to encourage kids to get fit than discussing the health-related benefits.
According to a new study from the University of Leeds, which is detailed in the British Journal of Health Psychology, people who find sports fun are much more likely to get regular exercise.
Over the course of the research, 128 teenagers all received texts each day at 16:00 GMT, with one group getting messages which highlighted the emotional benefits of exercise - such as "Physical activity can make you feel cheerful. What activity will you do today?"
The remainder received messages which either highlighted the physical benefits or emphasised both sets of benefits.
It was found that he physical activity levels of all 128 participants increased after the two-week intervention, however, The largest increase in physical activity was seen for inactive teenagers who received the emotional benefit text messages.
Lead researcher Reema Sirriyeh commented: "Our study shows that for inactive teenagers, emphasising the emotional benefits of exercise may be a more effective way to encourage exercise than highlighting traditional health benefits."
Earlier this week, the chairman of Sports Council Wales Professor Laura McAllister told the Daily Post that schoolchildren should be offered alternative forms of exercise such as dancing or bouncing on a trampoline.
According to a new study from the University of Leeds, which is detailed in the British Journal of Health Psychology, people who find sports fun are much more likely to get regular exercise.
Over the course of the research, 128 teenagers all received texts each day at 16:00 GMT, with one group getting messages which highlighted the emotional benefits of exercise - such as "Physical activity can make you feel cheerful. What activity will you do today?"
The remainder received messages which either highlighted the physical benefits or emphasised both sets of benefits.
It was found that he physical activity levels of all 128 participants increased after the two-week intervention, however, The largest increase in physical activity was seen for inactive teenagers who received the emotional benefit text messages.
Lead researcher Reema Sirriyeh commented: "Our study shows that for inactive teenagers, emphasising the emotional benefits of exercise may be a more effective way to encourage exercise than highlighting traditional health benefits."
Earlier this week, the chairman of Sports Council Wales Professor Laura McAllister told the Daily Post that schoolchildren should be offered alternative forms of exercise such as dancing or bouncing on a trampoline.
