It is well established that muscle-strengthening activity counters the effects of age- and cancer-related muscle loss and confers multiple health benefits across the adult lifespan, including improved physical functioning and psychological well-being. The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans (PAGA) and American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) guidelines recommend adults of all ages participate in muscle-strengthening activities two or more days per week at moderate or greater intensity and involving all major muscle groups. Given the multiple health benefits of muscle-strengthening activity, understanding how motivation relates to exercise is critical to engaging adults in activity. However, participation in muscle-strengthening activity has been understudied in comparison to aerobic physical activity in U.S. adults and less is known about how motivating factors for this type of exercise are associated with meeting activity recommendations (≥2 days/week).
Our study, published in the Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, sought to better characterize participation in muscle-strengthening in U.S. adults and by populations at risk from not participating in muscle-strengthening activity, such as cancer survivors and older adults. We also examined motivating factors for exercise and their association with meeting muscle-strengthening activity recommendations. Using nationally representative data of the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS), including a total sample of 9068 participants (1006 adults with a cancer history), we found that less than one-third of older adults (29%), and 27% of adults with a cancer history, met muscle-strengthening activity recommendations.
The first key takeaway from this study was that enjoyment from exercise as a motivating factor was strongly associated with meeting muscle-strengthening activity recommendations, regardless of age and cancer history. Older adults and adults with a cancer history who cited exercise enjoyment were approximately 2.6 and 4 times more likely to meet muscle-strengthening activity recommendations, respectively. This notable finding highlights the importance of considering how to facilitate enjoyment with exercise to promote muscle-strengthening activity. Targeting enjoyment in program design may require more emphasis on the experience of doing muscle strengthening activity and connecting people to strengthening opportunities that they consider enjoyable. Since our study was a cross-sectional design, we recognize the need to further establish the possible causality between enjoyment and muscle-strengthening activity across diverse populations and identify mechanisms to enhance the enjoyment of muscle-strengthening activity.
The second takeaway from this study was that motivational factors related to muscle-strengthening activity were distinct from those associated with aerobic physical activity, as described in previous studies. We found a significant positive association with meeting muscle strengthening activity recommendations and extrinsic motivating factors, such as concern over appearance and guilt over skipping exercise, which contrasts with previous studies of motivating factors and aerobic physical activity. Further research is needed to identify how best to apply these findings to promote muscle-strengthening activity engagement for health benefits and long- term participation. Finally, it’s worth noting that ‘pressure from others’ was the least cited motivating factor across all age groups and was not associated with meeting muscle-strengthening recommendations, regardless of age group or cancer history.
Nancy Gell, PhD, MPH, is an associate professor in the Department of Rehabilitation and Movement Science at the University of Vermont. Her research focuses on promoting physical activity to prevent functional decline in individuals aging with chronic disease. Her current research agenda includes identifying and testing novel approaches that support exercise participation among rural older adults and people and people living with and beyond cancer.
Myeongjin Bae, PhD, is a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Neurology at Stony Brook Medicine and completed his PhD in the Interprofessional Health Sciences program at the University of Vermont. His research focuses on examining the benefits of exercise on cognitive and brain health in aging populations.
