Why Don't You Exercise?

A very long entry over at Science Blog, reposted from the Psychological Science website, recounts various researchers' work on the reasons why people don't exercise when they know they should. Some key findings and theories:

• A change in environment, and not coping well with the transition, can disrupt people's routines, which seems to account for the "freshman 15."
• This seems true across all age groups and different environment changes, such as a new job, moving to a new area, or even a change in the seasons.
• Self-control may be regarded as something requiring stamina, so if someone uses too much self-control in a day, such as resisting an extra snack, or controlling one's emotions, that person may feel too tired or unmotivated for the afternoon run.
• Specific goals for exercise are more important than a vague "exercise more, eat less" formulation, since these specifics can be incorporated into a routine.
• It's important to know if you are extraverted or introverted, since this part of your personality affects your specific intentions for exercise: energizing social event or calming alone time.

Personally, I find the routine, or scheduling of exercise as very helpful for my motivation. Also, if I'm doing a long cardio workout, such as a 65 mile ride, I prefer riding alone, since I use the cadence of my breath and exertion almost as a meditation. But if I'm going to do strength conditioning, I need other people to satisfy my competitive edge, not that I'll outlift anybody at 120 pounds, but for comparing my results. As an empiricist, I just like numbers and data, and mentally plotting curves. Yeah, I'm weird like that. Like throwing a frisbee with my brother: who had the longer throw, more accurate, prettier float; that kind of thing.