A recent study conducted at the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences at the University of Jyväskylä found that, compared to people of normal weight, individuals who are obese feel significantly less enjoyment and pride during physical activity. The findings also revealed that obese people are more motivated to exercise for reasons other than the desire to experience enjoyment — for example, to improve their appearance. The researchers concluded, "It is important to consider how physical activity can be made more enjoyable."
This study has merit in that it addresses an important question: how to prevent and treat obesity by motivating people to exercise more. Nevertheless, the conclusion drawn by the authors misses the mark.
Based on his decades-long research on motivation, Professor Steven Reiss of The Ohio State University discovered that we all want the same things but not to the same degree. We all want to understand things, but some people enjoy thinking much more than do others. Although we all want a degree of structure in our lives, some individuals like to be much more organized compared to others. No one wants to feel unsafe; some people, however, are much more risk averse than are others.
The Reiss Motivation Profile® (RMP) assesses the 16 intrinsic motives that drive human behavior. One RMP motive is Physical Activity, or the desire for muscle movement. People who score as having a strong need for this basic desire enjoy a high level of exercise; they may play one or more sports and are likely to work out on a regular basis. In contrast, individuals with a weak need for this intrinsic motive prefer a sedentary lifestyle because muscle movement is not inherently pleasurable for them. Efforts to make exercise more enjoyable for people who dislike physical activity are doomed to fail.
What is possible is to help sedentary people find reasons to exercise other than intrinsic enjoyment of muscle movement. For example, people with a strong need for RMP Order may be more likely to work out if they are encouraged to follow the same exercise routine day after day. Parents with a strong desire for RMP Family may find motivation to exercise when they remind themselves that their young children need them to be healthy. Individuals with strong RMP Power may be able to satisfy their need for achievement by working toward challenging fitness goals. People with a strong desire for RMP Social Contact may be more likely to exercise in group classes, whereas those with a weak need for this basic desire may be more inclined to work out in the privacy of their home.
In summary, we should not focus on trying to make people who are obese enjoy exercise. If they liked exercise, they would not be sedentary. Instead, our efforts should be directed at helping these individuals understand what truly motivates them so they can use this self-awareness to discover other reasons to increase their physical activity.
