What Makes Individuals Stick to Their Exercise Regime? A One-Year Follow-Up Study Among Novice Exercisers in a Fitness Club Setting

Abstract

ObjectivesA fitness club may be an important arena to promote regular exercise. However, authors have reported low attendance rates (10 to 37%) the first months after individuals sign up for membership. It is therefore important to understand the reasons for poor exercise adherence. In this project, we aimed to investigate different psychosocial factors that might increase the likelihood of reporting regular exercise the first year of a fitness club membership, including self-efficacy, motives, social support, life satisfaction, and customer satisfaction.MethodsNew members (≤4 weeks membership, n = 250) classified as novice exercisers (exercise < 60 min/week the last 6 months) from 25 multipurpose gyms were followed for 1 year. Data were collected by an electronic survey including background and health factors, self-efficacy, social support, life satisfaction, motives, customer satisfaction, and exercise attendance, and was answered at start-up and after three (n = 224), six (n = 213), and 12 (n = 187) months. It is well established in the literature that ≥2 exercise sessions/week improve physical fitness in novice exercisers (if adhered to). Hence, we divided the participants into regular exercise attendance (≥2 sessions/week) and non-regular exercise attendance (≤1 session/week, exercise dropout, or membership dropout) in the analysis.ResultsA mixed-effects logistic regression model revealed that the strongest predictor for reporting regular exercise attendance was higher levels of the motive “enjoyment” (OR = 1.84, p ≤ 0.001, 95% CI for OR = 1.35, 2.50), followed by self-efficacy “sticking to it” (OR = 1.73, p = 0.002, 95% CI for OR = 1.22, 2.46) and social support from friends and family (OR = 1.16, p ≤ 0.001, 95% CI for OR = 1.09, 1.23).ConclusionIn novice exercisers, regular exercise at three, six, and 12 months was associated with higher scores of the motive “enjoyment,” self-efficacy (“sticking to it”), and social support compared with non-regular exercise. Our results show that the majority of new fitness club members do not achieve regular exercise behavior.

The Coronavirus pandemic and closed fitness clubs negatively affected members exercise habits

“…Regarding self-reported exercise behavior, the six questions concerning physical activity and exercise habits were self-developed and not based on previously validated questionnaires. This study originates from a Ph.D. study including another sample of fitness club members ( 37 , 38 , 62 ). One of the main purposes of the 1 year study was to be able to compare participants from the Ph.D. study (new members) and participants from the current study (more experienced members).…”

“…Regular participation in physical activity is therefore especially important for overweight and obese individuals with an additional risk of diseases such as diabetes type 2 and metabolic syndrome ( 36 ). We have previously reported a high number of overweight individuals exercising in fitness clubs ( 37 , 38 ) and many fitness club members also report weight loss as one reason for exercise ( 39 – 41 ). Fitness clubs typically have personnel who can assist members with exercise program design, nutrition information, and weight management advice ( 42 ).…”

Weight Cycling and Dieting Behavior in Fitness Club Members

“…The cross-sectional data collected in this study was part of a longitudinal prospective study conducted in Oslo (Norway) from October 2015 to October 2018, following a group of novice exercisers at 25 fitness clubs in Oslo, Norway ( 19 , 28 ). The primary aim of the original project was to gain an increased understanding of those individuals who are able to stay active and continue with regular exercise in a group of novice exercisers in their first year of fitness club membership.…”

“…The participants had to be healthy novice exercisers (≥18 years), with <four weeks membership. Healthy was defined as no disease considered to hinder physical activity (such as heart disease, severe hypertension, or asthma), and novice exercisers were defined as <60 min/week of exercise at moderate or vigorous intensity, or brisk walking <150 min/week, in the last six months ( 28 ). Hence, all were considered non-exercisers at start-up, including baseline measures investigating weight cycling and dieting behaviour.…”

Development of a model to predict the probability of discontinuing fitness club membership among new members

“…．また，FC 利用頻度には年齢な どの基本属性や運動に対する心理的要因が影響すること が報告されており 13,14) We conducted a random survival forest and calculated the variable importance (VIMP) and confidence interval (CI) to select the predictors of cancelling membership. Then we included the variables whose VIMP showed above 0.1 in the final prediction model.…”