Affective Response To Short Bouts Of Exercise At Self-Selected Intensity

Short bouts of exercise at self-selected intensity have been shown to improve indices of metabolic health. Self-selected intensity is associated with a more positive affective response and adherence to exercise. Therefore, the affective response to short bouts of exercise at self-selected intensity has important implications for exercise adherence. PURPOSE: To examine the effects of 1-minute (1 M) and 5-minute (5 M) bouts of exercise at self-selected intensity on affective valence. METHODS: Thirty healthy male (n = 18) and female (n = 12) participants completed a VO2max test at baseline and two randomized exercise trials consisting of either a 1 M or 5 M bout of combined arm and leg cycling at a self-selected pace. Heart rate (HR) and pulmonary gas exchange data were collected during exercise. The Feeling Scale was used to measure acute affective valence (pleasure/displeasure) before, during, and following each bout of exercise using the following verbal anchors: -5 = very bad; -3 = bad; -1 = fairly bad; 0 = neutral; +1 fairly good; +3 = good; and + 5 = very good. Paired-samples t-tests were used to determine whether there were significant mean differences between bouts for HR, average VO2, % VO2max, and affect. RESULTS: Affective valence was positive before each exercise session for both the 1 M (M = 2.13 ± 1.96) and 5 M bout of exercise (M = 2.07 ± 2.32). The 5 M bout elicited a significant increase in HR (t(29) = 3.163, p = .004, d = 19.9), average VO2 (t(29) = 4.314, p < .001, d = 4.36), and % VO2max (t(29) = 4.461, p < .001, d = 10.3) compared to the 1 M bout. There were no significant differences in means (p < .05) for affect before, during, or after the 1 M bout compared to the 5 M bout. CONCLUSION: Physiological markers of exercise intensity were significantly higher in the 5 M bout compared to the 1 M bout. However, there were no significant differences in the affective response to exercise between the bouts. Additionally, mean affect remained positive during and after exercise, regardless of bout duration. These findings suggest self-selected exercise intensity may be more important than bout duration for managing the affective response to exercise. Further research is needed to examine the effects of various durations of exercise at imposed versus self-selected intensity on the affective response to exercise.