Motivation and emotion/Book/2024/Physical activity tracking and exercise motivation

Physical activity tracking and motivation:
What role can physical activity tracking play in exercise motivation?

Overview

Case Study

Sofia is a busy university student who wants to adopt a healthier lifestyle through physical activity (see Figure 1). However, Sofia has had difficulty with being motivated due to her busy schedule and irregular routines. Recently, Sofia purchased a smartwatch to monitor her daily steps and activity by setting goals and tracking her progress. Throughout the day the smartwatch sends her notifications which provide feedback through virtual rewards and reminders to stay active, keeping Sofia excited and engaged. Receiving positive reinforcement and tangible evidence of Sofia's progress through physical activity tracking motivates Sofia to continue incorporating physical activity into her daily routine.

Figure 1: Woman using a smartwatch to track her physical activity.

Physical activity tracking has been shown to enhance exercise motivation by offering continuous feedback, which makes progress visible and rewarding (Lewis, 2020). Activity trackers can help users set and achieve specific activity goals, thereby increasing motivation through tangible evidence of their exercise efforts (Lewis, 2020). Activity tracking tools keep individuals engaged and committed to their exercise routines (Lewis, 2020). The Quantified-self/self-tracking can be beneficial when motivating individuals to exercise. There are various psychological theories that encompass exercise motivation, including the Self-determination theory (SDT), the Hierarchical Model of Motivation and the Goal-Setting Theory. These concepts can assist individuals in understanding what types of motivation initiate the behaviour, as every individual has unique characteristics.

Key Points

• Visibility of progress through the activity trackers.
• Goal setting and achievement.
• Psychological theories of motivation.
• Adjustments to cater for personality and individual charactersitics.

Focus questions: What is physical activity tracking? What are the different types of motivation? What are the psychological theories of motivation in association to exercise? What is the relationship between physical activity tracking and exercise motivation?

Introduction to physical activity

What is Physical Activity?

Physical activity can be defined as any bodily movement produced by skeletal muscles that results in energy expenditure. In everyday life, physical activity can be categorised into occupational, sports, conditioning, household or other activities (Caspersen & Powell, 1985).

Figure 2: The Mobile Application Strava

• Discuss the benefits of physical activity, and why increased physical activity should be promoted.
  • Physical activity is important for both mental and physical health and wellbeing (Mahindru et al., 2023).
  • For mental health and wellbeing, physical activity has been shown to assist with sleeping, improve various psychiatric disorders and is overall associated with better mood and improved quality of life (Mahindru et al., 2023).

• Discuss the physical activity guidelines (i.e., how much physical activity is recommended daily/weekly, and intensity of exercise recommended).
  • The Australian Government Department of Health recommends adult individuals to partake in moderate level physical activity at least 2-5 hours each week.

What is Physical Activity Tracking?

Physical activity tracking is typically conducted through a device that offers an activity tracker element.

Types of Physical Activity Tracking

• Smartwatches (e.g., Apple Watch, Garmin, Fitbit)
• Mobile Device (e.g., phone)
• Mobile Device Applications (e.g., Strava, Lifesum, MyFitnessPal)

Introduction to exercise motivation

What is motivation?

Motivation forces acting either on or within an individual to initiate performing a behaviour (Cofer & Petri, 2018). Studying motivational forces can assist in explaining observed changes in behaviour within an individual (Cofer & Petri, 2018). There are various types of motivation that can initiate an individual to partake in the same behaviour.

Intrinsic (internal) motivation

• Intrinsic motivation is driven by internal rewards, such as personal satisfaction or enjoyment from the activity or behaviour itself (Morris & Grehl, 2022).
• Discuss psychological satisfaction and the relationship to the Self-determination Theory.

Extrinsic (external) motivation.

• Extrinsic motivation in contrast is driven by external rewards and pressures such as praise, rewards (e.g., cash prize) or avoiding negative consequences (Morris & Grehl, 2022).

Extrinsic motivation scenario

Sadie purchases an Apple Watch and joins the MyFitnessPal application. Everyday, Sadie competes in activity challenges with her friends. Whoever in the group reaches 10,000 steps and 30 minutes of activity first receives a virtual reward and badge. Sadie's desire to win and earn bragging rights serves as a form of extrinsic motivation, as the external factors are driving Sadie to stay active and meet her daily fitness goals.

Physical activity motivation

• Physical activity motivation refers to the internal and external factors that drive an individual to participate and engage with regular exercise (Teixeira & Carraça, 2012).
• Further discuss the desire to pursue physical activity due to personal goals, enjoyment, physical and mental health benefits and external rewards (Teixeira & Carraça, 2012).

What psychological theories can help explain motivation?

Individuals can have different motivations for performing the same behaviour due to inviducal characteristics. These can be explained through psychological theories.

Self-determination Theory

• The Self-determination Theory (SDT) (Ryan & Deci, 1977) is based on a macro theory of human motivation and personality in regard to individuals innate growth tendencies and psychological needs. This theory pertains to the motivation behind individuals' choices and behaviours in the absence of external influences.
• Touch on focus of the theory (self-motivated, self-determined)
• Based on the factors, autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

Figure 3: Maslow's Hierarchical Model of Motivation Pyramid

Hierarchical Model of Motivation (Maslow, 1943)

• Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs suggests human emotion is driven by a progression theory five levels of needs, often represented in a pyramid. Maslow's pyramid is arranged in a hierarchy, from physiological (survival) needs at the bottom and the more intellectually oriented 'self-actualisation' needs at the top.

Goal Setting Theory (Locke, 1968)

• The Goal Setting Theory is the motivational explanation of why some people perform better than others are because they have different performance goals.
  • Specific and difficult goals lead to a significantly higher performance in comparison to easily achievable goals and no set goals.
  • Goal commitment and consistency leads to higher performance.
  • External variables/factors such as feedback and praise only influence behaviour to the extent that they lead to the setting of.

Physical activity tracking and exercise motivation

The Quantified Self

The Quantified Self refers to the cultural phenomenon of self-tracking with technology.

• Discuss the relationship between physical activity tracking/the quantified self and exercise motivation (Feng & Mäntymäki, 2020).

The Relationship Between Physical Activity Tracking and Exercise Motivation

• Discuss which types of physical activity trackers and motivation types/theories lead to higher levels of physical activity.
  • Intrinsic motivation and SDT is more predictive of long-term exercise adherence (Teixeira & Carraça, 2012).
• Activity trackers promote increased physical activity amongst individuals (Feng & Mäntymäki, 2020), (Jin & Halvari, 2020)
• Activity trackers can improves health risks and could potentially be a motivation tool to increase physical activity in primary care setting (Pelletier & Gagnon, 2021).

Learning feature:

1 There is a positive correlation between physical activity tracking and motivation

	True
	False

2 Is the Self-determination Theory (SDT) of motivation based on these three factors: autonomy, competence, and relatedness?

	Yes
	No

3 Sage competes in a running race to receive a cash prize. This is an example of intrinsic motivation:

	True
	False

See also

Physical activity tracking and exercise motivation (Book Chapter, 2023)

Physical activity motivation (Book Chapter, 2021)

References

Beavis, G. (2015, March 14). Apple is going to make the world’s best running watch. TechRadar. https://www.techradar.com/news/wearables/apple-is-going-to-make-the-world-s-best-running-watch-1288354

Caspersen, C. J., & Powell, K. E. (1985). Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research. Public Health Reports, 100(2), 126–131.

Cofer, C. N., & Petri, H. L. (2018). Motivation | behaviour. In Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/motivation

Feng, S., & Mäntymäki, M. (2020). How Self-tracking and the Quantified Self Promote Health and Well-being: A Systematic Literature Review (Preprint). Journal of Medical Internet Research, 23(9). https://doi.org/10.2196/25171

Hall, C. (2021, December 22). What is Strava, how does it work and is it worth paying for? Pocket-Lint. https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/154854-what-is-strava-and-how-does-it-work/

Jin, D., & Halvari, H. (2020). Self-tracking behaviour in physical activity: a systematic review of drivers and outcomes of fitness tracking. Behaviour & Information Technology, 41(2), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929x.2020.1801840

Mahindru, A., Patil, P., & Agrawal, V. (2023). Role of Physical Activity on Mental Health and Well-Being: a Review. Cureus, 15(1). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.33475

McLeod, S. (2024, January 24). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. SimplyPsychology. https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html

Morris, L. S., & Grehl, M. M. (2022). On what motivates us: A detailed review of intrinsic v. extrinsic motivation. Psychological Medicine, 52(10), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291722001611

Pelletier, C., & Gagnon, M.-P. (2021). Using an activity tracker to increase motivation for physical activity in patients with type 2 diabetes in primary care: a randomized pilot trial. MHealth, 0. https://doi.org/10.21037/mhealth-20-154

Teixeira, P. J., & Carraça, E. V. (2012). Exercise, Physical activity, and self-determination theory: a Systematic Review. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 9(1), 78. BMC. https://doi.org/10.1186/1479-5868-9-78

External links

Walking: Make it count with activity trackers (Mayo Clinic, 2024)

Why some people find exercise harder than others (Tedx, 2014)

Physical activity and exercise guidelines for all Australians (Australian Government, 2021)