Abstract
Women can accrue unique benefits in mental and physical health with regular engagement in physical activity. Indeed, the accumulation of positive affective experiences with repeated exercise sessions can lead to greater well-being and to sustaining an active lifestyle over time. However, the short- and long-term relationships between exercise and indicators of well-being (i.e., positive affect) are particularly complex, prompting the need to better understand the role of motivation in predicting these associations. Using self-determination theory (SDT), the purpose of this experience sampling study was to (a) examine acute changes in positive affect from pre- to post- to three hours-post exercise over a two-week period and (b) to explore the influence of situational motivation on these changes in affect. Preliminary regression results with a subsample of 30 active women with multiple life roles (mean age = 42.73) showed that, respectively, situational identified and introjected regulations predicted consistent increases in positive affect with exercise (ps < .05). In addition, data collected over the 14-day period revealed a significant decrease in positive affect three-hours post exercise (p < .05) that was not predicted by pre-exercise situational motivational regulations. The applicability of these findings, in terms of designing exercise-based wellness interventions for women that borrow from the principles of self-determination theory, is examined. The utility of daily experience sampling protocols for this type of research is also discussed.
