Even fat people believe in the benefits of exercise. So why aren’t they exercising more? The problem isn’t the exercise but, rather, it may be the health clubs that deliver it according to a study in the January/February edition of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior .
Researchers at theGeorge Washington University Medical Center found that overweight people believe exercise improves appearance and self-image even more than normal weight people.
According to the article, "Attitudes of Overweight and Normal Weight Adults Regarding Exercise at a Health Club" by Wayne C. Miller, PhD; Todd A. Miller, PhD., "One of the most noteworthy findings of this study was that OW [overweight] and NW [normal weight] subjects did not differ in their overall attitude toward exercising at a health club.” Surprisingly, they share similar attitudes with regard to exercising with the opposite sex, the boredom associated with exercise, complicated high-tech exercise equipment, and the intention to exercise.
However, it seems that overweight people are more intimidated and embarrassed about exercising, exercising around young and fit people, and about health club sales personnel. Further, researchers found that the more overweight the person, the more negative his/her impressions might be about exercise at a health club.
In conclusion, the authors contend that individual beliefs about health club exercise should be evaluated for each new client.
The message to health clubs: “If a plan to increase the positive beliefs and reverse the negative beliefs is constructed and followed, the likelihood of retention of that client will be augmented.
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