David Robson Photo: supplied
You can hack you mind to get off the couch and work out, says David Robson.
He has written a New Scientist article about a University of Bangor programme teaching the psychology of motivation where they put students through a programme ending in them running a marathon.
"They teach the psychology of motivation through a training programme to run a marathon in just over three months.
"A lot of these students, especially the psychology students, they're not gym bunnies. So it's really quite remarkable what learning about the psychology of motivation can do, even for the most committed couch potatoes," he told RNZ's Jim Mora.
Genetically it makes sense that we shy away from exercise, he said.
"We didn't really evolve to exercise for the sake of it. There was always a goal in mind that was important for our survival whenever we did physical activity."
We had to exercise just to find our food, he said.
"There was always a very clear purpose for why we should be doing that activity."
Hitting the gym just to keep fit is too abstract to get us moving, he said.
So how to overcome this genetic hindrance? Be specific, he said.
"Our ambitions can be quite vague, just simply saying, I want to get fitter this year doesn't really give you much direction. It's much more helpful for you to say, if you do want to lose weight, to specify how many pounds you would like to lose."
Writing it down also helps, he said.
Try to create a clear plan and don't be overly ambitious, that's important too. It has to be something that that is within the realms of possibility."
Accountability is also important, Robson said.
"So, sharing your goals with other people, so that you'll feel just a little bit of embarrassment if you don't stick to your plan, and that's a great way of enhancing your motivation."
He is an advocate of intrinsic rather than extrinsic motivation.
"Self-determination theory tells us that intrinsic motivations, the things that come from the activity itself and our own internal pleasure at doing them, is far more motivating.
"So, when it comes to exercise, the key thing here, I think, is just to find an exercise that you find pleasurable and enjoyable."
A growth mind set is also a powerful motivational tool, he said.
"We believe that most of our abilities can improve with time. We see change as something that's incremental, and that increases with effort."
And the plan should be time bound, he said.
"When you're creating that plan, set specific goals at specific times throughout the year. You might aim to lose a certain amount of weight by after a certain number of weeks."
And the results are in, he said, with the Bangor University cohort showing significant improvements.
"It's been running now for a few years, and in each cohort of students, the majority have managed to complete either a full marathon, that's most students, or at least a half marathon.
"It's quite rare, actually, on this course, for people to drop out and to not meet that goal."
There was a side benefit too, he said.
"The course seems to also increase participants self-compassion, so that's their ability to treat themselves kindly and to avoid excessive self-criticism."
