The Factors That Influence Whether You Workout Or Not

Source: http://qooton.com/

ECONOMIC PRINCIPLE: People (usually) respond to incentives in predictable ways.

THESIS: People’s response to incentives are affected by costs and benefits, and according to my research, an individual’s decision to workout is influenced by warm-ups, workout clothes, working out alone or in a group, and the possible risks to working out.

SYNTHESIS PARAGRAPH: Throughout my research for my blog posts I was able to learn about the factors that influence an individual’s decision to workout or not. For some people these factors increase the likelihood that a person will work out, and for other people will decrease the chances that they work out. The article, The Psychological Effects of a Pre-workout Warm-up: An Exploratory Study, states that whether or not you decide to do a warm-up before exercising will affect how likely you are to continue working out. People who warm-up before exercising report a more positive experience with working out and associate working out with positive rewards; that is why people who warm-up will be more motivated to workout. Since working out is supposed to be a lifelong activity, that is why young children are taught to warm up before workouts to increase their interest level in working out. From the article, Psychology of Lululemon: How Fashion Affects Fitness, it states how wearing workout clothes throughout your day can make you more motivated to workout. This is an example of  “enclothed clothing” (a term that researchers use to describe the mental changes people undergo when they wear a certain type of clothing) because people who wear workout clothes regularly tend to workout more. According to the article Should You Work Out Alone or With a Group?, people who workout alone receive mental health benefits that cannot be achieved when working out in a group. So people choose to workout either in a group or alone depending on the benefits they intend to receive from working out. If someone wants to push themselves harder, then attending a workout class will motivate them to keep up with the class, but if someone is self-conscious and inexperienced then working out with others will  make them associate working out with negative feelings. There are so many possible costs and benefits that people weigh when deciding to workout or not, and for many people the benefits of working out are a big enough incentive to over exercise. Although some people may think exercising all the time is only doing their body good, the article Top 10 Reasons Exercise Is Bad For You, proves that an exercise obsession is bad for someone who is overly motivated. This source also reveals that exercise can increase appetite for cravings, cause premature aging and destroy familial relationships. These costs of working out occur because an exerciser overly focuses on a certain incentive of working out. Ultimately, individuals who workout stay either motivated or demotivated by these incentives.