Mindful Deliberation About Exercise: Influence of Acute Positive and Negative Thinking1

The purpose was to examine if the acute thoughts that individuals have as a function of deciding whether to exercise influence subsequent motivated behavior. Two questions based on self‐efficacy theory were tested. Are immediate, retrospective, or anticipated thoughts predictive of self‐efficacy to adhere to regular exercise? Does self‐efficacy influence exercise intention and behavior? Participants were 82 healthy adults (M age = 24 years) enrolled in a 10‐week exercise program. Social cognitive measures were assessed after 1.5 months of experience, and 3 weeks of exercise were tracked. Multivariate analyses showed that participants who were more positive in their acute retrospective or anticipated thinking exhibited significantly higher self‐efficacy and attendance than did negative‐thinking counterparts. Multiple regression analyses revealed that acute retrospective and anticipated thoughts were predictors of self‐efficacy. In addition, self‐efficacy was predictive of future intention and exercise attendance.