Most Americans Exercise. What About You?

[@ArtArtisian]

Confession: yes, the title got me thinking about actually exercising...

[@mojeanin]

Same here. It's positive and makes you want to "fit in."

[@Ziffer777]

The title wasn't believable.

[@ArtArtisian]

@@Ziffer777 Yet the stats in the first bit do back it up - just over 50% is 'most'

[@odizzido]

@@ArtArtisian Apparently all the people in the study had gym memberships before they were recruited into it. So no, the stats don't back it up.

[@ArtArtisian]

@@odizzido Are you sure? The study in the video looked at how gym attendees responded to the fact that most americans 'exercise', I think as defined and measured here: www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/exercise.htm This stat is from a broad survey, not from inside the megastudy itself. It would be really weird if only 53% of gym attendees self reported that they got exercise... do they all just sit at the water cooler? And not lie about it?

[@ProgShell]

Saw this title earlier today. Set a squat PR. Thanks Dr Carroll.

[@pretentiousindiekid]

A huge issue with this study that wasn't mentioned: all the participants already had a gym membership before the study began. This is problematic because this is a group of people who a) are already thinking about, and taking at least some action towards, increasing their physical activity, and b) have enough financial security and disposable income to purchase a gym membership. These results are interesting, but you definitely can't generalize them to the population at large.

[@unappropadope]

it was mentioned at the start, though @1:24

[@pretentiousindiekid]

@@unappropadope I meant that the potential effect on interpretation of the data was not mentioned

[@Rattlecat]

If all of the participants had a gym membership, to a specific gym no less... wouldn't that void the 'Random' out of Randomized Controlled Trial? That would be a pretty big botch up.

[@unappropadope]

@@Rattlecat no, the implementation was randomized just fine- it just means the study isn't speaking to the "general population" with its sample and it impacts external validity- if you're trying to apply these conclusions to all people it doesn't make sense, but it's still useful to know to increase exercise frequency among gym membership owners. I could see that gym companies are fine having people pay without using though, so many wouldn't care to implement the study recommendations. If anything fewer active users means less wear and tear; less congestion in the facility so they may have incentive to decrease attendance with continued paid memberships

[@pretentiousindiekid]

@@Rattlecat No, the "random" doesn't refer to the process of selecting study participants. It refers to the allocation of participants to experimental groups.

[@lewisrainwater9527]

Everyone, before you mention "they already had gym memberships". The study was a validation of know behavioral psychology nudges and choice architecture that have varieties degrees of effectiveness depending on the topic. They are simply piggybacking on the idea and trying to get you to exercise! It's okay! No one gets hurt!

[@cbpd89]

I can't prove there is a causal link between having long work weeks/hours, and not exercising, but I would bet on it. If you're working 50+ hours a week, making time for the gym or a bike ride may not be in the cards. I don't even have that excuse. My excuse is that I have to work around a toddler's whims and naps and those are highly variable! That makes it pretty hard to be consistent.

[@KHBogWitch]

My husband and I go to a 5am spin class Monday, Wednesday, and Friday-UNLESS I work overtime or have to do extra work from home in the evening on Sunday, Tuesday, or Thursday. I just CAN’T make myself get up the day after an overtime day. It throws off my entire schedule! I definitely couldn’t do it if I had lots of OT built into my job.

[@lewisrainwater9527]

They are using known behavioral psychology to try and influence people to exercise. I work 40 hours a week night shift and still got to college and take care of 4 animals. I still appreciate there efforts. They are definatly aware of the effects of socioeconomic status and other factors on exercise and health...

[@chris_mastro]

The title says most Americans exersize, but this study was only done with people that already have a gym membership... I don't think Americans with gym memberships can be called "most Americans" Or am I misunderstanding something

[@healthcaretriage]

The title was just a play on the study condition where participants were told that most Americans exercise ;) -Tiffany

[@Tanktaco]

So am I gonna get more exercise videos from HT to aid in the reminder effort?

[@Rattlecat]

I have pain in my legs so I started biking 30 minutes a day. Lost 30lbs though it isn't my goal or reasoning. It's just fun to get rid of the pain in my legs and blast music in my ears until I have no eardrums anymore.

[@MichiruEll]

Did I understand correctly that these are people who already go to the gym? That might be quite different from the general population. Also, reminder that the health benefits of exercising don't just come from going to the gym. 20 minutes of walking is already enough in most studies.

[@erikpoephoofd]

Already enough for what?

[@MichiruEll]

@@erikpoephoofd Benefits for prevention of cardiac disease (myocardial infarction and strokes). Mental health benefits. Prevention of bone fractures in people with osteoporosis. On the insuline sensitivity front, things seem to be a bit more mixed, since high intensity exercise may be more beneficial in that case

[@capnbarky2682]

Every morning I do between 30-60 mins of yoga, poses, breath work and meditation. It's as easy as you need it and as hard as you want it, and you can do it every day so it's easy to build it as a habit. About a month in and never felt better in my life.

[@bungodunko4123]

did you just copy the top comment?

[@capnbarky2682]

@@bungodunko4123 no, my comment is older But tbh I don't think he copied my comment either it's just basically what a lot of yoga people do and will notice.

[@bungodunko4123]

@@capnbarky2682 fair enough thats a crazy coincidence then lol

[@d_dave7200]

In the past I definitely didn't do enough exercise, and worked from a desk. The big difference makers for me were: working from home, and especially getting a Fitbit (now Apple Watch). Since both those things have been in place (maybe over the last 4 years) I've not had any issues exercising regularly. Really got me into the habit.

[@EmilyB42]

Great, now to figure out how to build in that sort of incentive for myself

[@TheDirthound]

I exercise with varying degrees of intensity 5-6 days a week and have since I was 15. I'm 47 now and don't plan on stopping anytime soon. I'm not bragging nor am I trying to intentionally make anyone feel bad, it's just who I am and what I do. I work in the medical field, physical therapy to be exact and I see on a regular basis how lack of exercise effects us all esp at a later age when mobility becomes a big issue. Grip strength and gait speed are big predictors for mortality, so is not being able to get up from the floor. Try doing it with and without the use of yours arms to assist. It should be easy, if it's difficult better start moving!

[@Everyyoueverymiau]

That’s really interesting. I didn’t know about grip strength, gait speed and getting up from the floor being mortality predictors.

[@Quagthistle]

While I get that some improvement is better than no improvement, my takeaway from this is that the VAST majority of people did not change their exercise habits. Perhaps we'd do well to ask why. Are they too pressed for time? Is the gym too far from their home or too cumbersome to use or too hard to get to during bad weather? Is it just plain boring? Or, like me, do they have an underlying health condition that makes exercise unrealistic? (You try spending 3-5 days in bed from going swimming at the gym, lying there with chest stabby pains in time with your pulse and your chest literally moving like a scene from the movie Aliens while the room spins nauseatingly and every breath feels like there's an elephant sitting on your chest and an ice pack in your lungs. When you've sat through days of such intense suffering as payment for EVERY visit to the gym, then you can preach to me about the benefits of exercise. Of course, I'd imagine that any doctor who actually had to go through that would immediately start ordering tests on the heart, but when these symptoms occur in a woman whose had physical issues from childhood, they just throw a few random useless prescriptions at you and show you the door.) In short, exercise is a nice luxury for the healthy. There aren't many options, however, for those who aren't healthy to begin with.

[@thedenial]

0:44 One of the small but contributing nudges that helped me make exercising a habit.

[@samueldoten6111]

Watched this video while exercising

[@merrymachiavelli2041]

The thing I struggle with is that exercise is an 'additive' process. As in, most other health issues, the thing you need to do is _not_ do something (don't drink too much alcohol, don't do drugs, don't smoke, don't eat loads of unhealthy food....etc.) exercise is a case where to be healthy you need _to do_ something. Which I find significantly more difficult.

[@dosadoodle]

I've found it very helpful to do short, intensive workout. Ten minutes every other day. That's it. What that means for me is three sets of dumbbell arm curls and three sets of pushups*. By increasing weight, I keep the intensity steady even as I get stronger without having to lengthen the exercise. The effects are nearly as good as when I'd do a ton more exercise when I was in college 15+ years ago. *I wear a backpack with weights, which originally were just textbooks, and have slowly increased the weight over time. [[ Usual disclaimer about exercise, talking to your doctor, and of course, listening to your body. For me, muscle burn is an "okay" pain, even if it is uncomfortable, while a little joint pain causes me to back off and rest a few days or reduce the weight temporarily. Your mileage will vary. ]] P.S. My first "dumbbell" was a large bag that had formerly been a 20lb bag of rice. I added some weights to it and made a cardboard "handle" so it was easy to grip. I rewarded myself after a few months with a couple of real dumbbells (which were also nice to use as handles for pushups). And when I needed heavier dumbbell, I nest a couple of target plastic bags, loop these on the dumbbell, and put things in the bag to get a heavier total weight. This has kept costs down -- I have only needed two dumbbells to go from 25lbs to 42lbs in weights -- and I can easily move the weight slightly up or down as needed by adding/removing things from the bag. (I use two nested bags, because I worry one might tear.)

[@thefaboo]

Yeah, I've found that a bit of a hurtle too. One thing I've found helps me: find the an exercise so simple I might as well do it. For me that was calf raises while brushing my teeth, later replaced by body-weight squats (while brushing my teeth). That snowballed for two years into daily fitness routine. 'Course, then I got sick, so now I'm back at the bottom of the hill - but it's not so steep this time 😅

[@NWRIBronco6]

When were the data produced? Going to the gym is a very particular kind of exercise that is not exactly on the radar rn, and was probs sporadic at best for most over the last two years...

[@toychristopher]

I'm a yo-yo exerciser. I can't seem to make it a habit. I got a Fitbit though and it's helping.

[@glacialimpala]

My greatest breakthrough with consistency is really acknowledging that every rep counts, doesn't matter when or where or how. Once I started doing like a single set of a single exercise on a random day those blew up to several. Now I'm almost onto full blown workouts. The way I did it was learning two things - first is Pareto applies to workouts, Brad Schoenfeld shows that in muscle building . One set carries 80% of results. The other is about muscle soreness - it's not good when it's strong. Do just a little bit and slowly progress. If you hurt after the first then you'll we weary of doing it again. Dr Mike Israetel talks about that.

[@soulshinobi]

Link to the study???

[@healthcaretriage]

Added to the description! -Tiffany

[@shuqi4454]

Another issue: if you stop giving rewards, will they become demotivated? The overjustification effect

[@RVUtheockyway]

This KZbin video by Healthcare Triage sheds light on how important it is to exercise in order to take care of one’s health and prevent diseases. The speaker in the video mentioned that most Americans do not meet recommendations for both aerobic and strength activities in their daily lives. The title of the video is actually a play on how one of the study conditions involved telling participants that most Americans do exercise. Though I do not know if there was another video made to provide more information on exercise in Americans, a few things the study fails to account for is accessibility to exercise and how factors including socioeconomic status, geographic location, and race can all affect whether some Americans can exercise. There are many systemic barriers in place that prevent certain people from having access to regular exercise or communities from being able to participate in such physical activity on a daily basis. Many research studies have shown that individuals living in lower-income areas or some minorities have limited access to not just affordable, but safe options for exercise. Encouraging exercise surely can do good for society, but it is essential to take these factors into account as not everyone has the same kind of availability some people take for granted. A solution to this problem would be creating policies that involve building parks and community centers or providing gym membership programs to those in need. This can help reduce the disparities seen in exercise rates and alleviate some of the health inequities seen in America. Another ethical principle to consider is beneficence (individuals should behave in ways that promote the health or well-being of other people). In terms of public health, this ethical principle entails that people in society have some obligation to advocate for healthy behavior, which includes regular exercise among other practices. This is also important in doing what the video mentions, which is lowering the rates of chronic diseases. While the study shows that positive reinforcement can promote exercise, the question arises of whether such reinforcements should be made by external sources in order to better the health of many Americans. For the individuals that have safe and affordable access to exercise, the dilemma lies with how misinformed particular people can be regarding the benefits or disadvantages of exercise. Many Americans do not understand how important regular exercise is and how essential it is in maintaining good health. Even if there were resources allocated to promote more physical exercise, would it have any meaning if the individuals doing it did not have informed opinions on why they are doing it? In conclusion, though regular exercise is accepted by some to be crucial in physical as well as mental health, it is also important to consider communities or individuals who either do not have access to exercise or are not aware of the benefits of exercise as well.

[@skittlesryan7862]

So cash is a good reward for working out.... so what would happen if we hooked all the treadmills, ellipticals, rowing machines, and the like to generators and paid people the going rate for each wat they produce.

[@doctormo]

So er, that's 15 cents per kilowatt hour. A bike can belt out 100 watts at a consistent pace. Giving you 1.5 cents for an hour of exercise.

[@TakeWalker]

I try but don't always succeed. Prior to 2019 (I can't even blame the pandemic lol), the answer would have unequivocally been 'yes'. :(

[@kuntamdc]

What about you....

[@No__47]

No, I'm not American. Thanks for asking.

[@Roll587]

Pilates 4-7 days a week for 20-30 minutes a session. I could do more but... I don't.

[@AnonymousFreakYT]

*I AM NOT MOST AMERICANS!* Oh, wait, that's not a good thing in this case...

[@merrygrammarian1591]

9¢ > 16¢ 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@DaveSomething]

12 ounce curl, that's exercise right?

[@faarsight]

There's healthcare in the US? I thought there was only health industry.

[@theoriginalsache]

But I don't *like* to exercise. I am miserable every time I try. I hate the gym. I hate workout machines. My brain does not like the idea of "Going for a walk" without NEEDING to go somewhere. The only exercise I genuinely enjoy is swimming and I don't have access to a pool.

[@wolfpytlak2786]

Reframe it like: You like exercise, you like swimming, you just don't like gyms or going for a walk. I hope you can find a way to get acces to a pool, exercise should be part of everyones lives because of its benefits, but it should be enjoyable in some way, not torture.

[@Jay-ho9io]

Die then? I mean I don't know what you want to hear other than some version of you don't have to do something that you actually have to do if you want to live long and healthful life. Allow me to restate this a different way: You seem to feel especially entitled to avoid a specific consequence because you do not enjoy it. Why?

[@ofallsadwords3207]

@@Jay-ho9io Is it really that hard for you to comprehend that when people have limited access to free time in their lives, they don't want to spend it doing unenjoyable things, since they spend literally all the rest of their time doing unenjoyable things already?

[@Jay-ho9io]

@@ofallsadwords3207 if you think your time is limited now, you're really going to love the outcome be of a no movement, no resistance life. I am both complete sympathetic and yet utterly without option. Not performing any exercise is a great way to steal all your quality of life from yourself. You don't have to be an mma CrossFit model god. Buy a 20lb weight vest and walk. Find a pool and go to it. Get a trainer and have them obligate you. Or don't. 🤷🏽 But the consequences of that are unavoidable.

[@kaypgirl]

Same. I bike as my main form of transportation, but I can't bike anywhere if it doesn't have an end destination stop. I can't cycle just for exercise, my brain doesn't see the point. And the only walking I do is at work, which to be fair, is a service industry job and is not a sedentary. But both of those things don't really happen if I don't have work for weeks or months at a time.

[@hungrymusicwolf]

This feels like creepy social credit score: get reward for doing good behavior (exercising) and punished for not doing. I really don't like this being researched as anything other than an abstract example of small rewards causing a significantly bigger change in behavior compared to larger rewards.

[@Theres_No_PlanetB]

No way most Americas exercise (high enough intensity) on a normal basic