Self-regulation strategies used by men and women attending to fitness clubs

Background: The purpose of this study was to examine the self-regulation strategies used by men and women attending to fitness clubs and how they are related to the level of participants’ physical activity. Material/Methods: The participants of the study were 200 persons attending fitness clubs, including 108 women (54%) and 92 men (46%), aged 17-63 years, mean 29.18 ±9.16 years. The questionnaire measuring self-regulation strategies: goal-setting, self-monitoring, enlisting social support, self-rewarding and stimulus control were used along with Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire assessing physical activity. Results: Participants exercised on average 6.17 (±3.83) hours MVPA weekly. From the self-regulation strategies the most frequently used was goal setting. The differences between men and women were observed only in enlisting social support (t(198) = 2.92, p = 0.004, d = 0.41) and self-rewarding (t(198) = 3.30, p = 0.001, d = 0.48) which – in both sexes – are more frequently used by women. Regression analyses revealed that in both sexes goal setting was the strongest predictor of the level of exercise (men β = 0.32, women β = 0.42) and in women additionally enlisting social support (β = -0.23). Conclusions: Self-regulation strategies may be effective tool in maintaining exercise, however their use is moderate. Most frequently used is goal setting, while others are used occasionally. It would be worth to educate exercises on the possibilities of regulating their own exercise behaviors.