A hedonic perspective on exercise intentions: cross-sectional associations with intensity preference, tolerance, and...

This cross-sectional study examined the associations of exercise intensity preference and tolerance with passion and the intention to continue exercising.

A total of 284 fitness center members (140 females, 144 males; M _age = 29.84, SD = 9.27) were recruited. Participants were independently stratified into light-to-moderate and moderate-to-vigorous profiles based on intensity traits.

Descriptive results showed that harmonious passion (HP) was consistently higher than obsessive passion (OP) across all profiles, peaking in the moderate-to-vigorous preference group (M = 5.47). Linear regression models, explaining 8%-26% of the variance (R ² = 0.08-0.26), indicated that HP was significantly associated with stronger exercise intentions across all groups (β = 0.53 in the moderate-to-vigorous tolerance stratum). Conversely, OP displayed negative associations with intention, particularly in the moderate-to-vigorous tolerance group (β = -0.18). Furthermore, intensity preference was positively associated with intentions.

These findings suggest that individuals who self-select their training intensity may report higher persistence intentions due to positive hedonic responses. We conclude that exercise prescription may benefit from accounting for individual intensity preferences and fostering harmonious passion to support positive exercise intentions.