The relationship between physical activity, volitional skills and weight loss maintenance in Danish obese individuals

TY - ABST

T1 - The relationship between physical activity, volitional skills and weight loss maintenance in Danish obese individuals

AU - Elsborg, Peter

AU - Pfister, Gertrud Ursula

AU - Helge, Jørn Wulff

AU - Jørgensen, Sune Dandanell

AU - Elbe, Anne-Marie

PY - 2014

Y1 - 2014

N2 - Background: Volitional skills, also referred to as “the will”, have been shown to be important for goal achievement in many different contexts (e.g. elite sports, academia, work-life). Volitional skills have proven especially important for keeping to one’s plan and adhering to one’s long-term goals. However, the relationship between weight loss maintenance and volitional skills has not been investigated yet. This study investigates if volitional skills are related to the amount of physical activity in obese individuals, and their relationship with actual successful weight loss. Methods: Participants (N=61, mean age 39 (SD=17), 21 male, 40 female) were selected from a large database of former participants in a lifestyle intervention course targeting obese individuals (BMI>30). The Danish version of the Volitional Components Questionnaire was administered to measure volitional skills related to exercise. Results: Success was determined by the difference between an individual’s highest ever and current BMI. Analyses indicated that the successful weight maintainers’ possessed significantly higher values in the volitional skills initiative, general self-confidence, volitional self-confidence and coping with failure and lower values in lack of energy, postponing training, and avoiding effort than unsuccessful weight maintainers. Furthermore, the successful were significantly more physically active. Higher physical activity was related to higher positive lower negative values in a total of 9 volitional skills. Conclusion: This study indicates that volitional skills seem to be an important component in the difficult task of weight maintenance. Implications for future research with a large sample of 2000 former participants and practical implications for the design of the life style intervention course are discussed. Conflict of Interest: None to declare. Funding The study is supported by the research programme "Physical activity and nutrition for improvement of health" funded by the University of Copenhagen Excellence Programme for Interdisciplinary Research.

AB - Background: Volitional skills, also referred to as “the will”, have been shown to be important for goal achievement in many different contexts (e.g. elite sports, academia, work-life). Volitional skills have proven especially important for keeping to one’s plan and adhering to one’s long-term goals. However, the relationship between weight loss maintenance and volitional skills has not been investigated yet. This study investigates if volitional skills are related to the amount of physical activity in obese individuals, and their relationship with actual successful weight loss. Methods: Participants (N=61, mean age 39 (SD=17), 21 male, 40 female) were selected from a large database of former participants in a lifestyle intervention course targeting obese individuals (BMI>30). The Danish version of the Volitional Components Questionnaire was administered to measure volitional skills related to exercise. Results: Success was determined by the difference between an individual’s highest ever and current BMI. Analyses indicated that the successful weight maintainers’ possessed significantly higher values in the volitional skills initiative, general self-confidence, volitional self-confidence and coping with failure and lower values in lack of energy, postponing training, and avoiding effort than unsuccessful weight maintainers. Furthermore, the successful were significantly more physically active. Higher physical activity was related to higher positive lower negative values in a total of 9 volitional skills. Conclusion: This study indicates that volitional skills seem to be an important component in the difficult task of weight maintenance. Implications for future research with a large sample of 2000 former participants and practical implications for the design of the life style intervention course are discussed. Conflict of Interest: None to declare. Funding The study is supported by the research programme "Physical activity and nutrition for improvement of health" funded by the University of Copenhagen Excellence Programme for Interdisciplinary Research.

M3 - Conference abstract for conference

T2 - The Complexity of Obesity

Y2 - 18 June 2014 through 20 June 2014

ER -