Can eating fruits compensate for missing a fitness session? Findings from a clustered controlled trial

Abstract

Even the most health conscious persons sometimes give in to unhealthy temptations. We tested whether compensatory beliefs, health motivation, and regret influence compensatory health behaviours occurring after a failure to take part in the intended physical exercise. Physically active men and women (N = 133) attended a 6-session fitness course. After participants failed to show at a session, they were randomized to either the experimental group that received a regret-evoking text message (n = 69) or to the control group that received no text message (n = 64). Furthermore, participants reported whether they did something instead for their health in the previous 24 hours. Compensatory beliefs and health motivation were measured prior to the course. Linear mixed-effects analyses showed no effect of regret on compensatory behaviours related to physical activity, nutrition, and substance use avoidance. However, the manipulation made participants to engage less in behaviours related to relaxation and socializing. Health motivation and compensatory beliefs were valid covariates in the tested models. The identified factors appear to account for engagement in compensatory behaviours from various health sub-domains.