Perception Of Walking Effort Predicts One-year Weight Regain

Abstract

Background: Participation in physical activity is a critical factor in maintaining long-term weight loss. Perception of exercise difficulty could in part explain differences in recidivism after weight loss. We tested the hypothesis that inter-individual variation in perceptual responses to exercise was related to weight regain following weight loss. METHODS: One-hundred and six weight-reduced premenopausal women (BMI <25) were used in this analysis. Submaximal and maximal fitness testing were performed after the completion of an investigator-administered weight loss program to determine physiological and perceptual responses to a standardized walk test. During the walk test, heart rate, ventilation, and respiratory exchange ratio data were summed as an index of physiological exertion and rating of perceived exertion was concurrently recorded as an index of perceived effort. Body composition was assessed following a subsequent one-year free-living period. RESULTS: Over the one-year follow-up period, participants who had a greater relative perception of effort during the walk test regained a significantly greater amount of weight at one year (6.5 + 0.51 kg, 95% CI 5.48 to 7.50 kg, p = 0.008) compared to participants whose perception of effort was more congruous with measured physiological effort (4.7 + 0.41 kg, 95% CI 3.90 to 5.50 kg). CONCLUSIONS: These findings provide support for our hypothesis that individuals who over-perceive exercise exertion regain more weight following weight loss. This finding may have considerable practical application for implementing more precise treatment strategies to prevent recidivism after the completion of a successful weight loss program.