Study Confirms That Adding Variety To Fitness Workout Is Key To Success

Jet, Jan 15, 2001

Fitness experts have long asserted that if you add a little variety to your workouts, you'll be more likely to stick to your fitness goals. But now science is lending further credence to that claim.

Researchers at the University of Florida found that people who alternated their workouts with a variety of exercises maintained their fitness regimen and enjoyed it more than those who did the same thing every session.

"It gets monotonous if you're doing the same thing over and over," said study researcher Christopher Janelle, an assistant professor in the university's department of exercise and sport sciences. "If you vary the routine, there's a significant increase in enjoyment that leads to greater adherence."

The recent study, which will be published in the Journal of Sport Behavior, divided 114 men and women into three fitness groups. Members of the first group varied the type of exercise between workouts, those in the second group performed the same exercise at each workout and those in the third group had no set schedule or regulations.

The first two groups were asked to exercise three times a week for eight weeks and given specific exercise guidelines. Members of the third group were given no instructions about varying their fitness routine and could do whatever they wanted during workouts. By the end of the study, 24 participants remained in the first group and 22 in the second one. Only 15 were left in the third group.

"Variety and structure contributed to the adherence of the first group," said Janelle, who also noted that variety "seemed to increase enjoyment in the first group, which helped them stick with the exercise program."

The study found that members in the first group enjoyed their workout sessions 20 percent more than those in the second group and 45 percent more than those in the third group. Among participants who stuck with the study through the entire eight weeks, those in the first group were 15 percent more likely than the second group and 63 percent more likely than the third group to adhere to exercise on a regular basis.

The findings point to a relatively easy way for beginners to start and stick with a workout routine, Janelle said.

"If you work out at home, you can go for a run one day, do aerobics in the house another day and do something else the third day," he said.

But if you find an activity you enjoy above the rest, go with what makes you the happiest, Janelle said. "In fact, you can usually vary things within that particular exercise to keep it interesting."