Fitness
What really motivates people to exercise: Reddit study yields surprising insights
(© M. Business – stock.adobe.com)
In a nutshell
- Physical appearance is the top motivator for exercise (24%), outranking physical health (19%) and mental health (17%), according to analysis of Reddit discussions.
- Building consistent habits is the most effective strategy for maintaining exercise routines, with 30% of users emphasizing routine over motivation.
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, motivations shifted significantly – physical appearance became less important while health benefits gained greater prominence.
TEL AVIV — Vanity trumps health when it comes to why people start exercising. This surprising finding emerged when Tel Aviv University researchers took an unconventional approach to studying fitness motivation: they analyzed unfiltered Reddit conversations instead of using traditional surveys. Their data revealed physical appearance was the top motivation (24% of comments), with physical health (19%) and mental health (17%) trailing behind.
When it comes to sticking with exercise, building consistent habits proved most crucial, with Redditors emphasizing that discipline matters far more than fleeting motivation.
‘In reality, they want six-pack abs’
The study, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, offers a rare glimpse into what people say about exercise when they’re speaking freely, not responding to researcher-designed questions. Researchers Michal Shmueli-Scheuer, Yedidya Silverman, Israel Halperin, and Yftach Gepner analyzed 1,577 unique comments from fitness-focused and general advice Reddit communities to uncover these patterns.
Despite mountains of evidence supporting the benefits of exercise, more than 80% of adolescents and 27% of adults worldwide fail to meet the World Health Organization’s minimum activity guidelines. This persistent gap between knowing exercise is good and actually doing it drives researchers to better understand what truly gets people moving.
Traditional research on exercise motivation typically relies on questionnaires and structured interviews. While these approaches yield valuable data, they come with blind spots. Study participants represent a self-selected group — people already interested enough in exercise to volunteer for research. Scientists call this “volunteer bias,” meaning participants often differ from the general population in key ways.
Questionnaires can also subtly influence responses. The phrasing might confuse participants or nudge them toward certain answers. People may give what they think are socially acceptable answers or try to guess what researchers want to hear, a phenomenon known as “demand characteristics.”
“Our findings are not based on self-reporting, a representative sample, a questionnaire, or a survey. This is, in plain terms, the real reason why people exercise. And the answer is that people mainly exercise to look good,” explains Prof. Gepner in a statement. “In questionnaires, people claim they want to be healthy, but in reality, they want six-pack abs. These findings are important because they teach us how to address the public, how to persuade people to get off the couch, promote health, and prevent disease.”
When it comes to exercise, some need than motivation
By turning to Reddit, the Tel Aviv team gained access to conversations happening naturally, without research prompts. Reddit’s anonymity likely encourages more candid sharing, as users don’t worry about judgment from people who know them personally.
They analyzed comments from six different subreddits: r/bodyweightfitness, r/crossfit, r/Fitness, r/askMen, r/askWomen, and r/askReddit. Using natural language processing, they categorized discussions into two main themes: reasons for starting exercise and tactics for maintaining exercise routines.
Beyond the top three motivational factors (appearance, physical health, and mental health), the analysis revealed seven key strategies people use to stick with exercise. Habit formation dominated at 30%, followed by goal setting (14%), choosing enjoyable activities (12%), socializing (10%), using media like music or videos (9%), tracking with apps (2.8%), and financial commitment (2.5%).
Many Reddit users emphasized that motivation alone isn’t enough. As one commenter bluntly put it: “Motivation depends on emotions which are unstable. Discipline is the ability to maintain a habit even when the motivation isn’t there.”
For goal setting, commenters stressed concrete targets: “You really have to want it. If you don’t care to change or don’t have any numerical goals, you won’t last. Set some goals and really strive to meet them.”
Finding activities you genuinely enjoy was another major theme. “I hate going on runs or going to lift weights at the gym. I can’t get motivated to do that,” wrote one user. “But if I take a spin class or kickboxing or muscle endurance class I love it. It’s all about finding something you like.”
The COVID-19 pandemic shifted these priorities notably. Comparing pre-pandemic and pandemic-era comments showed physical appearance became less important (dropping from 26% to 19%), while physical and mental health grew more significant (rising from 17% to 25% and 15% to 24%, respectively). This reflects how the global health crisis reshaped priorities.
Wise redditor advice: ‘Do something fun for exercise’
The researchers also tracked which topics appeared together most frequently. Physical and mental health often showed up in the same comments, as did app monitoring and goal setting. This suggests people typically have multiple reasons for exercising and use several strategies simultaneously to stay consistent.
The team went beyond counting mentions by analyzing which topics received the most positive reception through Reddit’s upvoting system. Habit formation, physical appearance, and financial commitment weren’t just frequently discussed, they were highly valued by the community. For trainers or fitness club management, strategies emphasizing consistent habits, concrete goals, and finding genuinely enjoyable activities might prove more effective for clients than those focused mainly on health benefits.
The study also showcases social media’s potential as a research tool. Though traditional methods remain important, analyzing social media conversations captures more natural perspectives. As people increasingly share their experiences online, these platforms offer rich insights into human behavior.
In a world where sedentary lifestyles keep expanding, understanding what truly drives people to exercise becomes increasingly vital.
“It’s an astonishing phenomenon: science tells us that if we put just over two hours a week into physical activity, we can prevent 30% of diseases, improve our quality of life, and extend our lifespan; and yet, less than a quarter of the population actually does this. Why? What have we failed to see?” asks Gepner. “While we all wish our loved one’s good health on their birthday, a wish of ‘good workouts’ is quite rare… But there is a way to be healthy – by exercising. That’s why it’s crucial to understand what really motivates people to engage in physical activity and what helps them stick with it.”
The bottom line? The most effective exercise routine isn’t necessarily the scientifically optimal one — it’s the one you’ll actually do consistently. As one Redditor summed it up: “Do something fun for exercise. For example, I love basketball so I play basketball as an exercise but I still enjoy it and it doesn’t even seem like work.”
Paper Summary
Methodology
The researchers used a clever multi-step process to mine Reddit for insights about exercise motivation. They started by searching for keywords like “motivation,” “exercise,” and “sport,” initially finding 59 subreddits. They narrowed this down by removing smaller communities (under 100,000 users), non-English groups, and forums not focused on exercise motivation. This left them with six popular subreddits: three fitness-specific (r/bodyweightfitness, r/crossfit, r/Fitness) and three general advice communities (r/askMen, r/askWomen, r/askReddit).
Using Reddit’s API, they pulled comments containing motivation and exercise terms. To prevent any single prolific user from skewing results, they included only one randomly selected comment per user. After filtering out comments with just emojis, links, non-English text, or single-word responses, they had 1,577 unique comments to analyze.
Their analysis combined machine learning with human expertise in a five-step process. First, they used natural language processing to identify potential topic clusters. Then exercise science experts reviewed these clusters, suggested topic titles, and validated the categorization by independently reviewing samples. The remaining comments were automatically sorted into these topics. A second expert evaluation assessed this classification’s accuracy, with five graduate-level exercise physiology students reviewing random samples. Finally, they evaluated their classifier’s reliability using statistical metrics and expert agreement measures.
Results
The analysis revealed ten distinct topics falling into two categories: reasons to start exercising and ways to stick with it. Among motivations, physical appearance dominated at 24%, followed by physical health (19%) and mental health (17%). For adherence strategies, habit formation was the clear leader at 30%, with goal setting (14%), enjoyable activities (12%), socializing (10%), media use (9%), app monitoring (3%), and financial commitment (3%) completing the list.
The researchers dug deeper by examining how topics connected. They found physical and mental health frequently appeared together, as did strategies like app tracking and goal setting. The pre/during COVID comparison showed a notable shift from appearance toward health-focused motivations during the pandemic. When they examined which topics got the most upvotes, habit formation, physical appearance, and financial commitment received particularly positive reception from the Reddit community.
Limitations
Despite its fresh approach, the study has important limitations. The researchers lacked detailed demographic information about the commenters beyond Reddit’s general user statistics, which skew toward young, male, higher-income Americans. This makes it difficult to connect specific motivations with particular population groups.
The research questions were also relatively narrow, focusing mainly on identifying motivations and strategies rather than exploring effectiveness or adherence outcomes. And like all self-reported information, especially on anonymous platforms, there’s no way to verify how truthfully users described their experiences.
The researchers’ “data-driven” approach allowed considerable discretion during data selection and filtering, potentially introducing selection bias. They acknowledged this limitation and suggested future studies could use more standardized methods for topic classification. Additionally, the initial topic categorization was done by just one reviewer without a formal content analysis process, which might have influenced how certain topics were classified.
Discussion and Takeaways
The findings partially align with previous research while offering fresh perspectives. The three main motivations (appearance, physical health, mental health) match categories in established questionnaires like the Exercise Motivation Measurement scale, supporting both the study’s approach and traditional assessment methods.
However, the results diverge in some areas. Reddit comments rarely mentioned personal and social motivations like challenge, enjoyment, social recognition, and group belonging that often appear in standard questionnaires. This difference might stem from Reddit’s public, anonymous nature, where users may be less likely to discuss personal motivations openly.
The findings have practical applications for promoting physical activity. Knowing that habit formation, goal setting, and enjoyable activities are the most commonly mentioned strategies could shape more effective interventions. Programs that help people build consistent routines, set concrete goals, and find activities they genuinely enjoy might achieve better long-term adherence than those focused primarily on health benefits.
More broadly, the study shows the value of social media as a research tool. While traditional methods remain essential, analyzing social media captures more natural, unfiltered perspectives. This approach expands research possibilities and provides deeper insights into how people think and behave in real-world contexts.
Funding and Disclosures
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The paper doesn’t mention specific funding sources. In their acknowledgments, the researchers noted minor use of ChatGPT (version 3.5) for editing the abstract to reduce word count.
Publication Information
The study, “Analysis of Reddit Discussions on Motivational Factors for Physical Activity: Cross-Sectional Study,” was authored by Michal Shmueli-Scheuer, Yedidya Silverman, Israel Halperin, and Yftach Gepner from Tel Aviv University’s Department of Health Promotion and Sylvan Adams Sports Institute. Published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (2025, volume 27, article e54489), it’s available online under open-access at https://www.jmir.org/2025/1/e54489 with DOI: 10.2196/54489.
While many of us are far from becoming top-ranked athletes, there’s plenty to learn from the pros when it comes to optimising our health and fitness. From Janik Sinnner’s muscle-building techniques to Novak Djokovic’s devotion to longevity, dig into these tennis pros’ secrets for peak performance.
CARLOS ALCARAZ
Fitness Game Changer:
Sand Footwork Drills
Any pro tennis player has to play with agility, but Alcaraz can move. To do so at a high level, the 21-year-old performs lateral movement drills in the sand, teaching his feet to drive up from an unstable surface. This can help prevent ankle injuries and build strength in his calves and shin muscles.
JANNIK SINNER
Fitness Game Changer:
Landmine Rotations
Sinner has historically lacked the physical prowess of his competitors, so the 23-year-old has gone all in on strength and mobility work. He does landmine rotational exercises such as the hollow body landmine press, which builds upper-body power.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC
Fitness Game Changer:
Devotion to Longevity
He’s been around this long for a reason. Djokovic, 37, eliminated gluten and dairy from his diet, started practising mindfulness techniques like conscious breathing and visualisation, and even brought a hyperbaric chamber to the 2019 US Open.
BEN SHELTON
Fitness Game Changer:
Explosive Strength Moves
Known for his consistently fast serves, Shelton, 22, relies on single-leg training, using dumbbells to do lateral lunges, step-ups, and even Bulgarian split squats. He focuses on exploding upward on every rep so he’s ready to attack the ball on each serve.
FRANCES TIAFOE
Fitness Game Changer:
Overcoming Isometrics
Tiafoe spent last off-season doing overcoming isometrics: exercises that force the 27-year-old to hold a position against a load he can’t move. This aids in boosting power and strength and can improve joint health.
If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.
Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men’s Health app.
Andrew Gutman, NASM-CPT is a journalist with a decade of experience covering fitness and nutrition. His work has been published in Men’s Health, Men’s Journal, Muscle & Fitness, and Gear Patrol. Outside of writing, Andrew trains in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, helps coach his gym’s kickboxing team, and enjoys reading and cooking.
There’s more to your core than you might realize. There are the muscles that make up the visible topmost layer of abs — the ones responsible for the chiseled six-pack — and then there are the deep core muscles.
Among these deep core muscles is the transversus abdominis, the deepest layer of the abdominals. Think of them like a corset that wraps around your entire midsection, explains personal trainer, TODAY.com health editor and Start TODAY producer Brianna Steinhilber.
The muscles of the transversus abdominis control your posture and the way you move, TODAY.com previously reported. They act as the foundation for the rest of your abdominal muscles, supporting mobility and functional strength across the entire body. For that reason, they deserve as much attention as the superficial ab muscles that tend to get all the glory.
“Working these deep core muscles is really what’s going to help you lose inches off your waist, build core strength and stability, and even reduce lower back pain,” says Steinhilber. Improve your strength and stability with the one deep core move that stands out above the rest.
Fitness Tip of the Day: Perfect Your Pelvic Tilt for a Strong Deep Core
While there are many exercises that target the transversus abdominis, the “pelvic tilt is definitely the most important thing to master before doing any other ab exercise or, arguably, any exercise,” says Steinhilber.
Why It Matters
On its own, the pelvic tilt strengthens the innermost ab muscles, but it also acts as the foundation for every other workout you do.
“It’s a position that should become second nature,” says Steinhilber, because it stabilizes and braces your core whether you’re doing an abs circuit, Pilates or strength training.
By activating and engaging your deep core muscle with a pelvic tilt, you’ll be recruiting these innermost ab muscles to protect your back, prevent injury and support your posture with every move you do, TODAY.com previously reported.
How To Get Started
Start by lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet hip-width apart, TODAY.com previously reported. Place your arms at your side and point them toward your heels. Inhale, then, as you exhale, “think about pulling your belly button to your spine and tucking the tailbone under,” says Steinhilber.
It can help initially to exaggerate the movement by rounding your lower back so that it touches the ground as your tailbone remains in place. Then, tilt your pelvis toward your ribs. Repeat these pelvic tilts forward and back 10 times.
When performing other exercises, whether or not they require you to lie on your back, maintain the pelvic tilt position to ward off injury and make the workout more effective, TODAY.com previously reported.
TODAY’s Expert Tip of the Day series is all about simple strategies to make life a little easier. Every Monday through Friday, different qualified experts share their best advice on diet, fitness, heart health, mental wellness and more.
Everyone knows the importance of staying active as you age, with those who exercise more likely to improve their longevity by staying fitter and healthier. But new research suggests exercise variety counts for a lot, too.
It might be time to add a bit more spice to your activity mix.
The Study
The study, published in BMJ Medicine, tracked the weekly exercise habits of 110,000 people – 70,000 men and 40,000 women – over the course of 30 years. Researchers wanted to determine whether there was an association between variation in physical activity and risk of death.
Participants reported how much time per week they spent doing activities such as walking, running, cycling, swimming, rowing, strength training, playing sports, lower-intensity exercises like yoga, outdoor work such as gardening or chopping wood, and even climbing the stairs. Researchers then scored participants according to the variety of physical activity they undertook, which was only measured if it was something they engaged in consistently – playing badminton just once a year doesn’t quite count here.
The Results
Those who engaged in the greatest variety of exercise had a 19% lower risk of all-cause mortality than those who engaged in the least variety. The relationship also held true at every level of physical activity – for example, someone who took part in four different activities had a lower mortality risk than someone who completed only three.
Researchers also highlighted that people who resistance trained for 120 minutes or more per week saw their mortality risk plateau, regardless of exercise variety.
What Does This Mean for You?
It’s all about variety. The research suggests taking part in a wide range of activities is better for you than doing the same amount of exercise in just one discipline, so start mixing things up and reap the benefits. Rather than being extremely regimented week to week and sticking to the same one or two activities, this approach gives you greater freedom to try new things, safe in the knowledge that doing so may be better for your overall health. But don’t go all guns blazing just yet.
‘For people who are less active, the key message is that small amounts can still matter,’ the researchers say. ‘Building a routine gradually may be more important than trying to do a lot at once.’
It’s also fair to assume that combining strength training with cardiovascular exercise, such as running or hiking, will help optimise those benefits even further. Both are associated with greater longevity, so pairing them together is likely to help keep you fitter and healthier for longer.
That said, total exercise volume is still king when it comes to longevity – five hours of strength training beats four hours split between swimming, running and cycling, for example. The NHS recommends that adults over 65 do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity, or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity, each week to improve health and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
The main message? Lift some weights, get outside as much as you can, and keep your heart pumping with a bit of intensity each week – it’ll help you stay in rude health.
If there’s one thing Kori Sampson knows, it’s how to optimise your body composition for performance. To tap into his knowledge as an elite athlete and coach, we asked him to create a 4-week plan to help you move faster, recover quicker and keep pushing when the fatigue sets in – all while improving your muscle-to-fat ratio.
Ready to build muscle, burn fat and come out the other side looking, feeling and performing better? Click here to get 14 days of free access to the plan via the Men’s Health app.
Ryan is a Senior Writer at Men’s Health UK with a passion for storytelling, health and fitness. Having graduated from Cardiff University in 2020, and later obtaining his NCTJ qualification, Ryan started his career as a Trainee News Writer for sports titles Golf Monthly, Cycling Weekly and Rugby World before progressing to Staff Writer and subsequently Senior Writer with football magazine FourFourTwo.
During his two-and-a-half years there he wrote news stories for the website and features for the magazine, while he also interviewed names such as Les Ferdinand, Ally McCoist, Jamie Redknapp and Antonio Rudiger, among many others. His standout memory, though, came when getting the opportunity to speak to then-Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher as the club won League One in 2023.
Having grown up a keen footballer and playing for his boyhood side until the age of 16, Ryan got the opportunity to represent Northern Ireland national futsal team eight times, scoring three goals against England, Scotland and Gibraltar. Now past his peak, Ryan prefers to mix weightlifting with running – he achieved a marathon PB of 3:31:49 at Manchester in April 2025, but credits the heat for failing to get below the coveted 3:30 mark…
You can follow Ryan on Instagram or on X
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