Over half of all Americans making resolutions for 2021 made exercise their top priority according to this report from Statista.  Unfortunately, most people who decide to work out more often after being ‘flabbergasted’* by the year-end holidays will fall off by the 17^th of January—cruelly declared as “Quitter’s Day” by fitness tracker Strava.

However, the results of a new ‘megastudy’ reported by this report last month in Nature provides some hope for certain interventions getting folks back on their treadmills or the like.  A team of scientists in collaboration with 24 Hour Fitness created a “Step Up” program that, with a small incentive ($1 in Amazon points), drew in 61,000 members.  They then divided up the group into groups to test over 50 four-week programs aimed at increasing weekly gym visits.

Only 8% of the interventions led to participants making a significant change in their behavior. The most successful approach, increasing attendance by 27% versus the control group, came by giving people about 10 cents in reward points for returning to the gym after missing a workout.  Surprisingly, a larger monetary reward (~$1.75) produced slightly less improvement.

“Try not to miss more than one workout.”

Advice from lead-author Katy Milkman, a behavioral scientist and professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania

I like the New York Times December 8^th “Phys Ed” take-home on this megastudy. “Find small ways to reward ourselves when we exercise as planned. Drop a dollar into a bowl for every workout, for instance, and let the proceeds mount.”  Better yet, make an appreciable monetary bet with a friend that you will keep up your workouts.  Along those lines, why not make it mutual?  Fun!

Since this study only involved people motivated enough to join a gym, it would be a stretch (fitness pun?) to expect similar results for those remaining anchored to their couch.  Perhaps attaching a dollar bill to a reeling fishing line might lure these slackers into moving about a bit.  Worth a try!

*A neologism (newly coined word) becoming popular in these pandemic times of chronic overeating meaning “appalled over how much weight you have gained.”