Abstract

Whilst some individuals exercise for health-related reasons, others appear to exercise to bolster physical attractiveness. For the latter, this is often attributed to dissatisfaction with appearance. Few studies, however, have explored if differences in self-esteem may relate to diverse exercise reasons. The present study investigated whether global self-esteem, appearance-contingent self-worth, and appearance satisfaction may be differentially associated with health and attractiveness exercise reasons. It was further sought to explore whether these relations coincided with different motivational regulations. Adults from the east midlands of the United Kingdom (N = 209; 75% female, 25% male; mean age = 29.77 years) completed measures relating to their global and appearance-contingent self-worth, appearance satisfaction, exercise intentions, and motivations. Path analysis revealed that global self-esteem was positively associated with appearance satisfaction and health reasons for exercise, whereas appearance-contingent self-esteem related to lower appearance satisfaction and attractiveness reasons. Appearance satisfaction had no association with either exercise reason but was associated with intrinsic motivation and lower controlled exercise motivations. Health exercise reasons were positively associated with intrinsic, identified, and introjected motivation, whereas attractiveness reasons were exclusively related to external motivation. The findings highlight the conceptual importance of differentiating the level and contingency of exercisers’ self-esteem. The findings may also have substantive value for exercise practitioners in understanding different reasons for exercise.