Body weight and perceived social pressure to exercise at a health club.

OBJECTIVE To determine the social pressure overweight (OW, n=1183) and normal-weight (NW, n=550) adults perceive regarding health club exercise. METHODS A 12-item survey, based on the theory of reasoned action and theory of planned behavior, measured subjective norm toward exercising at a health club 30 min, twice a week, for the next month. RESULTS OW feel more social pressure to exercise at a club than do NW, but motivation to comply is the same between groups. CONCLUSIONS Exercise interventions for OW should capitalize on individual perceived social pressures to exercise by designing strategies to increase motivation to comply with these pressures.