Source: University of Bath | Journal of Mental Health and Physical Activity
Overview: A recent UK-based study has demonstrated that incorporating daily mindfulness practices alongside step-tracking can significantly boost long-term motivation for physical activity.
Key Findings:
- Study Group: 109 adults in England who were not meeting recommended activity levels.
- Method: All participants used basic step trackers and aimed for 8,000 steps per day over a 30-day period.
- Intervention Group: Half of the participants also completed short daily mindfulness sessions focused on body awareness, movement, and exercise, delivered via the free Medito mobile app.
Results:
- Activity Increase:
- Mindfulness group: +373 minutes/week of moderate activity
- Step-tracking only group: +297 minutes/week
- Intention to Continue:
- Participants in the mindfulness group reported a stronger desire to continue exercising long-term.
Interpretation:
- Mindfulness promotes internal motivation and behaviour change.
- Daily mindfulness, even short-term, enhances mental commitment to physical activity.
- Step-tracking alone boosts short-term activity, but mindfulness adds sustainable behavioural impact.
Expert Insight: Dr. Masha Remskar, lead researcher from the Centre for Motivation and Behaviour Change at the University of Bath, emphasized:
“Helping people build that internal drive towards behaviour is essential. Adding mindfulness seems to help people mentally commit to being more active – laying the foundation for future behaviour change.”
Next Steps in Research:
- Exploring methods to increase appeal and effectiveness of mindfulness training.
- Long-term follow-ups to measure sustained behaviour change.
Relevance to WALX: This research supports the integration of mindfulness techniques into walking and Total Body Walking programmes. The WALX model could adopt brief mindfulness practices into sessions to:
- Increase participant engagement
- Support behaviour change
- Improve mental and physical wellbeing
Study Reference: “Getting Active through Mindfulness: Randomised controlled trial of a digital mindfulness-based intervention promoting physical activity engagement and enjoyment” — Journal of Mental Health and Physical Activity.
App Used: Medito (free mindfulness app)
Note: Dr. Remskar was a research officer at the Medito Foundation (Jan 2022–Jan 2023) and is currently on its Scientific Advisory Board (since Sep 2021).
