Predictors of exercise-induced mood change during a 6-month exercise and nutrition education program with obese women.

Obese women (N = 107) enrolled in a YMCA-based exercise and nutrition information program completed rating scales of satisfaction with one's body, self-efficacy related to exercise, physical self-concept, and overall mood, at baseline and at Week 24. Percent of exercise session attendance was also calculated. Multiple regression analysis, with entry of score changes in Body Areas Satisfaction, Exercise Self-efficacy, and Physical Self-concept as predictors of change in Total Mood Disturbance, was significant (R2 = .41, p < .001). Exercise session attendance was not significantly related to change in Total Mood Disturbance scores. Present findings supported behavioral explanations of the exercise-mood change relationship in this cross-sectional investigation. Replications with control groups, direct measurement of biochemical markers, and nonselective samples with different characteristics in different contexts with longitudinal designs are required.