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Abstract

International Journal of Exercise Science 15(5): 1600-1615, 2022. Drastic changes to lifestyles have occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. An unintended consequence of stay at home orders is increased isolation and less social interaction for many people. For overall wellbeing it is important to stay both physically and mentally active; however, for many individual’s motivation may be a barrier. There are non-modifiable (e.g. sex, age, personality, infection rates in the area) and modifiable factors (e.g. physical activity, diet, sleep) that may be associated with motivation to perform physical and mental tasks. We collected data from 794 subjects using an online survey between April 13th to May 3rd of 2020. Survey questionnaires included demographics, personality traits, diet, sleep, physical activity levels, mental workload and motivation to perform mental and physical tasks. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to assess the association between non-modifiable and modifiable variables on motivation to perform mental and physical tasks. The results of our analyses suggest that those who reported a higher quality of diet (REAP-S score), exercised vigorously, and reduced their sedentary time, reported higher motivation to perform both mental and physical tasks. Those who were employed and had higher grit were more motivated to perform physical tasks. Lower trait physical energy was associated with greater motivation to perform mental tasks. Our findings support that during challenging times, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important for healthcare practitioners to emphasize the importance healthy lifestyle behaviors to prevent individuals from experiencing a lack of motivation to perform both mental and physical tasks. Future research should focus on trying to determine the directionality of the relationship between specific healthy lifestyle behaviors and motivation.

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