There is a chance that motivational and marketing messages aimed at getting you to exercise are just as likely to motivate you to eat more. The idea is that your brain gets motivated to do something, and if the closest something happens to be a snack, it gets done.
To learn a little more about the impact of campaigns designed to get couch potatoes moving, scientists from the University of Illinois rounded up 53 college students and asked them to judge a series of posters promoting exercise. After they rated the exercise posters, the students were then asked to evaluate some raisins. They were told they could eat as many raisins as they needed to make the evaluation.
The researchers then ran the same experiment but substituted posters that promoted goals such as joining a group or togetherness for the exercise posters. Again the students were asked to rate some raisins after scoring the posters. The students scarfed down more raisins after scrutinizing posters that promoted exercise than after looking over the other set of posters.
Let’s face it. When it comes to trying to get your body in shape, your mind can be a total jackass.
