Treadmill Exercise and Indoor Cycling: Self-selected Intensity, Perceived Enjoyment, and Importance of Preference for Activity Mode.

For advancement of public health through exercise, exercise intensity and enjoyment are important. We aimed at testing whether self-selected exercise intensity was higher during treadmill exercise than during indoor cycling. Secondly, the enjoyment associated with the two activities was evaluated. Thirdly, in a person-centered analysis, taking into account the participants' preference for mode of activity, we assessed whether preference for one of the activity modes was accompanied by greater intensity. Healthy adults (n=21) participated in the repeated measures crossover-designed study. They performed 16-min bouts of treadmill exercise and indoor cycling at self-selected intensity. Heart rate was recorded to determine the intensity. Enjoyment associated with the exercise activity was determined by a questionnaire. Intensity in terms of heart rate as percent of maximal heart rate was not different between treadmill exercise and indoor cycling (p=0.148). Enjoyment, on the other hand, was 4.4±7.6 units greater for treadmill exercise than for indoor cycling (p=0.012). Seventeen of the participants had a preferred mode of activity, when asked before any testing. The person-centered analysis, which took into account the participants' preference for the mode of activity, showed that intensity was 4±7 percentage points higher (p=0.029) during the preferred mode of activity as compared to the other activity. In summary, the study showed that the self-selected intensity was not different between treadmill exercise and indoor cycling, while the enjoyment was found to be greater during treadmill exercise. A person-centered analysis showed that intensity was higher during the preferred mode of activity than during the other activity.