Cognitive Factors
Aerobic exercise can boost self-esteem in several ways including: fulfillment, accomplishment, and losing weight. While maintaining a regular exercise habit and gaining worthy elements to distill upon one’s self-esteem reduces the probability to develop a cycle of negative thinking patterns. Furthermore, physical exercise provides patients with additional confidence and diverts them from their original stress stimulus. Rather than getting stuck in the cycle of negative thinking patterns, the person will enter a pattern of gaining confidence and increasing self-esteem (a brand new schema about themselves). This will encourage that person to continue the activities of aerobic exercise, which will in turn make them less likely to start a new habit and then quit halfway just because they no longer have the will. Therefore, in order to make sure they will not give up the person needs to get in the habitual cycle of exercising then gaining, dually, confidence and higher self-esteem. As someone gains an attraction for certain exercise activities the motivation to continue that action becomes more in tune. With the motivation comes reward, and these can be classified as intrinsic and extrinsic motives. Intrinsic motives come from within the individual, like improved well-being after a workout in the gym; it’s a continuous drive towards satisfying oneself. Extrinsic motives are external rewards that we can gain through exercise, like the chance to be with friends and find social support. If by exercising these motivations are gained, it only accentuates the reasons as to why the mental state of a physically active person is usually healthier than an inactive individual. In the end, both motives help the person gain a goal for satisfaction helping to decrease negative thinking patterns, meaning just by exercising the mind can be set to think in a more positive way with a positive environment. A study conducted by Ashford et al. carried out a series of interviews at a sports center and their content analysis revealed one of the key motives to participating in exercise was physical well-being as well as psychological well-being. This study further proves that people who habitually exercise start a lifestyle surrounding a motivation to improve an all-around well-being by setting goals and rewarding oneself through a boost of self-esteem (Crane). Consequently, the results of exercise will decrease the likelihood of negative thoughts; reducing the symptoms of stress.