Relations of changes in self-regulatory efficacy and physical self-concept with improvements in body satisfaction in obese women initiating exercise with cognitive-behavioral support

Effects of exercise on body image are not well understood. Obese women seeking weight loss were randomly assigned to groups of exercise supported by a cognitive-behavioral protocol (n = 68) or typical introductory methods (n = 66), and assessed on body satisfaction (Body Areas Satisfaction Scale; BASS), self-regulatory efficacy (Exercise Self-Efficacy Scale; ESE), physical self-concept (Physical Self-Concept; PSC), weight, and body composition, over 6 months. Improvements on all measures were greatest in the cognitive-behavioral support condition. Improvement in BASS scores was better predicted by changes in the two psychological measures (PSC, ESE; R-adj(2) = .30 and .32, respectively) than changes in the two physiological measures (weight and body composition; R-adj(2) = .07 and .00, respectively). When all four predictors were entered into a multiple regression equation, only changes in ESE and PSE demonstrated significant unique contributions to the overall explained variance in BASS change. Theory and treatment implications were discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.