Perceived benefits of and barriers to exercise and stage of exercise adoption in young adults

College students (N = 432) completed questionnaires assessing current exercise participation, intention to become more active, perceived benefits of exercise, and perceived barriers to exercise. Confirmatory factor analyses of the benefit and barrier items suggested that a model containing 4 benefit factors (social, psychological, body image, and health) and 4 barrier factors (time-effort, social, physical effects, and specific obstacles) fit better than other models with fewer factors. Subscales derived from these factors revealed specific differences across participants who were categorized into 1 of 4 stages of exercise adoption. These findings confirm the multidimensional nature of perceived benefits of and barriers to exercise. Implications for the promotion and maintenance of exercise are discussed.