Objective: Audiovisual stimuli during exercise is known to increase
pleasure, but the moderating factors impacting this benefit have not
been clearly explored. Therefore, two studies were used to explore the
moderating effects of exercise intensity and preference for exercise
intensity on the improvement of affective responses to audiovisual
stimuli, respectively. Methods: In Study 1, 50 participants were
randomly assigned to two groups (audiovisual stimuli vs. control) to
complete 20-min sessions of exercise at 10% below and above ventilation
threshold (VT). Oxygenation of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during
exercise was assessed with near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). In Study
2, 27 low-preference and 26 high-preference participants completed
20-min sessions of exercise at 10% below and above VT with audiovisual
stimuli. Affective valence, arousal, perceived exertion, and attentional
focus were measured in each study every 5 minutes during exercise.
Results: Study 1 revealed that audiovisual stimuli led to a small
improvement in affective responses above VT when compared to below VT at
15 min and 20 min. The neural basis of audiovisual stimuli to improve
affective responses during exercise is to slow the decline in PFC
activation. Specifically, the higher the right middle PFC activation
below VT intensity, the more the pleasure. Study 2 revealed greater
benefits of audiovisual stimuli to improve affective responses among
high-preference individuals below VT when compared to above VT.
Conclusion: The effects of audiovisual stimuli on exercise-related
affect appear to be influenced by the characteristics of exercise bout
and individual differences, among a sample of physically inactive adults