Testing the Feasibility and Preliminary Efficacy of an 8-Week Exercise and Compensatory Eating Intervention

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of an intervention comprised of regular exercise alongside educational and motivational support for participants’ avoidance of unhealthy compensatory eating. Forty-five sedentary individuals were randomized to an 8-week exercise plus compensatory eating avoidance program (CEAP; n = 24), or an 8-week exercise intervention only (control; n = 21). The feasibility and preliminary efficacy of the intervention were assessed using quantitative measures and supplemented with written responses to open-ended questions. The CEAP workshop was well-received; however, self-reported use of some of the included behavior change strategies was lower than expected. Post-intervention, there was evidence of reduced self-reported compensatory eating for participants in the CEAP group but not controls, with CEAP participants also reporting greater use of coping plans relative to controls post-intervention. The exercise program had benefits for waist circumference, body fat percentage, blood pressure, and cardiovascular fitness; however, improvements were similar between groups. Taken together, the results of this study indicate that the CEAP is feasible and may reduce compensatory eating around exercise; however, this effect is small. Potential modifications to the CEAP are discussed within the paper.

Preliminary Validation of the Exercise-Snacking Licensing Scale: Rewarding Exercise with Unhealthy Snack Foods and Drinks

“…An example item is, “After engaging in light/tiring physical activity, I feel that I can reward myself with unhealthy drinks” (all items are provided in Table 1). Evidence of internal consistency for scores derived from the ESLS has been reported in previous work [26,27]. In this study, alpha coefficients were computed for scores derived from the six-item (light physical activity α = 0.83; tiring physical activity α = 0.85) and four-item ESLS (light physical activity α = 0.93; tiring physical activity α = 0.91).…”

“…In light of the potential health implications of these beliefs, and the developing literature regarding compensatory health beliefs, there is a need for researchers to direct their attention to developing—and presenting validity evidence for—instruments that assess these forms of licensing (as well as other diverse compensatory pairings). The ESLS is a brief instrument that has been used in recent studies to assess licensing beliefs relating to the consumption of unhealthy snack foods/drinks around exercise [26,27]. Despite preliminary evidence to support the use of the ESLS [26,27], it is necessary to consider in more detail several key aspects of validity associated with scores derived from this instrument.…”

“…Licensing beliefs regarding the consumption of unhealthy food/drinks after exercise were measured using the 6-item ESLS [26,27], which was modified to relate to either “light” or “tiring” physical activity. Distinctions between light and tiring physical activity were made in the instructions to the instrument.…”

“…A handful of recent studies have been published in which investigators have examined compensatory (or licensing) beliefs regarding unhealthy snacking, around exercise specifically [25,26,27]. In this research, a six-item self-report instrument—which is referred to here as the Exercise–Snacking Licensing Scale (ESLS)—was used to measure individuals’ perceptions about the consumption of unhealthy snack food/drink around (and particularly following) exercise [26,27]. As well as demonstrating associations with theorized correlates (e.g., motivation [26]), scores derived from this instrument have also displayed initial evidence of validity in other ways (e.g., through acceptable internal consistency estimates) in previous studies.…”

“…Of these evaluative criteria, evidence for content and substantive aspects of validity of the ESLS has been presented previously through the integration of previous literature (during item development) and through expert review input [26]. In addition, as a result of correlations demonstrated with exercise motivation, preliminary support for the external aspect of validity has also been reported [26,27]. To date, though, relatively little support exists for the ESLS with respect to other important aspects of Messick’s framework.…”