Self-compassion training within a workplace physical activity program: A pilot study

BACKGROUND: Desire2Move (D2M) is an 8-week team-based, workplace program that incorporates competition and self-monitoring to encourage physical activity (PA). OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a self-compassion (SC) intervention within the existing workplace PA program. METHODS: University employees (n = 20) were assigned to a SC treatment group or an attention control group. Participants logged their PA minutes using MapMyRun. Treatment group participants received a 7-week, SC podcast intervention. Participants self-reported PA, SC, and demographic information at pre- and post-intervention. Separate ANOVAs were used to determine group differences. RESULTS: There was not a statistically significant group x time interaction for SC, F(1, 18) = 0.02, p = 0.90, or main effects for time, F(1, 18) = 0.28, p = 0.61, or group, F(1, 18) = 1.70, p = 0.21, g = -0.42 [95% CI = -3.13, 2.29]. There were not significant differences between groups for total PA minutes during D2M, F(1, 18) = 2.15, p = 0.16, g = -0.63 [-1.53,0.27]. Overall, participants engaged in more than the recommended levels of PA each week. CONCLUSIONS: This pilot study provided feedback and guidance for future online SC training within a workplace PA intervention.