A growing body of research has embraced the perspective
advocated by Deci and Ryan (1985, 2002) within SDT for
examining issues pertaining to motivated behaviour in exercise.
It appears that the available evidence suggests that greater
interest was focussed initially on CET and more recently on
OIT and BNT with less empirical attention afforded the COT
subcomponent of SDT. Ryan (1995) articulated that testing
claims put forth under the rubric of SDT in applied domains
such as exercise represent fertile ground for refining the theory
and hold considerable potential for addressing social problems.
Scholars interested in the promotion of exercise as an important
component of health-enhancing physical activity have embraced
Ryan’s (1995) dictum with fervour and the mosaic of
evidence evaluating SDT-based claims is largely supportive of
Deci and Ryan’s (2002) contentions. The motivational dynamics
of exercise initiation and persistence pose a considerable
public health challenge in many countries including Canada
(Gilmour, 2007). It seems reasonable to suggest at this stage
that SDT represents one viable platform from which a broad
array of initiation and adherence issues within exercise can be
understood and as such the future of SDT as a framework for
investigating exercise motivation appears promising.