Passion and exercise addiction: Healthier profiles in team than in individual sports

New evidence suggests that passion is linked to exercise addiction. The objective of this work was to determine the strength of the relationship between exercise addiction, obsessive passion, and harmonious passion in team versus individual sports. Athletes (n = 190) from three team and three individual sports were examined. Results of hierarchical multiple regressions revealed that obsessive passion and harmonious passion were significant (p < .001) predictors (R2 = .39) of exercise addiction. Obsessive passion accounted for 25% and 50% of the variance in team and individual sports, respectively. Harmonious passion added little to the shared variance (3–4%). The levels of risk for exercise addiction were identical (15%) in the two groups. In team sports, harmonious passion was higher than in individual sports (p < .001). The current results suggest that profiles of passion in team sports are superior to those in individual sports, while the risk for exercise addiction is similar

The role of passion in exercise addiction, exercise volume, and exercise intensity in long-term exercisers

Recent studies have shown a relationship between the risk for exercise addiction (REA) and passion. This research examined whether levels of REA, volume of exercise (in weekly hours), and self-reported exercise intensities yield differences in obsessive passion and harmonious passion among individuals with long history of exercise. Respondents (n = 360) completed the Exercise Addiction Inventory, Passion Scale, and Borg Scale (assessing their usual exercise intensity), and reported their volume of exercise (hours per week). Regression analysis demonstrated that exercise intensity, obsessive passion, and harmonious passion were significant predictors (r2 = .381, p < .001) of the REA scores with obsessive passion being the strongest predictor (r2 = .318). Exercisers classified as at REA reported higher obsessive passion, harmonious passion, and exercise intensity (p ≤ .001) than those classified as symptomatic, who in turn scored higher on these measures (p ≤ .006) than asymptomatic exercisers. Participants reporting greater volumes of exercise also scored higher on obsessive passion, harmonious passion (p < .001), exercise intensity (p = .032), and REA scores (p = .042) than individuals who exercised less. Finally, women exercising between low and high intensities exhibited greater obsessive passion, as well as harmonious passion (p ≤ .005) than men reporting similar exercise intensities. These findings support the recently reported relationship between passion and REA. They also expand the current knowledge by demonstrating that obsessive passion and harmonious passion are greater in the individuals who exercise at higher volumes and with higher intensities

Personality factors in exercise addiction: a pilot study exploring the role of narcissism, extraversion, and agreeableness

Despite the increased evidence and acceptance of exercise being classed as a behavioral addiction, there is limited research examining personality characteristics within exercise addicts. The purpose of this study was to examine three personality traits (narcissism, extraversion, and agreeableness) and to examine their role in exercise addiction. The sample comprised 114 voluntary participants (74 females and 40 males) who completed the (i) Exercise Addiction Inventory, (ii) Narcissistic Personality Inventory, and (iii) Ten-Item Personality Inventory, as well as demographic questions and questions concerning their engagement and intensity levels of exercise. Results indicated a low incidence of individuals who were classed as at risk of exercise addiction (7%), but a high incidence of symptomatic individuals (75%). Results suggested that extraversion and narcissism may be underlying factors in exercise addiction with no effect for agreeableness. Exercise engagement and intensity were also related to exercise addiction. Further research examining the relationship between personality types and exercise addiction may be useful in identifying individuals at risk for developing exercise addiction

Symptoms of exercise addiction in aerobic and anaerobic exercises: Beyond the components model of addiction

Background: Above the six symptoms in the components model of exercise addiction, other symptoms may also reflect the risk of exercise addiction (REA). Based on past research, these additional symptoms (AS) include training when injured, missing social engagements, disordered eating, staleness, and distorted perception of the exercise volume. The manifestation of these AS, along with the REA, may vary in different exercise forms. Since research shows that aerobic exercise is associated with greater well-being and stress reduction than anaerobic exercise, based on the interactional model of exercise addiction, the prevalence of the REA may be higher in aerobic than anaerobic exercisers. Methods: This cross-sectional investigation examined the REA and AS in regular exercisers performing aerobic and anaerobic activities. Adults (n = 176), exercising at least three times per week for at least one year, were tested. The between-groups and gender differences, along with the connection between AS and REA in the two exercise forms, were studied. Results: Aerobic and anaerobic exercisers did not differ in the dependent measures. Women in the anaerobic group reported eating more disorderly than men. The REA groups (asymptomatic, symptomatic, and at-risk) differed in all AS. A consistent but weak connection was disclosed between the RAE and AS. Conclusions: The REA and the studied AS do not differ between aerobic and anaerobic groups, but women in the latter group reported eating more disorderly when exercise is not possible. Expanding the components model with other pertinent symptoms could yield a more thorough picture about the REA

Analysis of ELM stability with extended MHD models in JET, JT-60U and future JT-60SA tokamak plasmas

The stability with respect to a peelingballooning mode (PBM) was investigated numerically with extended MHD simulation codes in JET, JT-60U and future JT-60SA plasmas. The MINERVA-DI code was used to analyze the linear stability, including the effects of rotation and ion diamagnetic drift (w∗i), in JET-ILW and JT-60SA plasmas, and the JOREK code was used to simulate nonlinear dynamics with rotation, viscosity and resistivity in JT-60U plasmas. It was validated quantitatively that the ELM trigger condition in JET-ILW plasmas can be reasonably explained by taking into account both the rotation and w∗i effects in the numerical analysis. When deuterium poloidal rotation is evaluated based on neoclassical theory, an increase in the effective charge of plasma destabilizes the PBM because of an acceleration of rotation and a decrease in w∗i. The difference in the amount of ELM energy loss in JT-60U plasmas rotating in opposite directions was reproduced qualitatively with JOREK. By comparing the ELM affected areas with linear eigenfunctions, it was confirmed that the difference in the linear stability property, due not to the rotation direction but to the plasma density profile, is thought to be responsible for changing the ELM energy loss just after the ELM crash. A predictive study to determine the pedestal profiles in JT-60SA was performed by updating the EPED1 model to include the rotation and w∗i effects in the PBM stability analysis. It was shown that the plasma rotation predicted with the neoclassical toroidal viscosity degrades the pedestal performance by about 10% by destabilizing the PBM, but the pressure pedestal height will be high enough to achieve the target parameters required for the ITER-like shape inductive scenario in JT-60SA