Carnes, A J., & Barkley, J. E. (2012). The effect of peer influence on treadmill exercise in collegiate distance runners and non-runners. Presentation 1212 at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American College of Sports Medicine, San Francisco, California; May 29-June 2, 2012.

This study determined if, relative to an alone condition, exercising with a teammate or training partner affects average running speed, ratings of perceived exertion, and/or liking the exercise during a self-paced 30-minute training run. Collegiate male distance-runners (N=14) and non-runner controls (N=10) completed two running trials under two different social conditions (alone or with a peer) in a counterbalanced order. Running trials were a 30-minute self-paced treadmill run, with the treadmill incline at 0% and the speed controlled voluntarily by the Ss. Ss ran on a treadmill while alone during one visit and with a peer on a separate treadmill that was adjacent to their own during the other visit. Heart rates, ratings of perceived exertion, total distances covered, and likings of the activity were assessed.

Runners covered greater distances with higher average heart rates than non-runners. No other variables were significant.

Implication. The presence of a peer did not affect the amount, perceived intensity, or enjoyment of treadmill exercise in either runners or non-runners.

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