The Relationships Between Neural Correlates of Effort Perception and Physical Activity Engagement

Our society is currently facing a pandemic of physical inactivity that is responsible for numerous chronic diseases and deaths. Despite the implementation of policies aimed at encouraging regular physical activity, the prevalence of physical inactivity remains high. It then seems necessary to explore other areas of research that could explain this level of inactivity and guide the implementation of new strategies to make the population more active. In this context, the tendency of most individuals to gravitate towards activities associated with a low perception of effort seems to play a central role in many barriers to engaging in physical activity. The perception of effort, which refers to the perception of the physical resources invested in a physical task, seems to be evaluated aversively by inactive individuals, limiting their engagement in physical activity. However, the neuropsychological bases of effort perception and how they are involved in physical inactivity remain poorly understood today. Therefore, clarifying the neural substrates involved in this perception and understanding how they determine engagement in physical activity is essential to help increase the population's level of physical activity. The hypothesis guiding this project is that reducing the perception of effort so that a particular intensity physical activity is perceived as less demanding facilitates engagement and the maintenance of a physically active lifestyle. In this context, the primary objective of this project will be to clarify the neural substrates involved in the perception of effort through a functional MRI study and to identify whether neuropsychological mechanisms related to the perception of effort differentiate individuals who have an aversion or an attraction to physical activity. Based on these results, the second objective will be to evaluate whether repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation techniques targeting key nerve structures and reducing the perception of effort improve the value of effort and engagement in regular physical activity.