The lack of valid tools to measure variables related to healthy behaviors in Mexico has led the authors to adapt and validate the Grit Scale and the Treatment Self-Regulation Questionnaire (TSRQ) for diet into Mexican Spanish, and explore the relationship between grit and types of motivation towards healthy eating as evidence of validity. The Grit Scale and the TSRQ in Spanish were put to 353 adults from the state of Nuevo León, Mexico. The Grit Scale was composed of 12 items distributed into two factors (consistency of interest and perseverance of effort), and the TSRQ for diet was composed of 15 items distributed into three factors (autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and amotivation). Results showed acceptable fit indices for the long and short versions of the Grit Scale, confirming its two-factor structure. In addition, acceptable fit indices were found for the TSRQ for diet, indicating the presence of three latent factors. Significant and positive relationships were found between grit and autonomous motivation, and negative relationships with controlled and amotivation. The analyses carried out indicated that the instruments administrated are valid and reliable tools for use in Mexico.

El objetivo de este estudio fue examinar el efecto de la satisfacción y/o aburrimiento en la clase de EF sobre la importancia que los estudiantes le otorgan a ésta y su relación con la intención de la práctica futura de la AF en el tiempo libre. Participaron 457 estudiantes (46 % chicos y 54% chicas) con edades entre 12 y 17 (M = 14,10; DT = 0,84) de la zona metropolitana de Monterrey. Se utilizaron tres instrumentos:1) Satisfacción Intrínseca en la Educación Física; 2) Importancia y Utilidad de la Educación Física y 3) Intención de Práctica Futura de Actividad Física en el Tiempo Libre (AFTL). El modelo propuesto se probó a través de una modelación de ecuaciones estructurales utilizando el LISREL 8.80. Se encontraron relaciones positivas y significativas de la satisfacción hacia la importancia de la EF (b = ,52, p < ,01), y la importancia de la EF con la intención hacia la práctica futura de la AFTL (b = ,44, p < ,01) y un efecto indirecto significativo de la satisfacción hacia la intención de la práctica futura de la AFTL (b = ,23, p < ,01). Los resultados obtenidos en el presente trabajo demuestran la importancia de diseñar sesiones de EF innovadoras, dinámicas y divertidas ya que, de esta forma, se consigue que los adolescentes valoren y den más importancia a la asignatura de EF, aumentando la probabilidad que desarrollen comportamientos activos en un futuro, o actividades extraescolares que refuercen los beneficios de la actividad física en esta población joven.

Objective: To understand the psychological antecedents or personal factors that lead to weight control behaviours that can help to develop more effective prevention strategies.Design: The present correlational study has a non-experimental, quantitative, cross-sectional design. A model was tested considering types of motivation (autonomous motivation, controlled motivation and amotivation) as mediators in the relationship between the Grit personality and healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviours, with self-control as a moderator in the aforementioned indirect effects.Setting: Monterrey (Nuevo León, México).Participants: A representative sample of 1219 adults (men = 599; women = 620) aged 18–65 years (M = 29·37, sd = 11·83).Results: Findings supported the mediator role of the types of motivation. Specifically, Grit showed a positive indirect effect on healthy weight control behaviours through autonomous motivation. Conversely, Grit showed a negative indirect effect on unhealthy weight control behaviours through autonomous motivation. Furthermore, findings supported the moderator role of self-control in the relationship between amotivation and healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviours.Conclusions: This study provides evidence for the key role of Grit in the adoption of healthy or unhealthy control behaviours, as well as the role of autonomous motivation in the development of healthy behaviours.

On the basis of the spillover or transfer effect and the transtheoretical model of change, this study assessed the association between amount of physical activity, healthy and unhealthy weight control behaviors, and motivational types, as well as their variability across stages of change. A total of 1219 randomly selected Mexican adults from 18 to 65 years old, representative of the city of Monterrey (México), participated in the study. Correlation analyses, differences by gender, and multivariate analyses of variance, controlling for age, were performed. We found that in the maintenance stage, there is higher frequency of physical activity more healthy weight control behaviors, as well as higher autonomous motivation. In the contemplation stage, there is less physical activity, a higher frequency of unhealthy weight control behaviors, higher controlled motivation, and amotivation. Relationships were found between the healthy behaviors studied and the interaction dynamics observed across the stages of change, highlighting the key role of the contemplation and maintenance stages in weight control change. Physical activity as a targeted intervention objective could be a gateway to healthier weight control behavior, as well as higher autonomous motivation.

(1) Background: Adolescence is a critical period when dietary choices are a major concern. It is therefore important to understand the psychological factors that explain these choices. The objective of this study was to assess the predictive role of perceived self-efficacy for healthy eating and weight regulation on healthy and unhealthy eating behavior through the mediation of autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, amotivation, and perceived barriers to daily mechanisms affecting healthy consumption. (2) Methods: A total of 994 adolescents between 15 and 19 years old from Mexico and Spain participated in the study. The Spanish versions of the healthy eating and weight self-efficacy questionnaire, the behavioral regulation in exercise questionnaire, the barriers to healthy eating scale, and the weight-related behaviors scale questionnaire were used to measure the variables of interest. (3) Results: Mediated serial regression analysis showed that barriers to healthy eating (the daily mechanism of food consumption) reduced healthy eating choices. Healthy eating and weight self-efficacy also showed a positive significant relationship with autonomous motivation and a negative relationship with controlled motivation and amotivation. All the types of motivation showed a positive relationship with barriers to healthy eating. (4) Conclusions: The results point out the need to enhance self-efficacy, promote autonomous motivation, and reduce perceived barriers in young people with respect to healthy eating.

(1) Background: Insufficient physical activity in adolescents remains an important issue for health promotion. Given the current relevance of understanding the adoption and maintenance of moderate and vigorous physical activity (MVPA), the aim of this study was to analyze, in a sample of adolescents, the role of grit personality as an antecedent of healthy eating and healthy weight (HEW) self-efficacy and its implications for the practice of MVPA. (2) Methods: Participants were 987 adolescents (597 girls, 390 boys) aged between 15 and 19 years from Mexico and Spain. The Spanish versions of the grit personality scale, the healthy eating and weight self-efficacy scale and the global physical activity questionnaire were used to measure the variables of interest. (3) Results: Mediated regression analysis showed that grit personality was not directly related to MVPA practice. However, the results indicate the significant relationship between grit personality and HEW self-efficacy, as well as the positive and significant relationship of this self-efficacy on MVPA practice. HEW self-efficacy totally mediated the relationship between grit personality and MVPA in both boys and girls. (4) Conclusions: These results suggest that having a grit personality (i.e., having interest and perseverance) is not enough for adolescents to be physically active, but that perceiving oneself as effective in having a healthy diet and healthy weight may be the key for adolescents to move more. At the intervention level, we suggest targeting an enhancement of young people’s competence to eat healthily and regulate their weight as a strategy to enhance the performance of more MVPA, with a possible transfer between healthy behaviors (spill over).