A healthier movement behavior profile is associated with body-congruent food choices through self-determined motivations to exercise and regulate eating

Physical activity (PA) facilitates eating behavior regulation, in part through self-determined motivations to regulate PA and eating behaviors. However, different patterns of PA and sedentary behavior (SB) accumulation appear to have distinct effects on several health outcomes and might therefore be differently related to eating self-regulation. This study aimed to identify different PA/SB profiles, and test motivational routes underlying associations between these profiles and eating. A total of 297 adults (age: 34.5 ± 10.6 years; BMI: 23.2 ± 3.4 kg/m²) filled a psychometric battery of validated questionnaires to assess PA, SB, motivations to exercise and eating, and intuitive eating dimensions. Latent Profile Analysis and Preacher and Hayes Mediation Procedures were conducted. A 3-profiles model was retained as the best solution (++sitting/-PA, n = 89; ++PA/-sitting, n = 44; +PA/+sitting, n = 164). Participants in the ++PA/-Sitting profile showed higher self-determined motivations to exercise (ps < 0.001) and regulate eating (ps < 0.05), mostly when compared to the ++Sitting/-PA profile. Mediation analyses showed that participants in the ++PA/-Sitting profile (vs. ++Sitting/-PA) made more body-congruent food choices, in part through a serial mediation effect of self-determined motivations to exercise and eating (Estimate: 0.25 (0.07), 95% CI: 0.13; 0.40). All analyses were adjusted for age, gender, and BMI. Results extend prior evidence, showing that motivations underpinning PA/eating have better quality when greater levels of PA are combined with lower sitting time, and by showing that self-determined motivations partly mediate the effects of different PA/SB profiles on eating regulation. These findings have implications for future interventions promoting active lifestyles.