Effects of Prior Exercise on Approach and Avoidance Acquisition

Food-deprived rats were given a 30-min. session of either enforced or voluntary exercise and then immediately exposed to either an approach-to-food or an avoidance-of-shock acquisition task. Enforced exercise led to inhibition of approach responding but facilitated avoidance responding relative to the performance of non-exercised control Ss. Voluntary exercise had no significant effects upon either approach or avoidance acquisition. The important role played by emotional concomitants of enforced exercise suggests that a further evaluation of the use of this technique to study the effects of physical activity or exertion is necessary.