Why some people find exercise harder than others | Emily Balcetis

譯者: Sailin Lu 審譯者: Sherry Chen

Vision is the most important

視力是我們最重要 也是最主要的感覺器官。

and prioritized sense that we have.

We are constantly looking

我們不斷地在檢視生活周遭，

at the world around us,

and quickly we identify and make sense

並快速地了解和識別 我們所看見的東西。

of what it is that we see.

Let's just start with an example

讓我很快地舉例子為大家說明。

of that very fact.

I'm going to show you a photograph of a person,

我會給大家約一至兩秒的時間

just for a second or two,

來看一個人的相片，

and I'd like for you to identify

並且希望你來辨識他臉上的情緒。

what emotion is on his face.

Ready?

準備好了嗎？

Here you go. Go with your gut reaction.

來，請跟著自己的感覺。

Okay. What did you see?

好，你看見了甚麼？

Well, we actually surveyed

這項調查的參與者超過了 120 名，

over 120 individuals,

and the results were mixed.

結果有些混雜。

People did not agree

人們對於他們所看見的臉部情緒 判斷的結果完全不一致。

on what emotion they saw on his face.

Maybe you saw discomfort.

或許，你看到的是不適，

That was the most frequent response

這是我們得到最多的回答。

that we received.

But if you asked the person on your left,

但如果你問坐在你左邊的人，

they might have said regret or skepticism,

他們可能會認為是後悔或懷疑。

and if you asked somebody on your right,

而假設你問坐在右邊的人，

they might have said something entirely different,

或許又是完全不同的反應，

like hope or empathy.

像是希望或有同感。

So we are all looking

如果我們再一次看同一張臉，

at the very same face again.

We might see something

可能會有全然不同的答案。

entirely different,

because perception is subjective.

因為感覺是很主觀的，

What we think we see

我們以為自己看見的東西，

is actually filtered

其實是自我意識篩選後的產物。

through our own mind's eye.

Of course, there are many other examples

當然，還有很多這樣的例子，

of how we see the world through own mind's eye.

關於人們如何讓主觀意識 去解釋我們身處的世界。

I'm going to give you just a few.

舉幾個例子來說，

So dieters, for instance,

例如，減肥的人所看到的蘋果

see apples as larger

會比沒有在計算熱量的人要來得大。

than people who are not counting calories.

Softball players see the ball as smaller

剛走出事業低潮的壘球選手，

if they've just come out of a slump,

跟前一晚在場上 叱咤風雲的球員比起來，

compared to people who had a hot night at the plate.

會感覺所看見的壘球更加小。

And actually, our political beliefs also

而事實上人們的政治傾向

can affect the way we see other people,

也會影響到對其他人的觀感，

including politicians.

包含了對政治人物的選擇。

So my research team and I decided to test this question.

因此我們的實驗團隊

決定用這個問題來進行一個實驗。

In 2008, Barack Obama was running for president

2008年時，巴拉克‧歐巴馬 第一次參選總統。

for the very first time,

and we surveyed hundreds of Americans

在大選前一個月，

我們訪問了數百位美國人。

one month before the election.

What we found in this survey

在這個調查中我們發現，

was that some people, some Americans,

有些美國群眾認為這組照片

think photographs like these

best reflect how Obama really looks.

充分反映出歐巴馬真實的模樣，

Of these people, 75 percent

而如此認為的受訪者中有 75% 的人

voted for Obama in the actual election.

在大選中投票給了歐巴馬。

Other people, though, thought photographs like these

也有一部分人認為這組照片

best reflect how Obama really looks.

才真實反應歐巴馬的樣子，

89 percent of these people

其中 89% 投給歐巴馬的對手麥肯。

voted for McCain.

We presented many photographs of Obama

我們給受訪者觀看歐巴馬的照片，

one at a time,

一次一張，

so people did not realize that what we were changing

他們其實並不知道兩張照片的不同。

from one photograph to the next

was whether we had artificially lightened

差別在我們刻意在膚色上補強光線，

or darkened his skin tone.

使他看起來黝黑。

So how is that possible?

所以這要如何解釋？

How could it be that when I look at a person,

為何我們看待一個人、

an object, or an event,

一件物品或一個事件，

I see something very different

竟然和他人比起來 有天與地的差別？

than somebody else does?

Well, the reasons are many,

這其實有很多原因。

but one reason requires that we understand

但我們要先了解視覺的運作方式。

a little bit more about how our eyes work.

So vision scientists know

研究顯示，

that the amount of information

人們在有限的時間中，

that we can see

以眼睛來攫取資訊，

at any given point in time,

不論我們專注的時間為多久，

what we can focus on, is actually relatively small.

所得到的資訊其實非常微小。

What we can see with great sharpness

我們能看到最明顯、

and clarity and accuracy

最清楚、精確的範圍，

is the equivalent

大概只有伸長手臂後 大拇指這樣的大小。

of the surface area of our thumb

on our outstretched arm.

Everything else around that is blurry,

不管我們呈現的內容有多少，

rendering much of what is presented

其餘的影像在眼中看來 都是模糊一片。

to our eyes as ambiguous.

But we have to clarify

而我們還得去解釋，

and make sense of what it is that we see,

還要去認識我們 看見的東西究竟是什麼。

and it's our mind that helps us fill in that gap.

我們的大腦就是用來 幫助我們補足這些空白的。

As a result, perception is a subjective experience,

因此感受是一種主觀的經驗，

and that's how we end up seeing

也是為什麼我們最終感知到的 其實是大腦給我們看到的。

through our own mind's eye.

So, I'm a social psychologist,

我是社會心理學家，

and it's questions like these

所以我不由得特別關心這樣問題。

that really intrigue me.

I am fascinated by those times

我對於人們見山不是山的狀況 覺得很有意思。

when people do not see eye to eye.

Why is it that somebody might

為何有些人看到半杯滿的水，

literally see the glass as half full,

and somebody literally sees it

可有些人看到的是半杯空的水？

as half empty?

What is it about what one person is thinking and feeling

人們的想法和感覺

that leads them to see the world

是如何地影響他 以全然不同的角度看待這個世界？

in an entirely different way?

And does that even matter?

就算如此，那又怎樣？

So to begin to tackle these questions,

於是我們開始研究這些問題。

my research team and I decided to delve deeply

我們實驗小組決定 要對這項全球知名的議題

into an issue that has received

international attention:

進行相關的探討，

our health and fitness.

那就是健康與體態。

Across the world,

無論是哪一個國家，每個人 都對控制體重有著深深的困擾。

people are struggling to manage their weight,

and there is a variety of strategies

各式各樣減重的方式可謂百家爭鳴。

that we have to help us keep the pounds off.

For instance, we set the best of intentions

舉例來說，每到假期結束，

to exercise after the holidays,

我們就拼了命減肥。

but actually, the majority of Americans

但事實上，大部分的美國人會發現，

find that their New Year's resolutions

他們的新年新希望 在情人節之前就落空了。

are broken by Valentine's Day.

We talk to ourselves

我們想方設法地激勵自己，

in very encouraging ways,

telling ourselves this is our year

告訴自己就在今年， 我們可以恢復以往的身材。

to get back into shape,

but that is not enough to bring us back

然而這並不足以 帶我們重返往日的理想體重。

to our ideal weight.

So why?

為什麼會這樣呢？

Of course, there is no simple answer,

答案當然沒那麼簡單，

but one reason, I argue,

但我認為其中一項原因，

is that our mind's eye

就是我們的大腦可能背叛了我們。

might work against us.

Some people may literally see exercise

有些人就是覺得運動很困難，

as more difficult,

and some people might literally

有些人就覺得運動其實很簡單。

see exercise as easier.

So, as a first step to testing these questions,

所以，為了能進一步地探索這些疑問，

we gathered objective measurements

我們首先要量取每位受測者的身材。

of individuals' physical fitness.

We measured the circumference of their waist,

我們拿腰圍和臀圍的比例來做比較，

compared to the circumference of their hips.

A higher waist-to-hip ratio

腰臀比相對較高的表示體態較差，

is an indicator of being less physically fit

than a lower waist-to-hip ratio.

反之，比較低的表示體態較好。

After gathering these measurements,

取得這些數據後，

we told our participants that

我們告訴受測者 他們要帶著重物走到終點線，

they would walk to a finish line

while carrying extra weight

in a sort of race.

這是項比賽。

But before they did that,

比賽前，我們請受測者 評估一下到終點的距離。

we asked them to estimate the distance

to the finish line.

我們的想法是：體態的不同 會影響人們對於距離的感知。

We thought that the physical states of their body

might change how they perceived the distance.

So what did we find?

那我們發現了什麼呢？

Well, waist-to-hip ratio

就是腰臀比的差異 的確會有距離感知上的不同。

predicted perceptions of distance.

People who were out of shape and unfit

體格不勻稱的受測者 和體態較好的受測者比起來，

actually saw the distance to the finish line

as significantly greater

認為終點的距離較遠得多。

than people who were in better shape.

People's states of their own body

體態的差異使人們 對環境有不同的感受，

changed how they perceived the environment.

But so too can our mind.

而我們的意識也一樣。

In fact, our bodies and our minds

事實上，我們的身心共同運作，

work in tandem

to change how we see the world around us.

來改變我們對所處環境的看法。

That led us to think that maybe people

這讓我們聯想到，

或許有強烈動機 及有明確目標可尋的人，

with strong motivations

and strong goals to exercise

might actually see the finish line as closer

相較於動機比較弱的人，

than people who have weaker motivations.

會感覺終點近些。

So to test whether motivations

因此，我們又進行了第二項實驗，

affect our perceptual experiences in this way,

來探究動機的強弱 是否會影響我們的經驗感受。

we conducted a second study.

Again, we gathered objective measurements

同樣地，我們還是 先量取每位受測者的身材，

of people's physical fitness,

measuring the circumference of their waist

取得腰圍和臀圍的數據，

and the circumference of their hips,

and we had them do a few other tests of fitness.

並且請他們做一些體格的量測。

Based on feedback that we gave them,

根據我們給對方的反饋，

some of our participants told us

有些受測對象表示他們不想健身。

they're not motivated to exercise any more.

They felt like they already met their fitness goals

他們感覺已經達到身材標準了，

and they weren't going to do anything else.

因此不願意再做任何的運動。

These people were not motivated.

這些人沒有運動的動機。

Other people, though, based on our feedback,

相反地，根據我們的反饋，

told us they were highly motivated to exercise.

其他人則告訴我們 他們極願意去運動健身。

They had a strong goal to make it to the finish line.

他們有明確目標，認為可達到終點。

But again, before we had them walk to the finish line,

再一次地，我們要求他們在出發前

we had them estimate the distance.

估算一下終點線到底多遠。

How far away was the finish line?

And again, like the previous study,

而結果也一如先前的研究，

we found that waist-to-hip ratio

我們發現腰臀比的確影響距離感知。

predicted perceptions of distance.

Unfit individuals saw the distance as farther,

體格較差的人覺得距離較遠，

saw the finish line as farther away,

相較於體格較好的人，

than people who were in better shape.

會覺得終點線遠在天邊。

Importantly, though, this only happened

重點來了，

for people who were not motivated

這樣的結果只發生在 沒有健身動力的人身上。

to exercise.

On the other hand,

相反地，

people who were highly motivated to exercise

具強烈動機想運動的人 認為終點線近在眼前，

saw the distance as short.

Even the most out of shape individuals

即使是體態最差的人，

saw the finish line

所推估的終點距離 也和體態較好的人推估的相去不遠，

as just as close,

if not slightly closer,

就算距離沒有更短，

than people who were in better shape.

也非常接近了。

So our bodies can change

所以我們的體態會影響到 我們認知的終點距離。

how far away that finish line looks,

but people who had committed to a manageable goal

然而，忠力於可視的目標、

that they could accomplish in the near future

認為自己短期內可完成、

and who believed that they were capable

也相信自己有能力 可以實現目標的人，

of meeting that goal

actually saw the exercise as easier.

卻認為運動是件容易的事。

That led us to wonder,

這不禁讓我們思考：

is there a strategy that we could use

有沒有一種方法可以讓我們用來

and teach people that would help

教導並協助他人 改變對距離的感知呢？

change their perceptions of the distance,

help them make exercise look easier?

能否幫助他們感覺運動其實很簡單？

So we turned to the vision science literature

於是我們尋求視覺科學研究的幫助，

to figure out what should we do,

思索我們該怎麼做。

and based on what we read, we came up with a strategy

而根據這個領域的研究， 我們有了一個想法。

that we called, "Keep your eyes on the prize."

就是「盯著眼前的蘿蔔」。

So this is not the slogan

這可不是激勵人心的海報文案，

from an inspirational poster.

It's an actual directive

對於如何看待自身所處的環境，

for how to look around your environment.

這是最直截了當的做法。

People that we trained in this strategy,

用這個理論來訓練的對象，

we told them to focus their attention on the finish line,

被告知要緊盯著終點線，

to avoid looking around,

不要左顧右盼。

to imagine a spotlight

想像那個目標被燈光聚焦壟罩著，

was shining on that goal,

and that everything around it was blurry

而旁邊的景物一片朦朧， 模糊難辨。

and perhaps difficult to see.

We thought that this strategy

我們認為這個方法可以 讓運動看起來容易一點。

would help make the exercise look easier.

We compared this group

我們將這個實驗組和對照組做比較。

to a baseline group.

To this group we said,

我們告訴對照組要張望周遭的環境，

just look around the environment

as you naturally would.

就像平常會做的一樣。

You will notice the finish line,

你會看到終點線，

but you might also notice

也會看到右手邊的垃圾桶，

the garbage can off to the right,

or the people and the lamp post off to the left.

還有行人及左手邊的路燈。

We thought that people who used this strategy

我們認為用這種方法看終點線的人

would see the distance as farther.

會感覺距離比較遠。

So what did we find?

那麼結論呢？

When we had them estimate the distance,

當我們要求兩組去評估距離，

was this strategy successful

這樣的策略是否成功地 改變人們的感知經驗呢?

for changing their perceptual experience?

Yes.

是的。

People who kept their eyes on the prize

緊盯著目標的人，

saw the finish line as 30 percent closer

和東張西望的對照組比起來，

對於終點線的感知 足足短了三成。

than people who looked around

as they naturally would.

We thought this was great.

這真是太棒了！

We were really excited because it meant

相當振奮人心！

that this strategy helped make

我們知道這個策略

可以使運動看起來比較容易。

the exercise look easier,

but the big question was,

但問題是，

could this help make exercise

這個方法可以讓運動的效果更好嗎？

actually better?

Could it improve the quality

能進一步提升運動的品質嗎?

of exercise as well?

So next, we told our participants,

接下來，我們告訴受測對象，

you are going to walk to the finish line

你得戴著重物走去終點。

while wearing extra weight.

We added weights to their ankles

我們在腳踝綁上與受測者 體重 15% 等同的重物，

that amounted to 15 percent of their body weight.

We told them to lift their knees up high

告訴他們抬起膝蓋走路，

and walk to the finish line quickly.

快步走向終點。

We designed this exercise in particular

我們刻意將這個實驗 設計成有點難度，

to be moderately challenging

but not impossible,

但並非做不到的程度，

like most exercises

就像一般的健身運動一樣。

that actually improve our fitness.

So the big question, then:

那麼接下來的問題是：

Did keeping your eyes on the prize

緊盯眼前目標，聚焦終點這個方法，

and narrowly focusing on the finish line

change their experience of the exercise?

真的能改變人們對於運動的體驗嗎？

It did.

的確如此。

People who kept their eyes on the prize

緊盯目標的受測者後來表示，

told us afterward that it required

如果拿他們和四處張望的對照組 比較起來的話，

17 percent less exertion

for them to do this exercise

than people who looked around naturally.

他們為達到目標 所花的心力少了 17%。

It changed their subjective experience

這改變了他們本身對運動的體驗，

of the exercise.

It also changed the objective nature

也改變了他們對運動本質的看法。

of their exercise.

People who kept their eyes on the prize

把重點放在最後獎勵的人，

actually moved 23 percent faster

較於其他不專注的人， 竟可以提升 23% 的速度。

than people who looked around naturally.

To put that in perspective,

用個簡單的例子來說明，

a 23 percent increase

23% 的速度差別幾乎是等同於

is like trading in your 1980 Chevy Citation

你拿二、三十年的老爺車跟跑車來比。

for a 1980 Chevrolet Corvette.

We were so excited by this,

這樣的結果讓人相當興奮，

because this meant that a strategy

因為這個理論告訴我們，

that costs nothing,

我們可以不花半毛錢，

that is easy for people to use,

也不費吹灰之力，

regardless of whether they're in shape

不論是胖是瘦，

or struggling to get there,

或正掙扎於減重道路上的人，

had a big effect.

這一策略都有顯著的效果。

Keeping your eyes on the prize

把眼光放在最後的勝利果實上，

made the exercise look and feel easier

會使運動感到輕鬆許多，

even when people were working harder

也會讓人們更努力，

because they were moving faster.

因為他們的進展變快了。

Now, I know there's more to good health

當然，並不是走得快一點，

than walking a little bit faster,

就會變得比較健康。

but keeping your eyes on the prize

然而，把眼光放在獎賞的這個策略，

might be one additional strategy

或許是你可以用來 建立健康人生的方法之一。

that you can use to help promote

a healthy lifestyle.

If you're not convinced yet

如果以上論點還不足以讓你相信

that we all see the world through our own mind's eye,

我們其實是用大腦在看這個世界，

let me leave you with one final example.

請讓我最後再舉一個例子。

Here's a photograph of a beautiful street in Stockholm, with two cars.

這張照片是斯德哥爾摩的 一條漂亮街道，

街上面有兩部車，

The car in the back looks much larger

後面那部看起來比前面的大。

than the car in the front.

However, in reality,

但是實際上，

these cars are the same size,

兩部車是一樣大的。

but that's not how we see it.

可我們看到的卻不是這樣。

So does this mean that

那麼，是我們頭昏眼花了嗎？

our eyes have gone haywire

and that our brains are a mess?

腦筋秀逗了嗎？

No, it doesn't mean that at all.

不是的，才不是這樣。

It's just how our eyes work.

人的眼睛就是這樣運作的，

We might see the world in a different way,

我們可能用不同的視角 去看這個世界，

and sometimes that might not

或許有時它脫離了現實，

line up with reality,

but it doesn't mean that one of us is right

但這不代表誰對誰錯。

and one of us is wrong.

We all see the world through our mind's eye,

我們都是以自身的意識在看待一切，

but we can teach ourselves to see it differently.

但我們可以教導自己 從不同的角度去看問題。

So I can think of days

我可以把日子看成奇糟無比，

that have gone horribly wrong for me.

I'm fed up, I'm grumpy, I'm tired,

我受夠了，又氣、又累，

and I'm so behind,

一敗塗地，

and there's a big black cloud

每天頭頂都是烏雲籠罩。

hanging over my head,

and on days like these,

在這樣的日子裡，

it looks like everyone around me

好像身旁的每個人 都跟我一樣處於低潮。

is down in the dumps too.

My colleague at work looks annoyed

當我請求延遲一下 工作交件日期時，

when I ask for an extension on a deadline,

同事看起來很煩躁。

and my friend looks frustrated

當我因開會而在午餐約會上遲到，

when I show up late for lunch because a meeting ran long,

我的朋友看起來有點不爽。

and at the end of the day,

然後在一天結束之際，

my husband looks disappointed

我老公很沮喪，因為我寧願休息 也不願陪他去看電影。

because I'd rather go to bed than go to the movies.

And on days like these, when everybody looks

每當我遇上這種時運不濟、

upset and angry to me,

每個人都好像對我不爽的日子，

I try to remind myself that there are other ways of seeing them.

我會試著提醒自己 用不同的角度去看待世界。

Perhaps my colleague was confused,

或許我同事覺得很困惑，

perhaps my friend was concerned,

或許我的朋友其實是關心我，

and perhaps my husband was feeling empathy instead.

也許我老公能理解我的狀況。

So we all see the world

我們都是用自我意識在觀看生活。

through our own mind's eye,

and on some days, it might look

在某些日子裡，

like the world is a dangerous

我們的世界看起來 既危險又困難艱辛。

and challenging and insurmountable place,

but it doesn't have to look that way all the time.

但我們不需要一直 用負面的眼光來看待一切，

We can teach ourselves to see it differently,

我們可以教自己換個角度。

and when we find a way to make the world

當我們能夠找到一個讓世界 看起來比較友善的方法時，

look nicer and easier,

it might actually become so.

世界或許就會變得不同。

Thank you.

謝謝各位！

(Applause)

（掌聲）