Effects of High-Intensity Interval Training and Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training on Psychological Distress and Self-Regulation in Insufficiently Active Male University Students

October 30, 2026 updated by: Burcu Sıla SEZER

This study compared the effects of two running-based exercise programs on psychological distress, self-control, and emotion regulation in male university students who were not sufficiently physically active.

Thirty-six participants aged 18-25 years were randomly assigned to one of three groups: high-intensity interval training, moderate-intensity continuous training, or a wait-list control group. Both exercise programs lasted eight weeks and included three supervised sessions per week, for a total of 24 sessions. High-intensity interval training involved alternating periods of intense exercise and recovery, while moderate-intensity continuous training involved continuous exercise at a moderate intensity. The control group did not receive either exercise program during the study.

Participants completed questionnaires before and after the eight-week study period. The study examined whether changes in psychological distress, self-control, and emotion regulation differed among the three groups.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
36

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Bingöl
      • Bingoel, Bingöl, Turkey (Türkiye), 12100
        • Bingöl University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 25 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

Male

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Male university students aged 18-25 years.
  • No participation in structured exercise more than two days per week during the preceding six months.
  • Less than 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week, assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF).
  • Provision of written informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • A positive response on the Physical Activity Readiness Questionnaire (PAR-Q+) without physician approval.

Known cardiovascular, metabolic, or respiratory disease, or a musculoskeletal injury limiting exercise.

Initiation of psychiatric treatment or a change in psychotropic medication dose within the preceding three months.

Plans to participate in another structured exercise program during the study period.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
No Intervention: Wait-List Control
Experimental: High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
Behavioral: High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

An eight-week supervised running-based exercise program consisting of three sessions per week, for a total of 24 sessions. Sessions involved repeated bouts of high-intensity running alternated with recovery periods.
Experimental: Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training (MICT)
Behavioral: Moderate-Intensity Continuous Training

An eight-week supervised running-based exercise program consisting of three sessions per week, for a total of 24 sessions. Sessions involved continuous running at a moderate intensity.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Psychological Distress Measured by the 12-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12)
Time Frame: Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.Total scores range from 0 to 36, with higher scores indicating greater psychological distress.

Psychological distress was assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). Higher total scores indicate greater psychological distress. Changes from baseline to the end of the eight-week intervention were compared across the three groups.
Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.Total scores range from 0 to 36, with higher scores indicating greater psychological distress.
Change in Self-Control Measured by the 9-Item Brief Self-Control Scale (BSCS-9)
Time Frame: Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.

Self-control was assessed using the 9-item Brief Self-Control Scale (BSCS-9). Higher scores indicate greater self-control. Changes from baseline to post-intervention were compared across the three groups.
Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.
Change in Emotion Regulation Measured by the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ)
Time Frame: Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.

Emotion regulation was assessed using the Turkish version of the 10-item Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ). Items are rated on a 7-point Likert scale. The questionnaire assesses cognitive reappraisal (six items) and expressive suppression (four items). Each subscale is scored separately as the mean of its items, ranging from 1 to 7. Higher scores indicate more frequent use of the respective strategy. No overall total score is calculated.
Baseline and 48-72 hours after the final exercise session following the eight-week intervention.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Burcu Sıla SEZER

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
September 22, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 22, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
November 17, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
October 30, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 30, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 4, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
November 4, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 30, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • HIIT-MICT-2025-01

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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