Mood and motivation now drive active nutrition, new PLT Health Solutions research finds

A new global study by PLT Health Solutions reveals a significant shift in how consumers approach exercise: mood and mental resilience are increasingly central to an active lifestyle. According to the study, 94% of respondents find supplements that promote a healthier mind-body connection appealing.

Top barriers to exercise include poor sleep or energy (42%), lack of motivation (40%), time constraints (38%), and stress (31%), underscoring how mood-related factors can make or break fitness routines. 

The company’s “Feeling Active” report — based on responses from 546 people in the US, UK, Germany, France, and Italy — suggests that mental state and emotional well-being are now as important as performance and aesthetics in shaping sports nutrition demands. 

Consumers are also redefining exercise: 62% view it as a form of self-care, rising to 75% among those over 60 — only 15% see it as a chore.

“PLT has been active in helping to deliver emotional and cognitive benefits into sports nutrition formulations for nearly a decade with our Zembrin Sceletium tortuosum ingredient,” says Steve Fink, VP of marketing at PLT Health Solutions. 

“I’d like to say that we invented the concept of adding cognitive support to sports nutrition products, but it wouldn’t be true. It’s an idea that we ‘discovered.’”

Mood-boosting ingredients

Fink explains that interest in mood-boosting supplements for active use came from early consumer discussions. 

“In the early 2010s, we came across comments about ‘this great ingredient that really improves my workout’ on bodybuilding bulletin boards. On their own, consumers were buying and talking about Zembrin and taking it alongside their pre-workout supplements. It made perfect sense to us, so we started talking to our sports nutrition customers about the idea of adding mood and focus benefits to their sports nutrition formulations.”

Consumers increasingly view exercise as self-care, with mood, energy, and mental resilience central to supplement choices in active nutrition.PLT Health Solutions offers eight cognitive health ingredients, six of which have direct applications in sports and active nutrition. Earlier this year, the company presented new clinical study results supporting its Serezin Restorative Sleep + Pain Relief ingredient, noting that it improves sleep quality and quantity, mood, and cognition. 

Meanwhile, research demonstrates that Nektium’s Zynamite S enhances non-stimulative mental energy, faster information processing, mood, mental flexibility, and cognitive performance. PLT Health Solution is Nektium’s exclusive marketing partner for Zynamite in North America. 

“The Feeling Active research was our attempt to understand what consumers really want and to help inspire innovation in the category,” says Fink.

Leveraging study outcomes

The study — conducted by a third-party firm in 2024 — focused on attitudes around motivation, energy, mood, injuries, and supplement preferences in active contexts. 

In addition to obstacles to regular activity, the study found that 69% of respondents would take actions to improve mood and mental resilience when injured. 

Although 59% exercise to be healthy and fit, just 21% said they are motivated by looks alone. Moreover, 94% find cognitive-support supplements appealing for improving the mind-body connection in fitness contexts.

According to Fink, the cognitive-enhanced sports and active formulations market is growing rapidly. 

“Today’s sports/active formulation is more complex and sophisticated than ever, with consumers looking for broader benefits. Increasingly, they are looking for branded, science-backed ingredients to power those formulations,” he says. “We hope that Feeling Active can help sports and active nutrition consumer products companies innovate faster and more successfully.”