Effective learning design (LD) grounded in sound pedagogy is a critical driver of student success. Therefore, it is important to explore how LD of online learning environments influences student ability to manage their own learning. This understanding can inform the development of online programs that prioritize student-driven learning. Research increasingly shows that students can monitor and regulate their own motivation, significantly impacting their academic achievement. Based on the concept of motivational regulation (MR) as a context-dependent process, this systematic review aims to identify existing learning analytics research that examines the link between MR and LD as a key contextual factor. The findings reveal that: 1) there is a lack of consistency in how motivation is measured, operationalized, and applied within the learning analytics literature; 2) self-reporting through surveys remains the most common approach for measuring and operationalizing MR; 3) LD is primarily operationalized at the session and learning activity level, with descriptions focusing on pedagogical principles and strategies; and 4) most studies address the relation between motivational constructs and persistence or academic achievements by looking at variables such as performance or/and outcomes rather than the processes that influence motivational changes and the relationship between MR and LD.