Discover Your Exercise Personality

“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it”. – Bruce Lee.

It is no secret; personality traits directly affect your health and fitness. Numerous studies have proven that people that are prone to stress and anxiety often experience more health issues than individuals that have a positive outlook on life. Often our negativity comes from self-consciousness, feeling a lack of control and feeling over-whelmed by the challenges we face. So many people join gyms with good intentions of reaching their fitness goals but then give up almost as soon as they have signed up! We blame time, finances, and family commitments however, these things affected our lives before the paperwork was signed! I see it all the time; people who are new to gyms running out of clubs because they were confused by an unfamiliar piece of equipment, or they felt completely self-conscious by a class or they were pushed to the max by a trainer and were scarred for life by the brutal physical exertion they felt! Sometimes “the stress of engaging in exercise that is not of our choosing can outweigh its health benefits” (“The Owner’s Manual for the Brain” – Dr Pierce Howard). In 2004 the University of Florida conducted tests on approximately 860 students to see if personality was a factor when it came to individuals sticking to exercise routines (“Personality May Be Key to ‘Psyching’ Oneself Up for Exercise - University of Florida News May 3 2004). According to the research conducted, specific training styles and exercise environments suited different personality types and because the training suited individual emotional needs, it reduced stress levels in different individuals and encouraged them not only to stick to an exercise routine but to enjoy the activity.

Amy Hagan of the University of Florida hypothesized for her doctoral dissertation that “if people’s personalities can predict what conditions are most favourable for them to exercise, then an exercise program can be tailored to fit their personal needs, making it more likely they will stick with a routine” (“Personality May Be Key to ‘Psyching’ Oneself Up for Exercise - University of Florida News May 3 2004). Hagen surveyed undergraduate students in sports and fitness classes at UF’s College of Health and Human Performance about personality, exercise preference and exercise behaviour. Questionnaires were given to approximately 860 students and the researchers used five major personality traits; extraversion, which measures sociability; neuroticism, which gauges emotional stability and refers to the tendency to feel fear, embarrassment, sadness and guilt; openness, one’s receptiveness to new experiences; agreeableness, the inclination to be agreeable and helpful; and conscientiousness, the tendency to be strong-willed and determined. It was discovered not only that different types of activities were suited to different personality types, but that the exercise environment played a significant role.  Also, particular personalities are more willing to adapt to an active lifestyle than others.

Extroverts: According to the research extroverted people tended to crave “active and high-intensity workout sessions” (“What’s Your Exercise Personality’ – Eatbetteramerica.com). It was also discovered that these people preferred listening to music while exercising and were more motivated when in a social environment. The Group Fitness arena is ideal for these thrill-seekers! Classes such as Spin, Body Attack, Body Step, Jam, Sh’bam and so on are music driven programs that offer high intensity moves in a highly social environment. In these programs, the social/fun-factor is as equally important to the workout as the physical exertion. It was also found that these individuals are prone to exercising fairly often. According to Hagan “These excitement-craving people love lots of activity and want to go, go, go” (“Personality May Be Key to ‘Psyching’ Oneself Up for Exercise - University of Florida News May 3 2004).

Neurotics: These people are least likely to exercise and, ironically, they’re most in need of it because exercise reduces anxiety and depression. Neurotic people tend to prefer exercising indoors or in a private environment. Neurotics who tend to be anxiety-provoked and stressed-out people responded better to low-intensity/endurance training such as distance running. Repetitive, rhythmic exercises such as running, swimming or cycling tended to suit these individuals possibly because the rhythm exerts a “tranquillizing effect on the brain stem and nervous system in a manner similar to rocking a baby” ("Scientists have a Good Feeling about Exercise” – Carol Krucoff). These individuals become stressed by crowds and are more suited to private training studios or training at non-peak times. Many of these individuals enjoy a home gym set up or, when training with a trainer, will do so in an un-populated studio or space.

Open Minded/Introverts: These people were found to like a variety of activities and like exercising to music. However, this group was found to consider training “me” time and, therefore, was often not suited to the group fitness arena. These individuals are often found in the cardio area of a gym most likely listening to their ipods and partaking in activities such as running, cycling or walking which are activities they can do on their own. This group of individuals find groups of people draining and prefer to consider exercise their “time-out” for the day. Despite the group environment, programs such as yoga and pilates have been proven to have an appeal to these individuals as they offer the benefit of rejuvenation and relaxation.

Agreeable People: These individuals seem to prefer to exercise in the morning to get it over with. Agreeable people are compliant and friendly and have a tendency to help others and acquiesce to requests. These individuals exercise because they have to and train better with a work out buddy or trainer who can offer direction to keep them on track.

Conscientious People: These people are highly motivated and disciplined and will often schedule their fitness plan. According to Hagan, conscientious people “want to take charge of their own exercise routine to make sure it will get done” (“Exercise Tips for Extroverted, Introverted and Neurotic Personality Traits” – Laurie Pawlik-Kienlen). Conscientious People like high-intensity training but prefer to take charge of their own workouts rather than follow an instructor. If these individuals choose to train with a trainer they need to find a like-minded individual to train them or will opt to consult with a trainer to develop a structured routine that can be executed when it is convenient, and then check-in every month so the trainer can re-evaluate progress (“What’s Your Exercise Personality?” – Eatbetteramerica.com).  If they were to enter the Group Fitness arena, no frills programs such as Pump, cycle or Tabata would appeal as they are strong powerful programs all about getting in, doing the hard work and going!

We develop our emotional brain from a very early age; as babies we learn to laugh and cry. As we grow up we become subjected to a variety of experiences that shape us into who we are. Emotions hold strong with us when we are in certain environments due to our memories, and if an environment provokes negative associations, we become distressed and unhappy. However, the benefits of exercise are far too great to let environment or emotions stop us. Many fitness professionals and partakers give advice on what we should be doing. If this has failed for you in the past, perhaps ask yourself if the activity you participated in suited your needs? This is not just in terms of your fitness goals but what you required emotionally and environmentally. Often the best choices in life come from self-reflection on who we are and what is important to us. Perhaps if we stayed true to ourselves and our emotional needs, our training would not only assist our physical fitness, it would become a pleasurable thing that is a necessity for our wellbeing.