- Your personality may play a role in the type of exercise you prefer, according to a new study.
- Some personality traits were associated with greater baseline fitness levels, while others predicted greater enjoyment of specific types of exercise.
- The research could help to tailor exercise programs to individual preference, leading to greater satisfaction and consistency.
If you find it difficult to stay motivated at the gym, a new study suggests that matching your workouts to your personality type could lead to more consistent, more rewarding sessions.
Researchers at University College London found that personality traits influence exercise enjoyment and preference. The study was published on July 7 in the journal Frontiers in Psychology.
“We could potentially use this knowledge to tailor physical activity recommendations to the individual — and hopefully help them to become and remain more active,” said Flaminia Ronca, PhD, first author of the study, in an accompanying press release.
The study compared participants’ baseline fitness levels and fitness outcomes, along with enjoyment and exercise preferences, across the five major personality trait domains.
The “Big Five” personality traits include:
- conscientiousness
- agreeableness
- neuroticism
- openness
- extraversion
While everyone’s personalities are unique, these core traits have been widely used by researchers for decades.
“The findings really get you thinking. If someone is introverted or extroverted, maybe that is something they should consider when it comes to a workout routine,” he added. Donohue was not involved in the research.
The researchers examined how the Big Five personality traits influence key aspects of an exercise routine. For example, do certain traits correlate with a preference for higher- or lower-intensity workouts?
They recruited 132 volunteers from the general public, representing diverse backgrounds and fitness levels. Participants were randomly assigned to an eight-week exercise program — combining cycling and strength training — or to a control group that performed brief stretching sessions. Baseline fitness was measured via tests such as push-ups, planks, and VO2 max.
Participants also reported their perceived stress levels. Personality traits were measured with a standard Big Five survey, asking respondents to rate statements such as whether they make friends easily or consistently complete tasks.
A total of 86 participants completed the study. Regardless of personality type, all who finished the exercise program improved their fitness, doing more push-ups and achieving higher VO2 max than at baseline.
Stratifying participants by personality resulted in intriguing associations between those traits and exercise behaviors.
At baseline, both extraversion and conscientiousness predicted higher baseline fitness. Neuroticism, on the other hand, was associated with poorer heart rate recovery.
Extraverts preferred higher-intensity workouts, such as HIIT sessions and VO₂ max cycling tests. Participants scoring high in neuroticism — which describes a proclivity to be anxious or insecure — preferred light exercise at home, rather than being observed in a lab.
They were also less likely to record their heart rate data, which also suggests a potential preference for private workout conditions. Participants high in agreeableness preferred an “easy long” cycling ride.
Interestingly, conscientiousness wasn’t associated with a preference for any particular form of exercise. Since this trait is a sign of persistence, grit, and goal-setting, the authors suggest that these individuals are strongly motivated by the fitness and health outcomes of exercise and less concerned with enjoyment.
Personality also predicted stress-related outcomes, but only neuroticism showed an effect. Participants high in neuroticism were the only group to experience reduced stress from the exercise intervention.
“Exercise reduces stress. If someone is anxious, we know exercise is going to help them. So it would make sense that they would show greater improvements than someone that’s not demonstrating those characteristics,” said Donohue.
While the study makes a compelling case for the role that personality can have in exercise enjoyment and preference, Donohue notes that it’s just one piece of the puzzle to helping people find satisfaction with their workouts.
“The task at hand becomes how do we get you motivated? It could be that certain types of personality traits are more motivated to work out under certain circumstances. But at the end of the day, those are generalizations,” Donohue said.
Importantly, he noted, that individuals would rarely only embody a single dominant personality trait.
Instead, people exist on a spectrum of these traits, which makes it more difficult to predict how this would affect exercise preference. Would an individual with apparently contrary traits, such as high extroversion and high neuroticism, enjoy a workout in a crowded gym class? It’s not clear from identifying these traits alone.
Instead, Donohue suggests, people can assess what type of exercise works for them by asking other general questions about their preferences. For example:
- What types of exercise have worked for you in the past?
- Do you prefer to workout with a partner or alone?
- What is your current routine?
- How would you describe your fitness or athletic goals?
“The best predictor is past behavior. When it comes to someone’s workout routine, I really emphasize the things that they’ve already had success with. If someone has already been very successful with a certain type of exercise, that shows they are motivated by that particular type of workout,” Donohue said.
“I don’t think you could just design a workout routine based on someone’s personality traits. We’re not there yet,” he added.
