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Can your personality affect the kind of exercise you enjoy?
A new study suggests so.
Published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, the study was carried out by researchers at University College London (UCL).
It involved 132 participants who were divided into two groups.
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The results showed that people with more outgoing personalities were drawn to intense workouts done in a group setting.
So, how did the researchers carry out this study? And what did they conclude?
Let’s take a look:
What does the study say?
The study by University College London (UCL) offers some insight into why different people prefer different types of exercise, and it may come down to personality.
Before the programme began, the researchers tested strength using exercises such as press-ups and cycling, while also asking participants to rate their stress levels on a scale from one to ten.
To assess personality, they used the Big 5 personality test, which looks at five key traits.
These include extroversion, which explains how outgoing and energetic someone is; agreeableness, which is about trust and kindness; and conscientiousness, which covers traits like being organised and dependable.
The other two are neuroticism, which relates to emotional stability and the likelihood of experiencing anxiety or mood changes, and openness, which reflects how open a person is to new experiences.
Out of the 132 volunteers, 86 completed the full programme.
The group was split into two. One group was asked to continue with their regular physical activity, while the other was given an eight-week exercise routine.
Each participant filled out a survey on how much they enjoyed each workout.
The exercise plan included three cycling sessions per week, each with a different level of intensity, along with one bodyweight strength workout.
At the start of the programme, the researchers recorded the participants’ base fitness levels and stress scores.
Throughout the eight weeks, participants shared how much they enjoyed each workout. At the end, their fitness was measured again, according to a report by The Sun.
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How personality type affects exercise routine
The researchers found that extroverts were more likely to enjoy intense forms of exercise, such as high-intensity interval training (HIIT).
Meanwhile, people who showed strong signs of neuroticism preferred short bursts of activity rather than long, intense sessions.
Notably, neuroticism is a measure of how emotionally stable or anxious a person is.
They also tended to avoid tracking their heart rate or being watched during workouts. This, researchers say, could point to a preference for independence and a need for personal space while exercising.
The research team believes this link between personality and exercise style could help people who struggle to stick to a routine find something they genuinely enjoy.
Flaminia Ronca, one of the study’s co-lead authors and an associate professor in exercise science at University College London, told CNN: “Personality determines which intensities and forms of exercises we’re attracted to. … If we can understand that, then we can make that first step in engagement and exercise in sedentary individuals.”
These insights could be useful in getting more people to move, especially given how few meet the World Health Organization’s recommendation of 150 minutes of exercise per week.
The study said that only 22.5% of adults and 19% of teenagers across the world currently reach this target.
Professor Paul Burgess, another study author from the UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, said: “We found that people who scored more highly in the neuroticism personality trait showed a particularly strong reduction in stress when they undertook the fitness training recommended in the study.
“This suggests that there may be particular benefits in stress reduction for those with this trait.”
In their paper, the researchers said the key to increasing activity levels is helping people find something they truly enjoy, which makes it more likely they will stick with it.
Earlier research had already shown that extroverts are more drawn to team sports, likely because they seek stimulation, The Times UK reported. Meanwhile, those who scored high in neuroticism were often less likely to take part in regular physical activity. This was thought to be due to higher stress levels and a fear of not doing well.
Want to find out your personality type?
Figuring out your personality type is now easier than ever, thanks to the wide range of online self-assessment tools.
Two popular options are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which sorts people into sixteen categories, and the Enneagram, which groups individuals into nine types.
However, while both are popular, experts point out that these tools are not the most accurate or reliable from a scientific point of view, according to Healthline.
Many researchers prefer the Big Five Personality Scale. This method looks at five key traits, each measured on a sliding scale rather than placing people in fixed categories.
There are several websites that offer versions of this test. One of the most commonly used is the Big Five inventory. It involves answering 50 multiple-choice questions to show where you stand on each of the five traits.