Over the years I’ve dealt with probably several hundred people and helped guide them towards their fitness goals.  What many people don’t know is that my background is in psychology, and I’m fascinated with how people think.

One aspect of goal setting that many people forget about when it comes to creating a goal is really digging deep into their personality type.  We all have different aspects to our personality depending on several factors.  These personality traits can either set you up for success in life or take away from it because you’ll always feel like you’re forcing a square peg into a round hole if you don’t.

As an example, three years ago I was offered an office job temporarily during the federal election.  I found quickly after a couple of weeks that sitting at a desk all day in an office environment made me want to dig my eyes out of my head with a rusty fork.  The work was easy for me, but I much prefer being on my feet, teaching and coaching different situations and people and having a fluid schedule.  This is just part of who I am.  The temporary job just reinforced it to me.

As an aside, I’ve never understood people who are miserable at their jobs just to take a paycheck home.  If you don’t like your situation, just change it – it’s not as hard as you think.  But I digress…

So how does this apply to fitness?  There’s a few ways you can analyze your personality and make it work for you fitness wise as well.  Here’s a couple of key questions to ask yourself when it comes to creating a strategy towards fitness:

Are you a Group Person or an Individual? 

What sports did you play as a kid?  Were you a hockey or basketball star or did you prefer golf or racquet sports?  Most people are either team sports oriented or individual sport oriented.  Someone who is team sport oriented likes meshing with and depending on other people to perform their activity.  An individual person might be part of a team still, but prefer that their performance relies on their own effort and skill.

This tends to also work in adulthood.  Individual sport people usually will prefer the same environment.   This might mean you join a running group, golf with a couple of others, play a racquet sport or cycle alone.  Team sport people will be more likely to join a league or team for things that require multiple people.

Let’s translate that to the gym.  An individual person likely would prefer something like simply lifting weights alone – even at home.  They don’t have to have another person relying on them to get things done.  A team person would likely prefer showing up to a yoga class with a bunch of people they know or doing anything with a bunch of others.

Can you Focus or are you a Multi-Tasker? 

Some people can sit down and complete a grueling task that takes all day and enjoy it, checking off a list one thing at a time.  Others (like me) prefer constant changes and stimulation and can have several projects on the go at the same time.

The former person will prefer to walk into a gym with a defined plan.  Something to follow and check off parts as they go and likely not adjust it.  The latter will be more of a type that will adjust a plan on the fly if they have one, or try different types of classes in the same week for variety even if they might not be guiding towards anything specific.

A focused person would set one or two goals in a year and work diligently towards them like a marathon or a large event like a tournament or championship.  A multi-tasker might have ten goals and only accomplish five of them and be fine with that.

Your most successful champion athletes are typically the focused ones who can work on one goal for long periods of time and follow a plan – but it’s okay to admit that you aren’t that type of person.  If you find that you can’t follow a focused plan for more than a couple of months, admit that to yourself and find a way to tweak things so that you are working on a couple of things at once.  Triathletes are excellent multi-taskers (which is probably why I liked it too!).

Do you Want to Show Off or are you Self-Fulfilled? 

This is where I might get criticized a bit but hear me out.  We all have a certain amount of narcissism within us.  Some more than others.  When you are digging deep you really need to ask yourself if you’re doing the event to be able to brag to your friends or show off to others, or simply for accomplishing a goal and feeling good about it yourself.

Making an amazing golf shot brings a good feeling to people – but you’re by yourself, as does making an amazing play on a soccer field so people will cheer for you.  Ask yourself if you don’t care about a trophy but want to have an amazing sense of accomplishment like a long adventure race or a marathon – or if you want to be carried off the field on the shoulders of your team mates or have your picture in a magazine so you can display it all over social media.

Again, how does this translate to the gym?  Maybe someone who wants to show their skills would be a great group fitness instructor.  Or join a Crossfit gym where they can write their accomplishments on a board and have people cheering them on at competitions.  Self-fulfilled people might not even need a gym and be happy just working out at home.

Ask Yourself These Questions    

This process will go a long way towards making sure that you are doing something that you will continue with in the fitness world.  As we all know, the key to success is one main thing – consistency.  Creating an environment where you will feel your best and keep going constantly will bring you the greatest success with your goals.

Be honest with yourself as well.  It is easy to program things based on what we think others might think of us.  Get over it.  Focus on what you enjoy and really stay true to yourself – and this can apply to many areas of life, not just fitness.

If you have any questions or enjoyed this please like, share and retweet away!  I appreciate any and all feedback and hope that you continue in the best way towards your fitness journey.