Struggling to stick with your fitness routine? The secret might be matching your workouts to your personality, according to new research.

UK Researchers recruited participants by advertising their study to the general public via email newsletters (sent to companies and those who attended/worked at University College London (UCL) where this study was based) as well as social media advertisements (e.g. on LinkedIn and Facebook). 232 participants expressed an interest in taking part in the study, 132 came forward for baseline fitness testing to be included in the study, they were then matched and randomised into an intervention group and a control group by age, birth sex, BMI and V̇O2peak. Any participant with an illness or injury was not allowed to take part in the study.

The intervention group received an 8-week home-based fitness program (cycling and strength training), and the control group continued with their usual lifestyle. All participants completed questionnaires measuring enjoyment of training sessions during lab testing, the first intervention week, and after the intervention. The researchers assessed five personality traits—extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, neuroticism, and openness—and found distinct exercise preferences. Extroverts thrived in high-energy group sports, while those high in neuroticism preferred private workouts with short, intense bursts followed by breaks. Conscientious individuals exercised regardless of enjoyment levels, and those high in openness were driven by curiosity.

The stress-reduction benefits were particularly striking. Before intervention, both groups showed similar stress levels, but afterwards, people scoring high in neuroticism showed the strongest stress reduction. ‘Our brains are wired in different ways, which drives our behaviours’, explains lead researcher Dr. Flaminia Ronca from UCL's Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health. The key is finding activities you genuinely enjoy rather than forcing yourself through workouts you dislike.

References: Frontiers. "Matching your workouts to your personality could make exercising more enjoyable and give you better results." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 9 July 2025. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/07/250708045651.htm (accessed 17.7.25)

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS!

1. What method of sampling was used to obtain the participants for the study? Justify your answer with reference to the study.

2. Outline one limitation of this sampling method, with reference to the study.

Participants completed questionnaires about their enjoyment of their training sessions.

3(a) Write one question which would produce quantitative data which could have been included in the questionnaire.

3 (b) Write one question which would produce qualitative data which could have been included in the questionnaire.

4. Outline one way (outlined in the study description) in which the researchers tried to control for any extraneous variables.

Challenge: What are the economic implications of this piece of research?