The 8 Colors of Fitness might surprise you
Why do so many people start exercise programs and fail to maintain their plan and reach their goals?
Last summer, my friend Gail and I were discussing that very question before we began our Saturday-morning workout. We started talking about individual personalities types.
Would it be possible to design a personality-based fitness program that would increase a client’s success in realizing their fitness goals? I really believed that if I could put together a program that would assess a client’s personality and then, based on the results, have a protocol on how to train that client, I would be able to increase the client’s success.
I didn’t just want to increase their success in my studio but help them understand the type of training that would be most effective for them throughout their lives.
That evening, Gail sent me a text with the name of a book she found that already had developed a program similar to what we were talking about. The name of that book is “The 8 Colors of Fitness,” by Suzanne Brue. I immediately went to www.the8colors.com and took the quiz to find out my color. I began asking friends and family to take the quiz. The results were pretty amazing and true to each person who took the quiz.
I called Brue to find out what type of permission I would need from her to begin using her online quiz for my clients. The first question she asked me was what color I was. When I told her that I was a blue harmony, she laughed and said that she was not surprised at all. Most people don’t call to ask permission to use her data. They just use it. But of course, a blue harmony would ask for her permission because we are rule followers.
What else did being a blue harmony mean about me?
Blues prefer solitary routine exercise. We set personal goals and are committed to ourselves to complete that goal. We find responding to people to be distracting and de-motivating.
As I learned more about the colors, it all made sense. My husband drives me crazy when we participate in running events. He gets excited about all the people at the event. He wants to meet up with friends. He wants to talk to everyone around us before the gun goes off. He wants to get right in the middle of the pack and keeps asking me how I feel.
He is a red! As a red, Mark wants to have fun. He thrives on stimulation.
Understanding your “fitness color” could be critical in determining what kind of exercise will offer you your greatest success and enjoyment. Just because your neighbor joined a “big box” gym, loves going to classes and has dropped some weight, doesn’t mean that you will enjoy and be successful with that type of program. Just because your cousin completed her first 5k and can’t imagine her life without running, doesn’t mean that you will get the same thrill from running that she does.
Go ahead, take the quiz and see what your fitness color is. It could be that extra piece of the puzzle that leads you to success as your begin your own fitness program.
Up next: Different color types and success stories from each.
