Personalities. Huh. Does anyone else forget that not everyone has the same personality, or that personalities even exist. Okay, so that’s probably just me. It has recently been brought to light in a lecture that personality types affect my running. It seemed obvious that different people would face different challenges but never had I considered it would be caused by innate personality traits, instead of external factors. It was suggested by Egloff & Gruhn that even simply being an introvert will inhibit your chance of becoming a runner.  

After being reminded about personality types I decided it would be interesting to find out exactly what mine was. According to the Disc Test  I’m dominant! Which isn’t wrong but not exactly what I wanted to hear. Especially as it essentially means that I’m bossy.

 

 The disc test is a personality test comprised of four main factors as shown in the diagram above, that are based on Marstons personality traits. Profiling individuals using the disc model allows for more effective motivational strategies, knowledge on the areas in which individuals can develop and can help figure out what individuals ideal sporting environment would be. The table below demonstrates what inferences can be made from having a dominant personality:

Priority:	To focus on the set goal
Strengths:	Setting and striving for high standards
Fears:	Not having control
Growth areas:	ImpatientPoor listening skills
Under stress	Critical
Ideal sporting environment:	Efficient Structured

Although personality testing is useful for finding strategies to help plan how to best adapt to common personality traits within teams or workplace settings, it is a reductionist viewpoint and doesn’t account for individual variation. It also fails to account for individuals having similar levels of two different personality types.

Based on the previous information shown in the table it can be inferred that I would perform my best environment in an environment which i control. It would also be beneficial for me to train in an environment where I control the structure in order to feel I am working towards my goal. However due to my general lack of physical health my runs have not been the standard i hoped they would be at, this has caused me to feel demotivated and miss some training runs. This is  shown in the table below where red means not completed and green means completed in the previous two weeks. 

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
3M tempo	Class run	Rest	4m Farlex/Hills	Rest	Rest	6M
4m tempo	Class run	Rest	5m Farlex/Hills	Rest	Rest	8M

To stop me from skipping runs in the future i am going to use nudges to help prompt me into running. Nudges are a behavioural technique that use prompts to increase a behavioural response by presenting someone with a stimuli associated to the behaviour. An example of a nudge would be leaving my running clothes on my chair ready to be used. John (2016) said that multiple different nudges are better than just one to maximise the exposure, so i am going to set up a few different nudges around my house.  Firstly as a nudge Ii will leave my trainers in front of my door, I will also pin my running schedule on my wall and last i will make sure to always set my kit out on my chair where i can see it. Hopefully these three nudges will encourage me to go on more runs

Nudges can be used to help build habits, nudges act as a reminder for habit behaviours. An example of a habit would be going on a run everyday after waking up. The process in which habits are formed is shown in the diagram below.

To apply this model to my day-to-day life  I will be pinning my run schedule to the wall. Seeing the schedule will remind me to go for a run, which causes the sense of pride I get after a run. This sense of pride will cause me to go on more runs the due to the reward; building into a habit. In order to ensure my running pattern becomes a habit, I will be giving myself greater rewards for areas that I am lacking, for example class runs which I have missed quite a few of. If I go on a class run I will buy myself a new plant (which may just be some of my favourite things in the world).

If I manage to induce a habit of running, the next step is maintaining them.  Becker-Philips  suggests that to help maintain goals, you should take small and achievable steps towards it rather than trying to tackle it head-on. This is to minimise failure that may result in the behaviour slipping. An example of which is starting running smaller distances when you first start training, instead of trying to run a marathon everyday.Although progress may eventually be made if I attempted a marathon frequently with no goals in between, it would take a far greater energy investment than the alternative. This would also increase the probability that I gave up entirely. Although Becker-Phillipps discusses how to not give up, she doesn’t explore how to progress within and beyond initial goals, which I feel would be limiting and cause a lack of motivation.

King (2016)  suggested that an effective way to sustain habits is to log activities, so to record runs. Recording activity gives you a log to track yourself with so you can observe if behaviour starts to drop. It was also suggested  that you have to build habits that you enjoy or have suitable rewards or you might not be reinforced enough to maintain behavioural habits. 

Another method to maintaining motivation is by continuously setting bigger goals and challenging yourself. This prevents you from ever reaching the finish line for a goal, as there will always be a new one. For example, if you wanted to maintain the behaviour of running races but were not motivated by repeating the same distance (me), you would motivate yourself with the next goal, the next distance. 

Overview: 

Overall I think these two weeks have been positive as I have been upping my mileage and preparing for the half marathon (two weeks time). I think that understanding my personality type will aid me by helping me figure out where and when will be the best environment to train in.

I have found nudges to be useful, however if i am not in the mood  to run they are very easily ignored. Occasionally the nudges can also feel a bit like shoving and might not be the best method for me as I tend to get annoyed at them . They are also very much limited to reminding me to run not motivating me to go out and do it and after a few days they all became background noise to everything else i have in my house.

2 weeks till half marathon, 14 till the marathon itself at the moment i feel on track but let’s see if i can maintain this progress! 

References:

Egloff, B., & Gruhn, A. J. (1996). Personality and endurance sports. Personality and individual differences, 21(2), 223-229.

Eysenck, H. J., & Eysenck, S. B. (2013). Personality structure and measurement (psychology revivals). Routledge.

Hertwig, R., & Grüne-Yanoff, T. (2017). Nudging and Boosting: Steering or Empowering Good Decisions. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12(6), 973–986. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617702496

Manson, G. E. (1926). A bibliography of the analysis and measurement of human personality up to 1926. Reprint & Circular Series of the National Research Council, 72.

Peters, B. G., & Zittoun, P. (2016). Contemporary approaches to public policy. Theories, controversies and perspectives. UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

The Liverpool rock and roll marathon…. A yearly event where roughly 20, 000 people partake in a weekend of running events. Whether they are attempting the 1 mile, 5k, or half marathon they all cross the start line with a goal, whether it be to win or achieve their best time so far. My Goal? To cross the finish line at the end of the full  42.2K… preferably alive.

Throughout our lives we frequently set goals, whether we realise it or not. There are two types of goals; explicit and implicit . Explicit goals are consciously generated and are usually more directly beneficial to an individual’s motives. An example of an explicit goal would be to run 5 k. Implicit goals are unconscious and associated with immediate rewards, these goals are generally beneficial to the person. An example of an implicit goal would be to put my trainer on before a run. My goal to run a marathon is an explicit goal with the overall aim of increasing my fitness.

Leading up to starting the module ‘Born to Run’, I think I was in denial of just how much work I have to put in. This truly hit me as I went on my first run and was wheezing for breath after only 2 kilometres, (40 more needed to finish a marathon!). I realised I’d have to get my act together and start to plan my training.

Upon reflection I believe that before the classes had started I was enjoying the pre-decisional stage of Rubicon’s model of action; a model which outlines the steps taken towards achieving a goal, and how to achieve these. 

While I was in this stage prevented me from making physical progress towards my goals, as I was only contemplating a marathon and not planning for one. To move forward with my goals and reach the pre-actional stages of Rubicons model (shown in the diagram above), I have to start planning how to build up my physical fitness and learn how to endure the longer runs

While I was in this stage prevented me from making physical progress towards my goals , as I was only contemplating a marathon and not planning for one. To move forward with my goals and reach the preactional stages of Rubicons model (shown in the diagram above), I have to start planning how to build up my physical fitness and learn how to endure the longer runs

SMART goals setting can have a powerful effect on goal success, as the process of going through the individual steps and motives breaks the goal down into achievable steps. I found the process of going through my own goals (image bellow) made the marathon more realistic, causing me to focus more on what I need to do on a day to day basis to achieve my goal. 

While writing my SMART goals I tried to use another psychological strategy called implementation intentions. This strategy involves plans that help to avoid excuses. The strategy can involve changing wording such as instead of saying ‘I might go on a run tomorrow’ you change it to ‘tomorrow I will run at 5 o’clock’. I tried to implement this idea of determination in my phrasing by saying ‘I will achieve’ ‘ I will measure. By using  this I’m trying to change my mindset to build more resilience against excuses. Implementation intentions are often used by having ‘ ‘If , Then’ statements.  I will incorporate  this strategy into my running i’m going to use the phrase ‘ if its a day starting with T or S then i will run’. 

Alongside this method I will also be doing most of my runs with my partner Tom, who has a slightly quicker pace than me, this pushes me to go faster and ensures I go on the runs I plan. Running together has helped me stay motivated on long runs and to continue even though i would prefer to stop, as I find the encouragement of my friends to be useful. There’s a saying in running, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together’, at  the moment I just want to go, and having someone to hold me accountable should help me stay on track. 

Initial Review as a Marathoner (possibly?):

In summary, I have found the concept of setting myself a goal using SMART techniques to be useful, however I do not think it directly aids my running. In order to use these strategies to help my running, I will make a weekly running schedule using the same technique, breaking goals down into smaller, more achievable goals. I think these small wins will help me maintain motivation over a longer period of time.

I have found the running strategy of having a partner to be the most effective, as it is harder to persuade two people to just stay in and binge watch Netflix . Due to my lack of persuasive skills this method has kept me on track with my running, and I will continue to run with friends throughout the next weeks.

Overall, I have actually started to enjoy running, and with no injuries or muscle aches, it feels like success to me!

References

Amabile, T. M., & Kramer, S. J. (2011). The power of small wins. Harvard Business Review, 89(5), 70-80. doi:10.1111/peps.12022_2

Jayawickrama, J. (2018). ” If You Want To Go Fast, Go Alone. If You Want To Go Far, Go Together.”: Outsiders Learning From Insiders in a Humanitarian Context. Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, 5(2), 5-5. doi.org/10.24926/ijps.v5i2.1309

Mayo, B. (1957). Conditional statements. The Philosophical Review, 291-303. doi;10.2307/2182436

Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta‐analysis of effects and processes. Advances in experimental social psychology, 38, 69-119.doi.org/10.1016/s0065-2601(06)38002-1 

Chang, A., Chou, C. L., Teherani, A., & Hauer, K. E. (2011). Clinical skills‐related learning goals of senior medical students after performance feedback. Medical education, 45(9), 878-885. doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2011.04015.x

Bovend’Eerdt, T. J., Botell, R. E., & Wade, D. T. (2009). Writing SMART rehabilitation goals and achieving goal attainment scaling: a practical guide. Clinical Rehabilitation, 23(4), 352–361. doi.org/10.1177/0269215508101741

Gollwitzer, P. M. (1990). Action phases and mind-sets. Handbook of motivation and cognition: Foundations of social behavior, 2, 53-92. doi:10.4135/9781446249215.n26

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The Liverpool rock and roll marathon…. A yearly event where roughly 20, 000 people partake in a weekend of running events. Whether they are attempting the 1 mile, 5k, or half marathon they all cross the start line with a goal, whether it be to win or achieve their best time so far. My Goal? To cross the finish line at the end of the full  42.2K… preferably alive.

Throughout our lives we frequently set goals, whether we realise it or not. There are two types of goals; explicit and implicit . Explicit goals are consciously generated and are usually more directly beneficial to an individual’s motives. An example of an explicit goal would be to run 5 k. Implicit goals are unconscious and associated with immediate rewards, these goals are generally beneficial to the person. An example of an implicit goal would be to put my trainer on before a run. My goal to run a marathon is an explicit goal with the overall aim of increasing my fitness.

Leading up to starting the module ‘Born to Run’, I think I was in denial of just how much work I have to put in. This truly hit me as I went on my first run and was wheezing for breath after only 2 kilometres, (40 more needed to finish a marathon!). I realised I’d have to get my act together and start to plan my training.

Upon reflection I believe that before the classes had started I was enjoying the pre-decisional stage of Rubicon’s model of action; a model which outlines the steps taken towards achieving a goal, and how to achieve these. 

While I was in this stage prevented me from making physical progress towards my goals, as I was only contemplating a marathon and not planning for one. To move forward with my goals and reach the pre-actional stages of Rubicons model (shown in the diagram above), I have to start planning how to build up my physical fitness and learn how to endure the longer runs

While I was in this stage prevented me from making physical progress towards my goals , as I was only contemplating a marathon and not planning for one. To move forward with my goals and reach the preactional stages of Rubicons model (shown in the diagram above), I have to start planning how to build up my physical fitness and learn how to endure the longer runs

SMART goals setting can have a powerful effect on goal success, as the process of going through the individual steps and motives breaks the goal down into achievable steps. I found the process of going through my own goals (image bellow) made the marathon more realistic, causing me to focus more on what I need to do on a day to day basis to achieve my goal. 

While writing my SMART goals I tried to use another psychological strategy called implementation intentions. This strategy involves plans that help to avoid excuses. The strategy can involve changing wording such as instead of saying ‘I might go on a run tomorrow’ you change it to ‘tomorrow I will run at 5 o’clock’. I tried to implement this idea of determination in my phrasing by saying ‘I will achieve’ ‘ I will measure. By using  this I’m trying to change my mindset to build more resilience against excuses. Implementation intentions are often used by having ‘ ‘If , Then’ statements.  I will incorporate  this strategy into my running i’m going to use the phrase ‘ if its a day starting with T or S then i will run’. 

Alongside this method I will also be doing most of my runs with my partner Tom, who has a slightly quicker pace than me, this pushes me to go faster and ensures I go on the runs I plan. Running together has helped me stay motivated on long runs and to continue even though i would prefer to stop, as I find the encouragement of my friends to be useful. There’s a saying in running, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together’, at  the moment I just want to go, and having someone to hold me accountable should help me stay on track. 

Initial Review as a Marathoner (possibly?):

In summary, I have found the concept of setting myself a goal using SMART techniques to be useful, however I do not think it directly aids my running. In order to use these strategies to help my running, I will make a weekly running schedule using the same technique, breaking goals down into smaller, more achievable goals. I think these small wins will help me maintain motivation over a longer period of time.

I have found the running strategy of having a partner to be the most effective, as it is harder to persuade two people to just stay in and binge watch Netflix . Due to my lack of persuasive skills this method has kept me on track with my running, and I will continue to run with friends throughout the next weeks.

Overall, I have actually started to enjoy running, and with no injuries or muscle aches, it feels like success to me!

References

Amabile, T. M., & Kramer, S. J. (2011). The power of small wins. Harvard Business Review, 89(5), 70-80. doi:10.1111/peps.12022_2

Jayawickrama, J. (2018). ” If You Want To Go Fast, Go Alone. If You Want To Go Far, Go Together.”: Outsiders Learning From Insiders in a Humanitarian Context. Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, 5(2), 5-5. doi.org/10.24926/ijps.v5i2.1309

Mayo, B. (1957). Conditional statements. The Philosophical Review, 291-303. doi;10.2307/2182436

Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal achievement: A meta‐analysis of effects and processes. Advances in experimental social psychology, 38, 69-119.doi.org/10.1016/s0065-2601(06)38002-1 

Chang, A., Chou, C. L., Teherani, A., & Hauer, K. E. (2011). Clinical skills‐related learning goals of senior medical students after performance feedback. Medical education, 45(9), 878-885. doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1365-2923.2011.04015.x

Bovend’Eerdt, T. J., Botell, R. E., & Wade, D. T. (2009). Writing SMART rehabilitation goals and achieving goal attainment scaling: a practical guide. Clinical Rehabilitation, 23(4), 352–361. doi.org/10.1177/0269215508101741

Gollwitzer, P. M. (1990). Action phases and mind-sets. Handbook of motivation and cognition: Foundations of social behavior, 2, 53-92. doi:10.4135/9781446249215.n26

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