Personality correlates of physical fitness.

In this article, I examine the relation between personality and physical fitness. One group (N = 97) of male adults completed the Hogan Personality Inventory and five nationally recognized physical fitness batteries. A second group (N = 35) completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory and a set of medical and physical performance assessments. Results indicate that physical fitness must be defined in multidimensional terms and that fitness is related to self-confidence and self-discipline. Measures of psychopathology were unrelated to measures of health and fitness. These data suggest that the personal qualities associated with fitness are also those that promote and extend health.