Page "Imperial Guard (Russia)" Paragraph 42

Every soldier and officer of the Guard had the style of the Leib Guard ( Лейб-гвардии ...), for example: Colonel of the Leib Guard ( Лейб-гвардии полковник ).

It is a misconception that the monarch himself functioned as the commander of the Leib Guard regiments, so only he and some members of royal family could hold a title of Colonel ( Polkovnik ) of the Guards, but in fact there were many guards officers in the rank of colonel.