9 Benefits of Having a Fitness Partner

Working out alone is a good thing but having a workout partner is better. Having a fitness partner helps you stay fit, reach your goals, motivate you and double your gains since you and your partner will build muscle, endurance and maintain it as well. Read on and hopefully you will be more than eager to persuade a friend or anyone to join your workouts.

1. Motivation. One of the keys to a great exercise program and its maintenance is the motivation. Motivation keeps you going from one rep to another, gives you the mentality to add a set more and to continue further with each and every workout session. Having a fitness partner motivates you to work harder and play smarter. He/she can encourage you to work harder, and at times when you feel like just lying on your bed all day, seeing your workout partner getting ready for the gym slays your workout demons. There are several ways that you can do with your training partner to make every workout fun and more challenging.
   • Challenge each other when it comes to your exercises. These challenges may be short term or in a long term basis. One example of a short term challenge is working against each other when it comes to your running on who goes further, who stays longer or who gets the most reps with your abdominal crunches. There are also different challenges such as who gets to lift 300 pounds first in the bench after a few months or any other lifting challenges that you can do. The idea of having a challenge motivates you to work hard with your workout, and it can only be din, of course with the presence of a training partner.
2. Another benefit of having a fitness workout partner with you is that someone can help you when it comes to your heavy weight lifting days. Your partner can help you with the positive phase of the bench press during your last few sets. Having a partner helps keep you safe during your lifts that prevent muscle strains and most of all, injuries.
3. Your training partner will also be one of your greatest critics. Constructive criticisms will help you with your form, execution and proper handling of equipment that can be of great benefit to your workouts. You can ask your partner to watch you as you perform the exercise and follow through on where you fail in your exercise. This can help prevent injuries and accidents in the gym.
4. Your partner can also be a critic on how you look. A partner can tell you which muscles you lack development or when your body is proportioned or well balanced. Both of you can become beneficial critics for each other to help improve your workouts and your physique.
5. When it comes to working out with a partner, you can also get to mingle with other people as you go through different fitness activities. This will help you socialize with different personalities and also increases your chances of expanding your knowledge with regards to certain fitness approaches.
6. Another reason why a workout partner should always be around is that you can exchange ideas with your partner when it comes to exercises and fitness ideas that benefit you both. You can share ideas that you may have read somewhere and try it then inform your partner whether it works for you or not. Going together at different approaches of fitness activities adds more excitement, anticipation and motivation. Adding something new with every workout session prevents plateau and boredom.
7. Motivations often come in unexpected times and from unexpected people. Often times, we workout so much, sweat hard and train hard without seeing our very own progress. Here is when your training partner comes into play. Your partner may notice your muscular developments and may even acknowledge that you are progressing with a flatter stomach, ripped abs and/or running longer than before. This can become a positive enforcement that will motivate both parties.
8. With a workout partner waiting for you at the gym or waiting for the days run by the park, you will certainly waste no day to workout. working out becomes more fun and the thought of having someone to wait for you and workout with you sheds off the excuses and the stresses that commonly sabotage a consistent workout schedule. Another great motivation is when both of you share the same music. Sharing the same music when working out helps you pump more reps, and lets the time fly by easily without you noticing it.  In case you and your partner doesn’t go well with each other’s genre of music, you can always try new genre of music to share as you run or pump in the gym.
9. Having a workout partner gets the scare that most beginners have. The scare that no one will join them in the gym, that they are performing the exercise with errors and many other scares are all washed down easily with a training partner. Whether or not your partner is a gym rat, your anxieties will be lessened with someone to teach you or someone to express your feelings just before and after working out for the first time.

Conclusion

A fitness partner is a motivating factor that every fitness enthusiast could always use during a workout session. However easy or hard the workout may be, a partner can encourage you, help keep you safe, perform the exercises properly and provide positive reinforcement. Aside from these reasons, your partner can also be your critic that will help you ensure that your workouts and exercises are well done. So instead of working out alone the next time you go to your weekly run of daily weight lifting sessions, go ahead and ask a friend or anyone to workout with you. This way, you get to work out better, and improve your friend’s or someone else’s life by encouraging them to exercise.

[stextbox id=”grey” caption=”About the Author”]Jordann Campose is a fitness enthusiast and instructor. He currently works as a health care professional with part time work as a fitness instructor and weight loss teacher for people seeking results that will help boost their confidence and strengthen their whole being. [/stextbox]