The Weight Loss Help of a Workout Partner

Posted: Dec 13 in Weight Loss Blog by Staff

Once you’ve started to build up some social support among your family and friends, it may be time to take your support system even further. Those closest to you can offer weight loss help in Ft. Myers and Naples every day, but one specific ally can have an even more concrete impact on your progress: a workout buddy.

Though the perfect workout buddy may be someone you already know, establishing a partnership based on fitness can have many benefits, helping both of you improve your health together.

While working out alone can be lonely and uneventful, working out with someone else will bring a host of benefits, like:

• Accountability. We’re far more likely to stick to our exercise plans when we make them with someone else. Vague plans to exercise alone after work can turn into an evening spent parked on the couch, but an exercise date with a buddy will be much harder to blow off.
• Motivation. Even if you don’t have a competitive bone in your body, the urge to keep up with your buddy during a workout can help you boost the intensity. The two of you can push each other harder and keep each other from slacking during a session, while some research even shows that we have a higher tolerance to pain when working out in groups.
• Companionship. Sweating it out in silence can make exercise feel like a chore—gabbing with a friend the whole time can be a breath of fresh air. You can laugh with each other and talk about things totally unrelated to your workout, which will make the whole thing feel much easier.

The weight loss help of an exercise partner translates to more calories burned, more strength built and more workouts successfully completed. Still, not everyone will make the ideal workout buddy. In your search for the right one, you should look for qualities like:

• A good attitude. Obviously, you’ll want to find someone who you’ll enjoy spending time with, but your buddy should also be able to motivate you. Our best friends may not always be the perfect choice, as they may have a tough time pushing us to try harder. Find someone kind but focused.
• A similar fitness level. Getting outpaced by a fitter buddy can be motivating, but it can become tiring with time. You and your workout buddy should be on a comparable page when it comes to what you want out of a workout and where you’re at right now.

The perfect buddy can come from many places—think about family, friends and support group members who may be good candidates. Once you’ve found someone, try taking a class together or setting up a time to hit the gym. You might be surprised by how much a workout buddy can impact your weight loss efforts in Naples and Ft. Myers.