Being fit and working out is probably one of the best trends to hit the human race probably ever, second only to wearing clothes. That being said, you should be stoked to hit the gym and get your sweat on because not only because it’s trendy AF, but also because it’s good for you! Duh.
But it’s not always easy forcing yourself to take a trip to the nearest fitness center — especially if you went yesterday or the day before. It requires a lot of self-discipline and quite frankly, binge-watching Netflix seems like a much better idea when your couch is staring at you from a few feet away. One thing that can make that a hell of a lot easier for you is if you have a friend who’s counting on you to be there.
Getting yourself a workout buddy has way more benefits than you might realize. You may enjoy the freedom of going alone, but there’s far more to gain by getting buff with your BFF. The next time you workout, ask a friend to tag along and you’ll reap all of these rewards.
1. It Helps You Stay Accountable
Working out is hard. It’s easier to just sit at home and enjoy a good book than it is to put on workout clothes, drive to the gym and then force yourself to sweat for an hour. But if deep down that’s what you want, then you need to stay accountable and stick to your schedule. That’s where your gym buddy comes in. You’ll feel way worse blowing off a bud than you will just bailing on plans you made with yourself.
2. It’s Way More Fun
Hanging out with a friend is pretty fun in general so working out together means bringing a bit of that fun along. Workouts are usually pretty bland and boring. You go in, warm up and get your lifts over with. When you have a friend, that entire process seems like such a great time. And when your workout is fun, you dread it less. When you dread it less, you workout way more and therefore, make more progress. A simple equation.
3. They’ll Push You to Do Better
You don’t ever really have a workout buddy who sits there and tells you to stop doing a workout and take a break. (If you do, they are not a good one.) They’re usually cheering you on and telling you to work harder and do more. Because you have someone right there encouraging you to push yourself, you will. This allows you to lift more, run faster and make more progress. You’ll get a much better workout with a buddy present.
4. You’ll Learn New Workouts
Most of us stick to the same workout over and over again. It’s so rare we try to branch out and look up something new to try. While the same ol’ routine may help us accomplish some goals, the lack of new exercises often makes people plateau.
When you workout with a friend, you’re both teaching and learning which makes things a little less boring.
5. Your Workouts will be Varied
Just like you can’t always decide on the same movie to go see, both of you won’t want to do the same workout every single day. That means you’ll end up doing what they want sometimes and vice versa. That variety is crucial for making continuous progress and avoiding the plateau period we were talking about before.
6. You’ll Stay on Track to Meet Your Goals
There’s something oddly embarrassing about admitting failure to your friends. Since you and your workout buddy hit the gym together, you probably also share your goals with them. If you don’t meet a goal, they’ll be there to push you extra hard and help you accomplish it. Not only that but you’ll also meet those goals easier when you hit the gym more frequently because of your workout partner.
7. You Have More Exercise Options
If you were to look up partner workouts, you’ll see a lot of them. You can’t do those workouts by yourself. Therefore, when workout out with a buddy, you have way more options when it comes to exercises and you’ll be less bored with your routine.
8. You’ll Maintain Proper Form
Without having someone actually watch your form while working out, you could be doing something entirely the wrong way. This can be dangerous and it can also slow your progress if you’re not using the muscles you think you are because your posture’s off. When you have a workout buddy, there’s someone right next to you who can correct your form for you.
9. There’s Always Someone There to Take Pictures and Videos
Another great way to maintain accountability while working out is to post it on Instagram. Sure, the #gymselfie is cool, but everybody likes a good action shot and that’s really hard to do when you workout alone. Who could possibly take a video of a workout you’re doing when you’re by yourself? Ask a stranger? As if! That’s embarrassing. That’s where your gym buddy can swoop in, get those great camera angles and help you post great content on your IG to maximize likes. The more people who expect you to be working out, the more you’ll want to hit the gym to show them you are. Sad, but true.
10. It’s Safer
A lot of people might not realize how dangerous the gym can actually be. If you’re someone who uses heavy weights, you really can’t reach your full potential without a spotter. But it’s hella awkward to ask some random person to stand real close to you while you’re squatting. That’s why working out with a buddy is so much better. You have a squatter who can help you hit new PRs safely.
11. You’ll Have Longer Workouts
Raise your hand if you tend to skip out on your workout early just because you’re “not feeling it?” Yeah, we’ve all been there. This can actually set you back quite a bit in reaching your goals if you do it regularly. Having a gym buddy who won’t let you leave is a great way to avoid this. You’ll also feel way more guilty for heading home early if you have a friend with you who isn’t skipping out.
12. You Can Socialize at the Same Time
You can kill two birds with one stone, as they say. If you’re living a super busy life but want to make sure you’re nurturing your friendships (as you should be), having your friends go to the gym with you is an awesome option. That way, you can socialize and catch up while kicking ass at your workout.
13. You’ll Always Know if Your Leggings are Squat-Proof
Because you know how horrible it is trying to squat when you have no idea if your butt is showing through your cute leggings. That’s what a gym buddy is for. You can have them stand behind you and even tell you if your underwear (or worse — bare behind) are visible when you’re stretching them glutes. This will help you know which leggings to wear on leg day and which you should not be squatting in.
14. You Always Have Some Back-up Deodorant
There’s really not much worse than getting to the gym and realizing you don’t have deodorant. The stuff you threw on that morning in a rush will not suffice for the entire workout. You need a fresh layer or you’ll end up clearing out the gym. Sure, an empty gym means your pick at any machine you want. But it also means your gym crush had to dip at your foul stank. The odds of both of you forgetting are very low.
15. They’ll Know Who You Mean When You Talk About Your “Gym Crush”
Oh yeah and about that gym crush — finally your BFF will get to have a face to a nickname.
16. You Can Try Awkward-Positioned Workout Without Feeling Embarrassed
You know how beneficial those glute bridges are but that doesn’t make humping the air feel any less weird. Thankfully, if you have your gym buddy doing the same awkward exercise with you, the embarrassment seems to dissipate. That means you’ll be able to do a lot more exercises that are actually really great for you, even if they feel and look odd.
17. At Least One Person at the Gym will Appreciate Your Outfit
You know you didn’t spend $40 on a pair of leggings that makes your booty look amazing for no reason. Someone needs to appreciate your fine assets. Thankfully, your gym buddy will be sure to acknowledge how great your bum looks, if no one else does. They’ll definitely praise your great gym-wear choices that normally go unnoticed.
The benefits to workout out in general are beyond measure. The fact that you can gain even more from working out with a buddy can’t be ignored.