"It depends on what you want to accomplish," says Kate F. Hays, Ph.D., a clinical and sports psychologist and author of Working it Out: Using Exercise in Psychotherapy (American Psychological Association, 1999). Some people need a partner simply to keep them motivated. "If you know that someone is at the gym waiting for you," she explains, "you're more likely to go." If it takes an obligation to someone else to motivate you, Hays suggests finding a workout partner who you would not feel comfortable canceling on-generally that means someone who is not a close friend, sibling, spouse or roommate. Exercising with a relative stranger can also eliminate interpersonal tensions that may arise between people who know each other well. In addition, it helps if the person is more or less on the same fitness level as you. If you know that your partner will always be able to run circles around you, or vice versa, you may be overwhelmed by the futility of working out with this person and simply call it quits. Hays recommends posting a note at your gym, joining a running club or other athletic group to find camaraderie and potential workout mates.

Other people need a social aspect to their exercise in order to fight tedium and to make the workout go faster. If you need to chat and be engaged while you sweat, you should recruit friends and family to join you at the gym. Working out with a close friend is also good for the time-challenged; Hays, herself, fulfills both social and fitness needs by running with a good friend. "If it weren't for the fact that we made a weekly date to go running, we would never get a chance to see each other," she says. Again, it's best to find a friend who has the same athletic abilities as you to avoid issues of competition and the discouragement that's bound to result from it.

Some people, however, harbor fitness goals that involve improving their skills in a particular sport or activity. Those people should consider training with someone who's a bit more advanced. If you're looking to improve your backhand, for example, seek out a more seasoned player at a tennis club, a racquet shop or local court. This person should be someone who wouldn't mind having an easy-going game with you every so often. There is a danger, though, of a partnership like this becoming too imbalanced, where one person essentially is coaching the other. If this happens, you may want to consider paying your partner or reciprocating the favor in some other way.

Bookmark:

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed