9 Tips to Working Out as a Couple (Without Killing Each Other in the Process)
So you’ve decided to spend some quality time with your mate sharing the joy of exercising together, but you want it to be a source of fun, not strife. I polled some of my friends to find out what has worked for them in the past and brought these key tips to you! - By JANE CLAPP
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Strong Couples
You hope by strengthening your bodies you’ll also reap the side benefit of strengthening your relationship. But there are some things you should know to make sure the best of intentions don’t backfire into what could be a nasty fight or increased tension between the two of you.Masterfile -
Keep Your Workouts Balanced and Fair
“Understand that each person has specific goals, strengths and weaknesses that relate to their physical fitness. It’s important for couples to mix up their routines so each person gets a chance to work 'in' and 'out' of their comfort zones. Perhaps one person is better at heavy lifting and the other is on a mission to drop pounds through cardio vascular activity. Customize your workouts so that both needs are met for each person.”
Sarah Robichaud, Fitness expert and published author
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Don't Compete
Use your workouts together to reaffirm your commitment to support each other “Don’t compete with each other. One person will always lose. Allow each other space to go at your own pace. Although, I will say genuine motivation from your spouse is extremely rewarding. Having somebody walk behind, beside you, even ahead of you in the path of life is pretty spectacular. He has my back, my hand and my future all within his reach!! And I can trip him if he gets to out of hand!”
Sarah Currie, Personal Trainer -
Be Persuasive
“The biggest challenge is getting your mate off the couch in the first place. Tell a mate that they'll get more sex if they get up and do it because you both will release endorphins and start to look and feel better = increased sex drive.“
Cassandra Bach, Environmental coordinator. Government of CanadaMasterfile -
Train Hard But Laugh Harder
“John and I are both tri-athletes. DO have a sense of humour, and push each other to improve. DON’T take the sport too seriously, or try to compete against the other. Train hard, laugh harder and always spin to good music!”
Jackie Thompson, Registered Nurse, Vancouver Island Health AuthorityMasterfile -
Don't Be a Show-Off
“If you're way more experienced than your mate (especially if you're a girl and he's a guy...sexist but true), don't show off too much. It's a total turn off, especially if you can do one-arm push ups and he can only do girl push ups. Not encouraging for your mate.”
Rebecca Nixon, Owner/Designer, Girl Friday Clothing -
Work out Independently
Learn to workout independently at first even when you go to the gym at the same time: This prevents dependence syndrome (if one person quits then the other will too) and it also reduces tension when one person is more of a gym fanatic than the other. Finally, people have different schedules and body dynamics too so it's unrealistic for two people to always follow the same day-to-day workout program.
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Feel Sexy But Don't Be a Tease
“Don’t wear anything too sexy to work out in, Stuart has had some embarrassing situations working out with me.”
Amanda Thebe, Co-founder, Urbanfitt Mobile and Graphic DesignerMasterfile -
Pay Someone
I’ve accepted that my man won’t want me telling him what to do in the gym. Even though people pay loads of money for my expertise, he doesn’t want me to be the ‘expert’ and him ‘the client’. I’ve have loads of success training couples because they are on equal footing with me. There’s no power dynamic at play.
- Jane Clapp (that's me!)
Read More:
The Yoga Date
Gym Etiquette for Exercising with Co-Workers
How to Use the Right Kind of Exercise to Boost Your MoodMasterfile
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