Now that I’ve learned to count up to 20, I’m thinking of ditching my personal trainer and trying to hook up with a workout partner. The primary goals would be to egg each other on to better performance, spotting, and keeping an eye on each other’s form. I suppose ideally we would meet for more or less the same workout, taking turns on the sets. I don’t know how realistic this really is, I don’t see people working out that way at my gym. How do you people with workout partners structure it? How did you meet your partner? Any other advice?
Workout partners have pros/cons. My partner ain’t the best. I have to pick his ass up and take him to the gym. Anyways with a partner, you’ll usually end up spending more time chit-chatting and less time concentrating on strict form and your training. I ended up depending on a partner a while ago and when he stopped going, so did I. And when I go alone once in a while I find those are my best and most productive routines. Find someone with knowledge and dedication to be your workout partner. My 2 cents from my personal experience.
train hard and make progress. people will then want to work out with you using your workout. that’s how i’ve gotten my last 4 workout partners who are also some of my best friends. even the ones i no longer work out with because i moved. its also a good idea to find someone who is almost as strong or better if he is a little stronger to keep you motivated. i had one workout partner and my goal was to do 10 reps with his max. not very motivating.
Emily: The best workout partner is the one that shares the same goals. This is really difficult, in that your goals change, but thiers may not. So, you may have to be a bit flexible, or at least be willing to offer a spot to eachother during your own rest periods while you do different excersises. Also, your partner has to be able to fit into your schedule as well - if your a morning person, and they’re a night person, it’s not going to work. Similarly, if they work varied hours and your’s are pretty regular, it’s not going to work. There should be an online “single workout” service that hooks up workout partners somehow!
Thanks for the advice, guys. I’ll start by making an effort to interact more with the other people at my gym. I’m not the most outgoing person in the world but can do it if I try. I’ve tried some of those on-line sports partner websites to meet people for outdoor sports but they’re pretty useless.
Because you’ll never find a person whose goals and schedule are exactly the same as yours, I’d recommend becoming fully independent, i.e., training without a partner. In the occasional event that you need a spot you can ask the nearest person, and in the event you need feedback on your form you can ask someone in your gym whom you respect. I think having a partner holds you back.
I have to disagree with Zev a bit… having a partner can hold you back, but a really good one can help you forward. There’s something to be said for the comraderie of working out with the same person all the time, and knowing what to expect from a spot (and they know what to expect from you to know when to spot and when to not).