The dream of all fitness fiends is to find that special someone that enjoys the same fitness and healthy lifestyle just as much as you. You get to hashtag #swolemates, #fitcouple, and #powercouple. You get to work off each other’s energy, drive, and motivation, you will have a weight lifting spotter as well as a dumbbell security guard so you can walk away for a second to get a drink of water and you will even have a partner for grocery shopping and for weekly food preparation to keep you on track for the week! …Or will you?
When it comes to enabling the actual act of the healthy fitness lifestyle, there may be many bumps in the road to enjoying each other’s wants and needs. If you decide to work out together, which many couples always will, you must first discuss each other’s fitness goals. If you are similar in your wants and needs: great! You are set! You both have an easy plan of attack, but most couples will differ in goals, strength, and endurance.
As in all relationships, there must be compromise. The couple must decide to either work out separately or together. If they choose to work out together, they have to find a middle ground in their fitness programs. Now at first read this may sound like this distances you from achieving your goal at a faster rate. Such as in many circumstances in life, a team might be more powerful than the individual: camaraderie goes a long way with fitness. You will find you will be able to push each other harder, motivate each other to be stronger, and make your time in the gym more enjoyable because the workout may seem to go by faster.
Now a bump in the road: what if your significant other does not want to work out at your fitness level? What if their fitness lifestyle is more used to the occasional cardio session, home video, or different eating routine? You must ask yourself how important to you it is that they share the same healthy fitness lifestyle. Are they willing to learn, or do you not care? If you do not care: great! You are set! But most likely you will.
If you care, and you want them to join you on your fitness and healthy journey, you must approach it with an open mind to each other’s lifestyle. Now obviously, you will want them to join your idealism of health and fitness. You must first speak with them on what they want. If you are more knowledgeable in health and fitness, share with them your knowledge. But as all beliefs and customs, you must share without overwhelming and pressuring your partner.
You want your partner to feel comfortable. You want to slowly introduce your passion and lifestyle. Think of it as if someone was the perfect salesman of a brand new car. The kind of salesman you would want to deal with, not the stereotypical used car salesman that we all dread. If you the used car salesman is your approach, you can turn your partner away from your healthy fitness lifestyle.
Make your workouts and healthy lifestyle fun! A relationship is fun (or painful like a lactic acid burn), but a couple that plays together stays together. Challenge each other. Inspire each other. Enjoy each other’s progress and achievement of goals. If you feel stuck in a fitness rut, look to your spotter life partner to help pull you out. Even with different goals, you still can remain as one. #powercouple!
Fitness tip: Spotting techniques vary between people. Two spotting techniques to use are wrist spotting and elbow spotting. Wrist spotting is usually better for the heavier lifts and elbow spotting is better for the lighter lifts. Find which works best for you.
