Wanted: Training Buddy

Right now, I train alone. But two times a week I have a kickbox lesson with Mikail so that really feels like having a buddy, especially when we end the lesson with our ABS workouts which he enjoys as much as I do because we show each other new exercises. So working out with a personal trainer can be an alternative for a training buddy. But let’s face it, it’s not the same: he is the teacher and you are the student. The big advantage of this relationship is that he will never call you saying “Let’s not work out, I got awfully drunk yesterday and will rather stay home and watch some TV tonight.”

I love to remember the times when I used to work out with Ahmet, Hasan or yesterday Sevda. They all are very different: Ahmet who I love like a little brother is a professional kickboxer and very fit of course. Hasan is my colleague at work and he likes to test his limits together with me. Sometimes he makes our program, sometimes I do. Sevda is the girl who took all these pictures you have seen in my blog. She is an amazing photographer and has this great energy which makes her such a special person. She discovered sports only recently and you should see how her body changed. I am so proud of her!

There are people who need to be kicked in the ass to move it over to the gym. I am not one of them. I go running to the gym, just the perspective of a workout gives me an adrenaline rush. But I definitely love working out with a buddy. Here are some of reasons why you should find someone too:

• FUN: My most fun workouts were always with a training buddy. Ahmet I miss you and those times! We laughed so much. Or the times I worked out with Hasan. People thought we were crazy because our workouts would last for ever. But you simply don’t want them to end, because you enjoy so much.
• PERSUASIVE POWER: There are days whenyou don’t feel like working out. Maybe you had a short night, something at work stressed you out or you had an argument with your partner. In short, you physically could go, you could make time for your training, but you choose not to hit the gym. The occasional missed workout won’t hurt you in the long run, but once it starts happening regularly, you are also putting your healthy diet at risk. That’s where having a training buddy can help. He will remind you of your goals, the progress you have achieved together and the fun you are going to have.
• MOTIVATION: “Come on, you can do it!”, “Two more and you set a new record!” will make you do an extra rep or two. Your partner will have learned how to push you to your limits as you will have found ways to support him in doing the last pull or push needed for muscle growth.
• SAFETY: If you work with the heavy weights, a training partner will allow you to lift more than you could normally do safely. He will know when to intervene and assist, add weights, help with the last rep and put the bar back to the rack. In particular when performing the dumbbell bench press and barbell squat or the skull crushers (the name says it all!), a spotter is recommended to lower the risk of injury.
• COMPETITION: The competitive side is generally more developed in men than women. Especially hard training guys seem to have this gene. I observe some big guys at our club and it’s amazing how they motivate each other. There is no way you are not going to finish your set if you have two buddies at your side who are encouraging you to complete it. They push themselves to the limit, set new goals as a group and yield better results much faster as if they had worked out alone.
• DISCOVERY FACTOR: Ahmet would show me exercises I hadn’t known before and in return, I would teach him to do the repetitions slowly to challenge the muscles to the maximum.

There are so many benefits of training with a buddy. Actually I don’t think there are any downsides if you carefully choose the right person. It doesn’t really matter if you are at an equal strength level since you can always add or remove some weights. But you should make sure that your training buddy is at least as disciplined or even more determined as you are. Otherwise you know you will blame your training buddy for the missed workouts!