Workout Partners Make A Difference!
Posted: January 27, 2015
I’ve worked with lots of people with their health and fitness over the years. Many were seriously overweight. Some have been very obese.
While I always do everything I can to help, in the end it always comes down to their own personal responsibility. They’re the ones that let things go; they’re the ones who have to fight to get it back. No one can do it for them.
One of the people I’m working with puts it more bluntly. “No one else put that food in your mouth. You did it. Now fix it.”
While some lose a lot of weight on their own, many have more success when they find other people to do it with. They challenge each other, help them stay motivated, and also hold each other accountable.
That’s the reason I keep doing the Biggest Loser groups, and even the Boot Camp and Kickboxing/MMA workouts. People just like to have a push. Sometimes they even need a pull.
Lots of our Boot Camp Warriors say that they like it better when I do it right along with them. Some of the guys I train with in Mixed Martial Arts and Brazilian JiuJitsu say it inspires them seeing a 52 year old not just hang with them, but push them.
So while it comes down to personal responsibility, it helps having a like minded group around you. I see Biggest Loser finalists working together and pushing each other all the time.
One group of members has figured this out. They got together and created their own workout group, using Garmin wristband technology to track all their workouts in the open. This means the others can see their daily steps and calories burned, in real time.
So they know if someone’s getting ahead for the day. They also know if you’re falling behind. They communicate during the day with support or trash talking; whatever works.
They take turns giving the group workout challenges. Some have been substantial workout challenges. If someone doesn’t meet the challenge, they have to buy everyone else in the group a case of water!
So far, no one’s had to pay up. Everyone does it, even when they had to make it back into the gym later to get it done. It’s working. They all say they wouldn’t have done nearly that much on their own. Great job!
Another group that’s working includes this week’s Biggest Losers. The winner for Week One was Carl Loser, who lost 6.2 lbs and 2.3% of his body weight. Jennifer Bowers placed second, losing 4.4 lbs and 1.7%, and her husband Shawn Bowers took third, losing 4.0 lbs and 1.2%.