Workout buddy

butthatsjustme

Just wondering, is it better to have a workout buddy or to go solo in the gym?

I currently go alone, I like the freedom of being able to go to the gym whenever I like. But I feel like I don't really push myself enough?

Do most people workout alone or with someone else?

I wouldn't mind having someone to high five on good days...

Zombienosh

I like putting on some headphones and forgetting about everyone else.

kilograms

I go alone but there are a lot of people in my gym who have gym buddies.

RidleyRider

I have a gym buddy. It sparks some really healthy competition in the weights room. Drives you to push harder and bigger weights. Then again, I do like to jam in the headphones at times as Zombienosh said..

harvester of sorrow

I workout on my own and i like it that way for most of the time.....but on occasions when i may need a spot i feel like a gym buddy would be great,especially when you get some douche spotting you,taking all the pressure off of you(i.e not making you work hard enough)

Wanderer2010

I go on my own because I dont really have anyone else to go with plus I kind of like doing my own thing and not being stuck to a routine or being in competition with another person. That way if I want to head off after 45 mons or stay for 2 hours Im my own boss.

I dont really know how one would get a gym buddy unless you mean just bringing a mate along with you, certainly I wouldnt ask anyone at the gym to be one. The place Im in, yes the people are friendly enough but no conversation beyond "Hi" is ever really achieved. I think most people just want to be left alone to their workout..

jugger0

I usually go with a mate, sometimes we do our own thing other times we do the same workout, its handy having a spotter you can trust for the benching! sometimes we have competitions which is always good craic.. but then sometimes its good to be on your own, a date with the weights ya kno.

MikeC101

harvester of sorrow wrote: »

I workout on my own and i like it that way for most of the time.....but on occasions when i may need a spot i feel like a gym buddy would be great,especially when you get some douche spotting you,taking all the pressure off of you(i.e not making you work hard enough)

"IT'S ALL YOU BRA! IT'S ALL YOU!"

*flexes biceps*

tmc86

I do my sessions on my own too its easier to focus and I find that there is a lot of wasted time if you go with a buddy i.e. chit chat

In my old gym I made friends with a couple of other regular lads and we would help spot each other when needed and have an odd chat about new excersises etc but we would just get on with our own routines.

Headphones in, Metallica black album and on with the lifts!

Michael 09

I'm quite surprised by the answers here, I would class a good gym buddy as a huge advantage. Provided that they are there to help improve your workout rather than just chat. Someone who gets to know you and what you're capable of will be a great spotter for you. They will also drive you on to push harder with more reps or highers weights.

Going on your own makes it too easy to not do that last rep or to leave early or something.

harvester of sorrow

MikeC101 wrote: »

"IT'S ALL YOU BRA! IT'S ALL YOU!"

*flexes biceps*

Yep thats the one!ROFL:pac:

Scuba Ste

Much prefer training with others.

Training atmosphere is very important. Depends on your goals but if you train with people stronger than you or around a similar level it pushes you a bit harder.

I don't really mean a workout buddy but there you go.

Hanley

Scuba Ste wrote: »

Much prefer training with others.

Training atmosphere is very important. Depends on your goals but if you train with people stronger than you or around a similar level it pushes you a bit harder.

Yeah, that.

My biggest struggle right now is having a great gym to train in and not wanting to spend more time in it on my tobler!

Michael 09

Hanley wrote: »

Yeah, that.

My biggest struggle right now is having a great gym to train in and not wanting to spend more time in it on my tobler!

Awe and my fifties won't fit in my wallet! Boo hoo haha!

On a serious note - yes training partner (sounds better than gym buddy) would be very important

Hanley

Michael 09 wrote: »

Awe and my fifties won't fit in my wallet! Boo hoo haha!

On a serious note - yes training partner (sounds better than gym buddy) would be very important

#FirstWorldProblem I know...

kedrek1

For me its home alone.Would be handy to have a spotter when it gets heavy the wife isnt quit up to the job.Really need a power rack.

Denerick

I go on my own, listen to podcasts/music, and zone out for the hour/hour and a half. Far better in my opinion.

Michael 09

To the people saying that they prefer to train alone, do you find it's better from a mental perspective in that you destress as you have some time alone?

Or do you think that you train better alone in terms of better lifts etc?

I find it hard to believe that you lift better alone, much less likely to go for 'that last rep' without a spotter surely?

kedrek1

Just dont have the money to join a gym.Just have to make the best of it.

RidleyRider

kedrek1 wrote: »

Just dont have the money to join a gym.Just have to make the best of it.

making an assumption here but, why not spend the money on a gym membership rather than a load of home weights and a power rack?

kedrek1

Have a good amount of stuff collected over the years .Dont live near any gyms really.Its also really handy and cheap .New gym opening up soon fairly close to home so hope to mix it up a bit.

tmc86

Michael 09 wrote: »

To the people saying that they prefer to train alone, do you find it's better from a mental perspective in that you destress as you have some time alone?

Or do you think that you train better alone in terms of better lifts etc?

I find it hard to believe that you lift better alone, much less likely to go for 'that last rep' without a spotter surely?

I find it better from a mental perspective. I can destress much better and I'm not interrupted so I do more as we're not standing and chatting.

I would say that my lifts would be better with a training partner most notably on bench press just because you would have the confidence to go for that last rep without worrying about being able to rack the bar back up but I wouldn't say it would effect my squat or deadlift.

One advantage to a gym buddy that you don't get training by yourself would be someone to make sure your form isn't sacrificed on heavier lifts.

Zombienosh

Agree with this.

I don't think I'd enjoy the gym If I had a "buddy" though.

JimmyCrackCorn

Iv only brought one buddy to the gym as a once off when he wanted to see the place.

I have trouble talking while in the GYM and my goal is to get in and out quickly and keep my heart up while covering the sets i need to cover.

It usually means i'm a sweaty, puffing, panting with some grunting.:rolleyes:
Talking is usually not high on my list of things to do.

I can only see one pro. You have someone to motivate you to cross the front doorstep.

Ant11

Defo agree with having a training partner, you'll always give that extra effort at the end knowing someone is standing there watching you. For me it also keeps me motivated, never wanting to miss a session coz I'd let the other person down or if I had to miss a session I'd make up for it a different day. If I was on my own I wouldn't bother. We train at 6:30am and I've never had trouble getting out of the bed in the morning probably because I don't want to let my training partner down.

Funnily enough I was away for the last 3 days so I knew I'd miss 2 sessions. Did my mate go on his own? Not a chance. 1.) because he's a lazy cxxt and I wasn't there to wake him up. And 2.) no motivation to go on his own.

butthatsjustme

Ant11 wrote: »

Defo agree with having a training partner, you'll always give that extra effort at the end knowing someone is standing there watching you. For me it also keeps me motivated, never wanting to miss a session coz I'd let the other person down or if I had to miss a session I'd make up for it a different day. If I was on my own I wouldn't bother. We train at 6:30am and I've never had trouble getting out of the bed in the morning probably because I don't want to let my training partner down.

I think the same! I had a gym session with a pt once, and even though I did the exact same thing as ever, he kinda forced me to keep up the tempo a bit more!

But I guess I agree with everyone, I'm kinda competitive so I don't think I'd be able to de-stress as much if I had someone with me?
So awesome when you force yourself in feeling like crap, and come out feeling like a boss :cool:

Ant11

Since were on the topic of training partners - What's your opinions on this lads. Should I bother trying to help or just let my mate do what he wants?

As I've said above I've personally found a training partner beneficial but at the same time I can see why it can be a lot of hassle. My training partner is very frustrating and sometimes I wonder why do I bother. (I'm gona sound like a right aul one here).

I'll give a bit of background: Myself and the woman rent a room in my mates gaf, so he sees me eat properly and prepare my food all the time. He's been over weight for years so in May I got him to join the gym and introduced him to weight training. He loved it and could see the benefits of weight training over boring cardio. His weight did start to shift but not quick enough for him. I told him it was down to his diet, that he needed to eat more like me (I did explain all this to him in more detail.....repeatedly). It took him 3 months to cop on that you can't out-train a bad diet. When his diet did finally improve he lost more in 1 month than he had in the previous 3. So I thought my point was made and he'd learned what he needed to do food wise. I'd gotten it into his head that if he went out drinking not to be eating sh1te on the way home and he hadn't done so in months. Now I know it's December and there's loads of Christmas parties happening but for the last month this chap has been a few pounds off hitting his 3 stone mark and has been out drinking a lot more. That's fine by me I do the same but you'd think when he's so close to hitting another milestone that he would have a bit more cop on. Whats more annoying is, I went down to the kitchen last weekend and saw his left over take away and after he got up I said "I see you were a bold boy last night", better to just forget about it and get back on track today and eat healthy again. But what does he do but go out and buy one of them roll's you get in centra full of slop and a box of wedges "hangover food", so basically that whole weekend was a write off. We got into the gym Monday morning and he says he's put on 4 lbs. He's been getting compliments off everybody, he's chuffed with himself and it really keeps him motivated, which is great. But why after all these compliments and been so close to hitting your 3 stone mark would you ruin the hole weekend? I know everyone needs to let their hair down or whatever but living with me should be a reminder to keep him on track. He went out on the Friday night, had a takeaway but there was no need to spoil the Sat and Sun too.

And what irritates me more is my mother who is twice his age, has less weight to lose than him, does not go the gym 3/4 times a week and has already out pass his weight loss even though she only started 17 weeks ago. And she did all this by listening to me and changing her diet. I might add she still drinks too. I find this shocking. Surly he must see that been consistent with his food is key.

Jesus this is turning into some rant and I haven't started talking about his training yet:eek::eek:

So onto his training. As I said above having him there has been beneficial for me personally. As he's new to weight training I have to show him how to do everything, which is no problem at all, I enjoy it. I've learned a lot of new stuff from researching how to get him to do particular exercises. Anyway take his squat for example. Basically he can't squat properly. I'm not a PT but I can tell when someone is doing something wrong. I told him he needs to foam roll and work on his mobility and I've have shown his plenty of stuff to do. I do these myself. He even sees me using my foam roller at home in the evenings. He's used it once and that was the day I showed him how to use it and that was it. I've tried a number of different things to try and correct his form but I feel I'm wasting my time. I've told him to go to a qualified PT who can spot his faults and correct whatever is needed. I even came across a great offer to train with a very experienced PT for a very good price. I got all the info and gave it to my mate and was only short of typing the email for him to apply for it. I'm not even sure if he ever sent it.

And to top this rant off, as I said above I was away for 3 days, I knew my mate wouldn't go the gym on his own but when I got in the door last night he was eating a take away coz he was too lazy to cook and I felt like saying "what the fcuk is that" but I didn't bother.

Anyway whats your opinions lads? Should I just leave him do what he wants? I have enjoyed training with him and helping him lose weight but its very frustrating helping him and providing all the info I can only to fall on deaf ears, knowing where he could be now if he listened to my advise.

Apologies for the lengthy read, opinions appreciated.

nice_guy80

Two gym buddies curling in the squat rack yesterday

I was waiting to use the rack to do some raised deadlifts.

They were really grunting out the reps of 25 and 30kg, in between having a great chat. One lad was dispensing workout and 'life advice' to the other. I nearly vomitted.

I now don't like gym buddies.

Zombienosh

@Ant I'd forget about it, Let him do what he wants, You've done enough now, you can't hold his hand forever and its only stressing you out when he's not listening to you.

arse..biscuits

nice_guy80 wrote: »

Two gym buddies curling in the squat rack yesterday

I was waiting to use the rack to do some raised deadlifts.

They were really grunting out the reps of 25 and 30kg, in between having a great chat. One lad was dispensing workout and 'life advice' to the other. I nearly vomitted.

I now don't like gym buddies.

http://sphotos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/429432_175397635934354_847377038_n.png

gymfreak

I train by myself all the time but it can get boring. I wouldnt mind having someone to train with...just for a bit of banter!! I think it'd cause me to focus more/train harder..but then again anytime Ive followed the same programme as someone else Ive hated it

nice_guy80

saw this one earlier

jugger0

AntiVirus

Michael 09 wrote: »

I find it hard to believe that you lift better alone, much less likely to go for 'that last rep' without a spotter surely?

Going to the gym with another person does not make you magically stronger.

If you need another person to help you push harder that's a problem the individual has.

Michael 09

AntiVirus wrote: »

Going to the gym with another person does not make you magically stronger.

If you need another person to help you push harder that's a problem the individual has.

I know that it doesn't make you stronger but having a buddy gives you peace of mind to go for the last rep that you're not sure you can get on your own. It's as much a safety issue as anything

Scuba Ste

AntiVirus wrote: »

Going to the gym with another person does not make you magically stronger.

If you need another person to help you push harder that's a problem the individual has.

You don't think training with people with the same mindset and focus as you makes for a better training environment?

Just having other people around changes how you approach a lift.

AntiVirus

Michael 09 wrote: »

I know that it doesn't make you stronger but having a buddy gives you peace of mind to go for the last rep that you're not sure you can get on your own. It's as much a safety issue as anything

you don't need a gym partner for that. I'm sure there's plenty of people you know there who could spot for you.

Plenty of people go to the gym on their own and ask some one there to spot for them.

AntiVirus

Scuba Ste wrote: »

You don't think training with people with the same mindset and focus as you makes for a better training environment?

Just having other people around changes how you approach a lift.

That would be down to the individual, some people under those same conditions may in fact approach a lift with the wrong mindset.

Some people work better in groups than others.

Michael 09

AntiVirus wrote: »

you don't need a gym partner for that. I'm sure there's plenty of people you know there who could spot for you.

Plenty of people go to the gym on their own and ask some one there to spot for them.

Yeah I know what you mean but having a good spotter is very important. Training with someone will allow them to get to know how you lift and make them a better spotter for you than a randomer.

That's an aside from the encouragement etc you get from a good partner