Exercise is like the solution to all health problems, but what keeps us holding back is how dull it gets after a few days. When you step into a gym for the first time in your life, you’re unsure of what exercise is good for you and what equipment is designed for which muscle. Or maybe it’s way too challenging for some people if they are obese or going through depression. For a severely depressed person, exercising for just an hour is like asking them to swim an entire ocean just to get healthy.
If this is the case, then a group fitness class may be the solution to your problem. Joining a class or just building a group of friends to workout together will help you make a foundation and structure to continue your journey of fitness. Group training keeps you encouraged and active so that you keep your health and fitness goals in check. You can go for kickboxing, step aerobics, boot camps and indoor cycling for fun filled workouts and as well as to challenge and improve your body.
A small study published in the Journal of American Osteopathic Association studied the impact of exercising in a group, on stress and the quality of life of medical students. Researchers found that those who worked out in groups showed more health benefits than those who exercised alone or not at all.
Here are 5 benefits of working out with your group buddies:
Motivation and Willpower
They say you become like the people you spend time with. To be around people who are dedicated to fitness can inspire you to stay motivated. You will feel empowered with a group of people with the same goals, all of them supporting and working hard together. It will strengthen you to push your limits, dig deeper and push harder in workouts.
A study was done on people who rode a stationary bike at the gym. Researchers found that those who worked on it alone peddled for approximately 10 min, while those who rode it with a group lasted upto 20 minutes. This shows that working out with a group can mean 87 percent more exercise.
Majority of people have problems staying motivated for exercising but working out in a group setting means that even if you come to the gym exhausted from the ups and downs of life you will get energized seeing so much positivity around you. Whether it happens because of an unspoken competition going on between you and your workout buddies, or simply spending time chatting along with exercising, it is going to ensure a longer workout and good health ultimately.
More Sociability
In a world where friendships are limited to texting and emails, working out with a group offers social interaction that is healthy for you. And while most of us love to be around other people, we simply can’t find the time to meet up. Positive social interaction is one of the amazing advantages of a group workouts. Having people around you with the same problems and physical suffering is bound to develop into a good friendship.
There are so many stories of people becoming best friends by working out in the same gym. No matter how much of an introvert you are, you end up talking when you see the same people regularly. It is one of the best ways to meet new people and develop a common bond while improving your health at the same time.
Accountability
Remember how you did better at school when your parents held you accountable for a bad grade. A workout group can help the same way. There are so many people who show up at gym just because they know their friends are going to give them a hard time if they don’t.
A group exercise always comes with an accountability factor. So if you don’t show up some day, the instructor or other participants are bound to ask why you were absent, and you just wouldn’t want to say “I didn’t come because I was sitting on the couch”. Another thing that makes you get up is, if you have prepaid for a group class. Skipping that class would mean it’s never happening again for you.
Group training sessions make sure you exercise regularly and put a 100% effort into your workout. This sense of accountability is something that stops you from staying put inside.
Structure
If you are a beginner, then you might not be aware of how a consistent or well-structured plan is essential to see any results. Working out in a group session enables you to get a structured foundation to build strength and tone your body.
You can choose your group class according to your health needs. If you want to increase your stamina and lose weight, go for aerobics like dance aerobics, indoor cycling, kickboxing or step aerobics. But if you want to enhance muscular endurance and strength, go for weight training, calisthenics or boot camp. For flexibility, stretching or yoga will be a good choice.
This can be an easy way to workout, without brainstorming on a plan as every class has been planned to have a warm-up, a balanced workout and a cool-down. Warm-up is necessary to safely raise your heart rate and prepare your joints and muscles before any strenuous activity, and the cool-down ensures proper lowering of your heart rate and stretching of your muscles before ending the session. The instructor guides you through all the segments making sure your body exercises to its full potential, eliminating any possible injuries as well.
Mental Health
Mental health disorders are the second leading cause of death. But the good news is that group fitness classes can have a positive effect on mental quality of life.
Group exercises upgrade the quality of life, decreasing stress far more than individual work outs. By improving social interaction and forming friendships based on common goals and interests, talking to people who listen and understand, helps take away your stresses. Good company helps you to stay positive and in perspective as well as helps in coping with problems.
A research studying the effects of home-based and group-based physical activity on mental health showed marked improvement in mental state of people who worked out in groups rather than at home, especially the elderly. Another study published by the American Osteopathic Association reported, “The communal benefits of coming together with friends and colleagues, and doing something difficult, while encouraging one another, pays dividends beyond exercising alone.”
You have nothing to lose when working out with a group of people, whether they’re your friends or complete strangers. If you haven’t ever tried it, you will certainly give it a shot now!
Byline/About the Author: Lisa Brown has been helping her readers in successful business and entrepreneurial strategies for the past 3 years. She currently works with uae.ekuep.com, which is the answer to UAE’s growing restaurant industry. Ekuep is the brand that restaurants, bakeries, cafes, juice bars, and more turn to when they want to stock their kitchens with only the best restaurant equipment.