A typical commercial gym is a very social place. Many people go there to spend time with friends while working effectively toward their health and fitness goals. But exactly how social should you be at the gym? Is there a limit?
I am of the “to each his/her own” opinion. Really, if you use the gym primarily as a social mechanism, then so be it. It’s a great place to spend time with friends (albeit an expensive social facility compared to the park!).
The true problem arises when you go into the gym in the attempt to achieve a particular goal, yet end up talking to others as a priority over your workout. Whilst not everyone is like this, I do know a number of people who admit they fall into this category. Whilst they are very social and friendly, a 30 minute workout can end up taking 2 hours. They compromise their own personal goals for general chit-chat.
Let me emphasise one point. If you enjoy the gym because it is social and wouldn’t train there otherwise, then socialising isn’t an issue. It’s only a problem if you think it’s a problem and you feel that you should be investing more effort into yourself.
If you find that you end up doing more socialising than training, and yet you actually want to focus on your training results, then you’ve got to do something about it. For the majority of people, walking into a gym and performing a low-intensity workout whilst chatting away is a very effective way to increase the chance of failure – failure to lose weight, tone up, build muscle, improve your fitness etc. You have to be dedicated to your training in order to see amazing results – a half-hearted approach just won’t cut it.
Now that’s the reality of the situation. If you’re following an effective approach to your goal, you will get out what you put in. The body is a function of the inputs that you subject it to and ultimately judges your efforts.
So if you do want to be less social and focus more on “you”, then here are a few tips:
- Use an MP3 player – this is like a sign saying “DO NOT DISTURB”
- Chat after your workout is complete, in between sets or when you are stretching
- Explain to your friends that you wish to take your training more seriously
- Set a stopwatch for fixed rest times in between sets so you don’t get caught up in conversation
- Exercise so intensely that you are physically unable to hold a conversation!
- Set goals for yourself to achieve so you can focus intensely on your training
- Hire a personal trainer to enhance the seriousness of your workout
- Train with others who have like-minded goals and also want to take their training seriously
- Don’t carry your mobile phone with you during your workout
- Keep a training log so you can focus on your results
- Establish a structured training routine so you have “x” amount of time dedicated to training so many times per week
Really, there is nothing wrong with being social in the gym, nor is there anything wrong with not being social in the gym. It all comes down to why you go to the gym and what you get out of the gymnasium experience.
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