Having someone to exercise with can provide motivation and accountability, both of which are important for getting you moving, especially when you don’t want to. I learned this from my son recently, which I wrote about in my Health & Fitness column in the Aiken Standard this week.
The effect of involving others in your behavior change process is also helpful for losing weight and quitting smoking. This is true even if the other person (or people) aren’t participating with you—simply telling others about your plans to change can help make you more accountable and improve your chances for success.
I mentioned some research about exercising with a partner in my column. The links to the articles are below, in case you want to learn more:
Irwin BC, Scorniaenchi J, Kerr NL, Eisenmann JC, Feltz DL. Aerobic exercise is promoted when individual performance affects the group: a test of the Kohler motivation gain effect. Ann Behav Med. 2012 Oct;44(2):151-9.
Plante, T.G., M. Madden, S. Mann and G. Lee, 2010. Effects of Perceived Fitness Level of Exercise Partner on Intensity of Exertion. J. Soc. Sci., 6: 50-54.
Johnson, R. A., & Meadows, R. L. (2010). Dog-Walking: Motivation for adherence to a walking program. Clinical Nursing Research. 19(4), 387-402.
Dr Parr Says... 