Training with a partner or friend or as part of a small group is a great way to extract all the benefits of customised personal training sessions, even if you are reluctant to start exercising alone, need a motivation boost, or simply prefer to train with someone you know.
As an experienced personal trainer, I often speak with new clients who find the gym environment intimidating or who recognise that they struggle to commit to a training programme and need the added incentive of having someone to hold them accountable to their training plan (aside from their PT!).
Personal training is a professional service and should always be adapted to your needs, the current stage of your health and fitness journey, and the types of exercises, programmes, structures, and movements that will help you achieve your goals—whether that means individual training or working out with a gym buddy.
What Are the Benefits of Starting a Personal Training Programme With a Partner or Friend?
One advantage of booking a personal training session with a friend or partner is that it can be more affordable and accessible for many people keen to seek the advice, knowledge, and expertise of a well-established personal trainer, splitting the cost between them.
While many clients assume that personal training is always one-on-one, there is generally no reason I can’t adapt programming and nutrition plans to a couple, friends or a small group – taking into consideration any factors that dictate the right exercises or levels of intensity that are suited to each person.
Motivation and accountability are just as crucial to achieving your personal fitness targets as fitness level, strength, or willpower. Even the most dedicated gym-goer will find that some days are tougher than others or that they don’t feel in the mood to get to the gym and put in a solid session.
Training with somebody else means you can overcome those barriers and ensure you show up for yourself, which almost always leaves you feeling energised, proud of your achievements, and pleased you overcame a lack of inspiration.
Of course, injuries and illnesses happen, and these are valid and real reasons to skip a personal training session. However, a huge proportion of last-minute personal training cancellations aren’t due to real barriers but because of the difficulty so many of us find in heading to the gym when we’re just not feeling motivated.
If you have a personal training partner progressing through the same fitness programme, and with whom you car share or meet with at the gym, you’ll commonly find this a massive help in finding that get-up-and-go that makes all the difference.
Tips on Structuring Personal Training Sessions to Suit Your Lifestyle
We’re all different, and booking a personal training session three times a week at 6 a.m. is not for everybody. It’s important to find a sustainable and manageable routine and schedule, picking a time and number of weekly personal training workouts that will slot in alongside your other obligations.
This ensures you’re less likely to face clashes on your calendar that make it difficult to be consistent and intentional.
Expert personal trainers can often accommodate your requirements, with popular personal training slots including:
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- Early mornings for professionals and friends who prefer to train before daily school runs, working hours and other priorities.
- Lunch break training sessions are perfect if you have free time and want to use that space to improve your overall fitness and health.
- Evening personal training bookings are great for those who want an active session after working hours have ended.
- Weekend gym sessions work well for personal training clients who prefer a small group booking or have varied schedules during the week.
My advice is to try and work out how personal training will work best for you rather than feeling obligated to book gym workout sessions that are routinely difficult to attend or that fall during a time of the day or week when you’d be better focusing on rest and relaxation.
How Does Training With a Friend Improve Your Long-term Fitness Results?
There are many reasons that having a friend, partner or group can augment the outcomes you achieve, or help keep you committed to the goals you’ve set for yourself.
If you have an existing partner who is equally invested in improving their health or augmenting their lifestyle, that might be an easy choice – but attending the gym or a workout class might also mean you’ll meet new friends at a similar stage in their fitness journey to you.
Shared experiences, common goals, and accountability are powerful factors. They can give you a boost of encouragement to keep attending your personal training sessions and work towards your big-picture aspirations.
Here are a few of the many reasons clients tell me that they find committing to a personal training programme easier with a friend:
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- Making workouts more fun: Although personal trainers help make improving your fitness and well-being enjoyable and empowering, training with someone else can make even tough sessions more sociable.
- Discovering new friends: Small group personal training might mean exercising with partners, family members, adult children, or friends you’ve met through organised classes. If you approach exercise as a holistic way to improve your overall health, you’ll often meet training buddies with whom you have a lot in common.
- Accountability vs. incentive: Motivation can be fickle, and even if you’re otherwise well, sometimes it can be hard to muster the enthusiasm to tackle a personal training session. Training with somebody else improves your incentive and helps you establish long-term healthy lifestyle habits, which also means you hit your goals faster.
If you’re interested in personal training, would like to learn more about how I tailor sessions and workouts to each person or want to chat about availability to book sessions with a partner, friend, or group, please get in touch.
Fitness, exercise and health are for everyone, and finding a way to make training work for you can be step one in a transformative journey to improved health, fitness, movement, mobility and ongoing lifestyle changes for the better.
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