4 Ways to Make Exercise Social

Exercise is a great way to improve your physical and mental health. Staying active can help you avoid serious age-related diseases like cancer, and can help you dodge a heart attack and not insignificantly, help lower longevity-busting stress hormones like cortisol. 

The challenge is to enjoy the exercise, and keeping it social is a way to make physical activity more fun, and increase the odds of your sticking with your exercise program.

Benefits of Being Active With Other People

Group exercise can provide support as well as structure to an activity program. A 2007 randomized controlled trial assessing supervised group exercise for early-stage breast cancer patients undergoing treatment found physical and psychological benefits lasted beyond the 12-week program. 

Published in the British Medical Journal, the study compared a regimen of two group classes per week and one additional at-home session, with advice to exercise regularly at home in control subjects. The group exercisers reported a higher quality of life in questionnaires than the control group exercising on their own at the end of the 12-week program and 6 months later.

Whether it's a result of attention from fitness instructors or support from fellow patients, the social exercisers enjoyed the activity more and remained more active in the months that followed. Even perfectly healthy adults may benefit from the distraction an exercise buddy can provide, keeping your mind off your aching muscles.

Best Ways to Make Exercise Social

Here are some fun ideas to help make exercise more social for you.

Play a Sport

Joining a team sport is a great way to meet people and bond with them. Team sports lead to great stories and social interaction—from bowling to rugby, you'll meet and work together with 10 or more people. Team sports also will have you committing to a whole season of exercise and physical activity. Pick a sport that’s right for you, check out local community centers and find yourself a team to play for.

Find a Buddy

Exercising with another person can help motivate you and make your workouts more interesting. Find someone who is dependable and whom you like to be with to visit the gym together or run on weekends. You may be more likely to get out of bed for an early-morning walk, run or ride a bicycle if you know someone's counting on you for company.

Exercise for Charity

Participating in 5kms, triathlons and other events are great fundraisers for charity. You’ll meet hundreds of people, get some exercise and raise some money for a good cause—all part of the altruistic behavior which seems to improve longevity. Once you get into the world of charity fundraisers, you’ll be amazed at how many like-minded people you encounter, as you experience the satisfaction of pursuing a shared cause.

Join a Class

Group fitness classes are also a great way to meet people and add a social element to your workout. Find a class that you enjoy; you may discover that paying for a session also keeps you more motivated than you would be with drop-in classes. 

Staying connected with other people reduces your stress, and can keep you motivated to stick with the healthy activity. If you try a group setting for exercising, you may discover, as participants with peripheral neuropathy (nerve damage) in a 2014 study did, that it didn't matter whether they did balance training or Tai Chi. Just being part of a class gave them more motivation and confidence to continue.