Stay Fit While Having a Social Life
You don’t have to be a recluse to maintain your lean, mean, fightin’ machine
So many of today's social activities involve food, more food and alcohol. Especially this time of year, with the holidays in full swing (while we may not gain as much weight as we think between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s not for lack of trying).
This begs the question for us active types: how do we stay on top of our fitness while maintaining our “social butterfly” status? How do we keep off unwanted pounds as well as sustain the conditioning we’ve worked so hard for?
Many folks assume the only way to stay fit is to embrace seclusion — to say no to that night out with friends, that family dinner, or that beer after work. To head home, eat reheated chicken, rice and steamed veggies, and wake up the next morning before dawn to chug 4 raw eggs (ok, maybe not that last part. That sounds disgusting. Even if it did work for Rocky Balboa).
Others believe fitness is the price we pay for being social. They’ll hit it hard during the week to make sure the past weekend’s dietary indiscretions fade away. To make up for skipped Saturday and Sunday workouts. But they’ll never move forward. Never make the progress they envision. Because what’s the point? It’s going to be nullified next weekend anyway.
Avoid both of these mindsets. They’re simply not true. As well as incredibly unproductive.
You can achieve your physical and social health goals concurrently.
It will take some creativity and restraint on your part, but it is possible.
Take an exercise class
Exercise classes are engaging group fitness experiences for individuals who are looking for more social interaction while they workout. Classes range from spinning, rowing and running to yoga, Pilates and barre. Not to mention the variety of companies now offering a combination of disciplines as part of a singular class (think Shred415, CrossFit and F45).
The benefits of a group exercise setting are numerous:
Classes are a great way to meet new, fitness-oriented individuals who share similar goals and ambitions.
Exercising with others increases motivation and effort, resulting in additional calories burned. Who doesn’t love more bang for their buck?
Classes hold you accountable by leveraging social reputation. You don’t want to be the only one who doesn’t show up for class, right?
Classes allow you to try different types of exercise modalities, expanding your interests and affinity for fitness as a whole.
You won’t find a better way to blend health, fitness and social well-being.
If you’re not sure where to start, just ask one of the staff members at your local gym for the class schedule, or talk to a friend about a recommendation.
Practice intermittent fasting
Intermittent fasting (IF) is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating. It doesn’t specify which foods you should eat, but rather when you should eat them.
There are numerous benefits associated with intermittent fasting, including increased weight loss, increased growth hormone production and decreased levels of inflammation, responsible for lowering your chances of certain chronic diseases like cancer, Alzheimer’s and heart disease.
Consider the 16/8 method:
The individual fasts for a sixteen hour period, then eats during an eight hour period. An example would be to eat from noon until 8 pm (known as the “eating window”), then fast until noon the next day.
So how does this practice lend itself to maintaining a healthy balance between fitness and social obligations?
Imagine you’ve got a family gathering coming up. There will be hor d’oeuvres, dinner, desert, and wine. Lots of wine. Over the course of the evening, the calories will add up. Fast.
Not exactly the type of evening that keeps your fitness on track.
Queue intermittent fasting:
By shifting your eating window to accommodate what we’ll refer to as “foodmageddon”, you’ll drastically reduce your caloric intake for the day.
Instead of a 12 PM — 8 PM eating window, push it back to 4 PM — 11 PM. Your total caloric intake for the day will remain in check, decreasing the amount of excess calories stored as unwanted weight.
This also works for Saturday night out with friends, your Sunday afternoon football party, even your upcoming work holiday party.
A quick aside: it’s ALWAYS a good idea to check with your doctor or a licensed nutritionist before making any major dietary adjustments.
Stand. As much as you can
If you’re like me, you rock the 9–5 cubicle life. Do you have a standing desk? No? Get one. They’re fairly inexpensive and worth every penny. Amazon is your friend here.
While not a great method for burning calories necessarily, a standing desk will greatly improve your posture and strengthen your stabilizer muscles. This helps facilitate stronger, safer workouts and promotes faster recovery.
Headed out to your favorite bar for a friend’s birthday celebration? Find a high-top table you can all stand around.
Looking for a fun date activity? Consider bowling, a sporting event, or a walk in your favorite neighborhood after dinner. Anything where you’re on your feet the majority of the time.
You get the idea.
Be mindful of your fitness at all times
This is essential (read: ESSENTIAL). Fitness should be top of mind at all times, regardless of where you are, what you’re doing or who you’re with.
Fitness is a lifestyle. You’ve undoubtedly heard this before, probably ad nauseam, but I’ll say it again: Fitness is a lifestyle. It takes 24/7 diligence to stay as fit and healthy as possible. There is no time off, there are no off days.
This is not to say there isn’t room to relax, room to take a break, to sleep in, to let the body and mind recover. In fact, these are crucial components to maintaining your health and fitness as well.
But…
You’ve got to be thinking about it all the time. 24/7. Evaluating every decision you make through a fitness lens.
Is this good for my health? Am I taking meaningful steps towards my goals? Will this cause me to miss a workout, to miss my class?
I cringe slightly when I recall some of the workouts I’ve missed in past years due to a brutal hangover.
Once you’ve flipped that mental switch, once fitness becomes your default, you’ll find success comes easier and more instinctively. Second nature, so to speak. Bad habits take care of themselves. Toxic people weed themselves out.
You’ll find a deeper level of confidence and connection with yourself you didn’t think was possible.
Balancing health, fitness and a social life is difficult, but doable. It requires a delicate dance between body, mind and spirit.
Humans are social beings, we need and crave interaction with others. Use this to your advantage! Why not facilitate these interactions with exercise? You’ll discover new friends, new passions, and new things about yourself.
Embrace the unfamiliar. Step outside your comfort zone. Experience something new.
You’ll be glad you did.
Scott Mayer is a runner, thinker, curious observer and certified personal trainer. Learn more at scottjmayer.com.
Photograph by Elevate/Unsplash