Are you currently on a diet? Are you following the program religiously? You might not have noticed it, but your partner plays a critical role in the success of your fitness goals. Whether your partner facilitates or hinders that success remains to be seen, though. Are they supportive of your workouts? Do they pick out healthier food items? Or are they mocking your progress and tempting you to eat that greasy cheeseburger from your favorite diner?
Your partner should be picking up keto-friendly products because they know that you’re in the program. When it comes to dieting, there is evidence that social support is an influencing factor. One study found out that people who had an exercise buddy lose weight more than those who didn’t. This is the same logic behind getting a fitness trainer who can motivate you to eat healthy food and work out.
Interdependence
Sometimes in a relationship, couples, especially married ones, begin to be interdependent on each other. Each person’s goals, routines, and actions are shaped by the other person. There is nothing wrong with this, of course, especially in married couples who are trying to navigate the married life. They tend to share meals and align their schedules to spend more time together. But this also means that if one partner doesn’t want or need to lose weight, the other will have a hard time squeezing in the time for a workout.
Facilitation Versus Interference
There are two ways that a partner’s influence can manifest in your fitness goals. Your partner can either facilitate your success or interfere in it. As a facilitator, your partner will make sure to pick up healthier food items, drop you off to the gym, and offer to take care of the kids. Your partner is motivating you with words and actions.
Someone who’s interfering in your fitness goals may find ways to stop you from doing what you should be doing. That partner will come home late from work, which means that no one’s going to look after the kids. That partner may also pick up unhealthy food items when you are trying to cut down on them. You might be forced to skip your fitness classes because your partner wants to do something else.
Your partner can prevent you from accomplishing your goals because of apathy, jealousy, a lack of encouragement, guilt-tripping, and competition. Your partner should be celebrating each milestone of your fitness goals. You should try inviting your partner to go to the gym with you or start eating healthy food. They might now know it, but their body needs the exercise, too.
To be successful in your fitness goals, you might want to invite your partner to do the same. Plenty of couples make their relationships stronger because of their time in the gym. They also bond well planning healthy food weeks. You can go to the grocery store to pick up healthier food items. Talk to your partner about how this can benefit you both.