Let’s talk about…

Why I love my gym friends

I don’t have anything fitness specific I want to chat about today, but I certainly think the topic of gym friends relates!

On Friday night, Liz hosted a really fun “pink party” for our awesome group of girls from the Y.

We chose to have a pink theme since the party was held on the last day of February. We considered it a belated Valentine’s Day celebration. Everybody brought delicious food, and we had a great combo of finger foods, appetizers, and desserts. Wine too of course! The food wasn’t necessarily pink, but Liz had pink plates, silverware, and tablecloths. It was very festive!

The pink party also had a pink themed Yankee swap. We were all too busy around the holidays to have a swap like we did last year, so we decided it would be just as fun to have one in February instead. The only rules were to spend around $15 and use the word “pink” as a guide to buying a gift. Cute, right?

I brought a pink and blue scarf with two pink and blue mini candles as my gift, and I walked out with a bottle of wine, cute napkins, and stemless wine glasses all in a fun pink basket. Our group of friends is funny. Since we all brought really good gifts, little “swapping” actually happened.

The only not so great part of the night is that we missed the girls who couldn’t make it! Mary, you were with us in spirit, see?

I know I’ve talked about gym friends on the blog many times, and I’ve guest posted about why gym friends are da bomb on my friend Jen‘s blog before too. I just honestly feel blessed to have this group of girls in my life.

Here are some of the reasons why I love my gym friends so much:

We just “get” each other
Just like my high school and college groups of dance friends “got” each other, my group of gym friends is so wonderful because we all understand each other too. We are all very different, yet we have that one commonality that brings us together. We’re like a team! We are all gym rats and all make fitness a priority in our lives. We don’t think it’s crazy to wake up at 5:30am for a workout or schedule “secret sweat sessions” when the gym has no classes. We don’t judge each other for sleeping in our workout clothes the night before, and we don’t think it’s weird to turn down a beer with other friends for a really good kickboxing class. We’ll just show up late and sweaty for that beer instead. Having people who just “get” me brings about a sense of community and belonging, and I’m so thankful for it.

We help motivate each other
When you have 15 girls who go to the same gym and workout just as much as you do, it’s hard to NOT motivate each other. When someone is trying something new, I always want to try it too. We also help keep each other accountable! If I’m not in a class, everyone asks why not. If I don’t feel like going to the gym or working out that day, I know I can shoot a Google chat or a text to one of the girls, and they will convince me otherwise. If I were to say that to ANYONE else, they would say “then don’t” or “you don’t need to, don’t you exercise enough already?” That’s just not the point.

We provide each other with constant female friendship
Now that I no longer live with girlfriends, I definitely find myself craving girl time (no offense, Tim). It’s hard to schedule get-togethers with my girlfriends from home and college since we all have busy lives, and we all live far enough away that things can’t be spontaneous anymore (womp womp). Having a go to group of girls that I know I will see at least a few times a week keeps me sane!

We’re always good for lots of laughs
Trust me, nobody else is going to laugh at my stories of “that girl in the back row,” the awkward move I taught on Tuesday night, or what happened in the locker room last week. We all live and breathe it, so it just ties back into all understanding each other. No matter how bad of a day I had or how down I’m feeling, this group is a go-to upper. They always make me laugh and help get my mind off things, at least for an hour. Plus, gym friends are so “removed” from all other aspects of my life that they provide a great sounding board for times I feel like complaining about work, family issues, other friend drama, or anything really.

I’m sure I could go on and on, but these are the four things that came to my mind today.

Can’t wait for our next get together!

Time to talk! Do you have any friends at your gym? Do you get together outside of an exercise environment? Do you have any other reasons for loving your gym pals that you would add to my list?

For more Sunday Sweat Talk topics:

• My Hangover Workout
• January Joiners
• Helping or Harassing
• One Month of Heavier Lifting
• The Problem With Online Fitness Challenges
• Grip Strength and Ankle Update
• MMA Fighter Fit Certification
• Strength Training Plateaus

P.S. I still have to pick winners for the Fresh Foam giveaway. I’ll be back later tonight to announce!