How To Get Your Friends To Do Fitness With You

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Ever hear this joke? “How do you know if the person you’re talking to at a party does CrossFit?” (I’ve also heard it as “is a vegan” and some other variations.)The punchline? “Don’t worry, they’ll let you know.”I’ve certainly been guilty of being “that guy” and maybe you have to. There’s something about the indescribable joy of what we do in the gym, the impact it has on our lives outside the gym, and the general positive experience of being around other honest, hardworking folks trying to make themselves a little better, and we want to share it with the world! This phenomenon is probably most pronounced in your first year or two of doing this stuff, but it never really goes away. Here’s the thing- I’ve done this long enough to have found the best way to convince your friends, family , or coworkers to come to the gym with your or seek one out in their ‘hood. Wanna know the secret?Don’t try and get them to come with you.That doesn’t mean push them away, and it certainly doesn’t mean to not tell them to come to our new Bring-A-Friend classes (next one’s September 5th justsayinjustsayin) but what it does mean is to do less talking about how awesome the gym is, how they are missing out, or are stupid for doing spin or yoga or whatever. I spent a long time brow-beating my friends and fam, telling them that they were idiots for not signing up rightfuckingnow for a gym like mine. Crickets. It wasn’t until I backed off a little and let them see what the gym brought to my life- the friends I made, the confidence I built, the ability to keep doing things I loved as I got older- that’s when they came around. Then they’d ask an innocuous question like “how does someone join your gym” or “what time are classes” and that’s when you invite them to come check it out. Let them take the first step, and not feel like you’re dragging them along.So, if you’ve been warring with a friend about whether our gym is better than theirs, run up the white flag of peace. Do your thing, and eventually they will come around.