From faith, hope and charity, to the good, the bad and the ugly, do all the best things in life come in threes?
Almost anyone can band together in a group of three. If you all pull in the same direction, just think how much easier you will get where you want to go
In discussions concerning the squat, bench press and deadlift exercises, I make frequent references to the Holy Trinity of training, the Royal Family of fitness, and the Three Wise Men of free weights.
When I recently chanced upon a small group of three hardcore fitness enthusiasts training together however, I discovered an all-new fundamental fitness trilogy I just had to add to my repertoire.
If you find your training mind-numbing and boring, or you’ve had trouble sticking to your training regimen of late, you might like to consider our freshest ever fitness rule of three. Just as they did in pre-Napoleonic France, let us start the ‘threevolution’.
Start your very own fitness ‘threevolution’ by banding together with two other training partners to form a group of three. In the fitness industry, this is known as small-group training; too small for group fitness in the exercise to music context, and too crowded to be called personal, one-to-one training.
Small groups, however, do represent some unique benefits of their own.
Almost anyone can band together in a group of three. If you all pull in the same direction, just think how much easier you will get where you want to go. You have a higher chance of success, but perhaps the best thing of all about training in threes is far simpler and more fundamental than this: it is fun.
Who wouldn’t prefer to embark on such an important endeavour together with good friends? You will have a good number of laughs in your chosen company, and even if you don’t know your training buddies all too well, your new endeavour represents the perfect opportunity to develop new and lasting friendships.
Multiple training partners also tend to introduce an element of healthy competition. During the workout itself, some parties are likely to feel weak while others have a great day and feel strong. It is on these occasions that the weak can feed off the strong.
If your partner is performing just that little better than you, you are more likely to push harder and try to bridge the gap. After all, you wouldn’t want to attain inferior results over the long term, would you?
Competition is not limited to the workout itself, but can spill out to the bigger picture too. If weight loss is the goal, you might like to see who can cut down to their target weight first.
If you are falling behind on those fortnightly weigh-ins, then you might just have the motivation you need to cut out those covert midnight snacks or naughty treats during your lunch breaks.
If an increase in functional strength or cardiovascuar fitness is your goal, then measure your progress with periodic fitness tests, and by all means, fight for bragging rights.
But don’t get carried away with competition, because perhaps the greatest benefit of small group training in threes is the element of support.
With a time and date to keep for each session, you are less likely to give it a miss, because you will be letting down not only one but two of your training partners. If the temptation to miss sessions becomes a persistent problem, then you have the perfect support group to call upon.
Talk to your training partners about your problems, because like-minded individuals in the same situation as yourself with the same goals are likely to have at least some of the answers you’re looking for.
Look out for each other and offer support when needed. If you permanently lose a member of your team, it could prove devastating for your own motivation, as failure has now been introduced as a viable option.
Continuous support applies to the sessions themselves too. If you notice your partners performing a movement incorrectly, alert them. If you help your partners, then they will reciprocate, and the result will invariably be better technique and efficiency all round.
Correcting others also serves to reinforce your own learning. As you run through correct technique with your training partner, you are more likely to remember those same technical elements during your own performance.
Getting a group of three together is as simple as rounding up a couple of friends to embark on your fitness journey with you. The perfect group will consist of members who share the same goal as you.
If you would like to lose weight, find friends who want to lose weight too. If you also have a similar amount of body fat you wish to shed, then all the better. Your partners should also share roughly the same level of ability as you. If you have never exercised before in your life but your partner is a former national calibre athlete, then there might be a discrepancy in your abilities that prevents any realistic opportunity for fair and healthy competition.
Once you’ve got your group together, decide when and where you will train. Agree on a time slot that is possible for everyone, and come rain or shine, you simply must stick to it. If one member of the group is unable to attend, training must proceed without them.
In a group of three, you are less likely to ever end up training alone than you would be with only one training partner.
Are you ready for the ‘threevolution’?
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