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While many college students exercise, and many students have significant others, not many students choose to exercise with their significant others. Two University of Maryland couples were asked about their exercise habits and if they think it works out to work out with their loved ones.
Junior Kyra Johnson, a studio art major, and her boyfriend, senior finance and marketing major Jack Stull, said that they don’t work out with each other very often. Stull said running is his preferred exercise and that he does it two to three times a week while intermittently going to the gym to lift weights.
Johnson had a different approach to her exercise routine.
“In my prime, I was going to the gym two times a week… but now I will do YouTube tutorials in here [her apartment] sometimes, like pilates and ab workouts,” Johnson said.
However, Stull added that he and Johnson, who have been dating since May 2019, recently ran around three miles together at Lake Artemesia and said that it went well. Johnson agreed, saying the couple took a “chill pace” since it was hot outside.
Stull said he and Johnson were talking for a while during the run, but Johnson said that as the run progressed it became difficult to have a casual conversation.
“That [talking] can get really hard… so like at certain points I’d be like ‘I’m not going to talk for a few minutes,’” Johnson said.
Picture of Johnson and Stull (courtesy of Johnson)
Despite the occasional difficulty in conversation, Johnson said it was nice to have somebody to motivate her. Stull and Johnson agreed that there was no “insecure dimension” to their occasional runs.
Even though they have been on a few runs together, the couple prefers to go on hikes to spend quality time with each other and nature. Over the summer, the couple said they ventured on a hike in Patapsco Valley State Park in Baltimore and looked at the ruins and waterfalls, which Johnson said were “pretty cool.”
Whether they’re running in the streets of College Park or hiking through the woods, Stull and Johnson enjoy each other’s company during their exercise.“It’s like a motivating thing in a non-pressuring way… there’s no judgment here,” Johnson said.
Another couple at the university, junior English major Gabriella Melendez and junior electrical engineering major Julian Durr have a bit of a different perspective on exercising together.
Melendez and Durr both said that they try to go to the gym three times a week. However, Durr does not believe that going to the gym needs to be something they do as a couple. “I like to be off doing my own thing, it’s not really like working out together as a group… not everyone needs the same thing,” said Durr.
Melendez usually opts for cardio or group fitness classes, while Durr heads for the weight room when they visit Eppley Recreation Center. Their different workout styles prove Durr’s point about having alternate workout goals.
Durr and Melendez (courtesy of Melendez)
However, having different gym routines is what makes Melendez want to go to the gym with Durr. “I have been wanting to go to the gym together mostly because I have never been in the weight room and I think he would… give me the confidence to go in and at least try some of the things,” Melendez said.
Another issue Durr finds with going to the gym together is the difference in the timing of their routines. He said that cardio has a much stricter time constraint, while weight-lifting is more based on repetitions and sets, so the timing can change depending on how one is feeling that day.
Melendez acknowledged that they both are competitive people, but said that the difference in their routines would prevent unhealthy comparisons. Like Durr, she agrees that one of the only problems about attending the gym would be the timing.
“If anything, I think the only strain would be me wanting to stay longer and him being like ‘I’m done,’” said Melendez. Durr and Melendez, who have been dating for one year and eight months, agreed that they would try to go to the gym together sometime if Durr could find the motivation to get out of bed after classes. “I would like to just go to the gym and go consistently, but you know, my bed is so comfortable,” said Durr.
It appears that the verdict about the outcome of working out with a significant other is subjective. However, the importance of spending quality time with a significant other seems to be as objective as ever.