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Why exercising with friends is better than solo workouts
EXERCISING with friends lowers stress and improves quality of life more than working out alone, experts have said.
researchers found that exercising in a group reduced stress by 26 per cent in some adults.
Those who exercised alone, however, did so for twice as long and did not experience noticeable changes in their day-to-day stress levels.
study leader Dr Dayna Yorks, of the University of new England, said: ‘The communal benefits of coming together ... and doing something difficulty while encouraging one another pays dividends beyond exercising alone.’
As part of the research, published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, 69 students were recruited and offered exercise programmes they could either undertake alone or as groups.
Participants completed a survey every four weeks, which asked them to rate their levels of perceived stress and quality of life in three cate- gories – mental, physical and emotional. The results were compared to a separate group who did not exercise beyond walking.
The group exercise teams spent 30 minutes at least once a week completing a core strengthening and functional fitness training programme, and saw significant improvements in all three categories.
Their mental health improved 12 per cent, physical health by 24 per cent, and emotional health by 26 per cent.
By contrast, participants completing individual fitness programmes found their mental quality of life improved by 11 per cent, but saw no other improvement despite working out for twice as long on average.
Dr Yorks said the findings suggested universities should offer group fitness opportunities in order to better support their students.