6 Pinterest-y Couple Workout Moves That Actually Work IRL
If you spend lots of time on the internet, you’ve probably seen a slew of listicles, Pinterest boards, or videos detailing how to work out with a partner. But not just any partner, your significant other specifically.
Working out with your boyfriend or girlfriend is definitely not a bad thing. I mean, it’s hard to slack off when your sexy significant other is staring you in the face and you want to impress them. It’s also always great to have someone dragging you to the gym in the morning, or cheering you through that last sprint.
But, these “couple-y” workout moves seem a bit much. I mean, really, who needs to be cute and Instagram worthy during a workout? Half the time I’m not even wearing makeup at the gym, forget giving my babe high-fives in between each workout move.
I wanted to see how these lovey-dovey exercises shaped out in reality, so I took my boyfriend to the gym after researching some couple workouts, and we tried them out in real life.
1. Tricep Dips & Wall Sits
Triceps are one of the weakest places in a woman’s body, even if you’re super fit, so you can always use a bit more tricep training. Instead of waiting for the bench to do some dips on, this work out allows you to use your boo’s thighs while he does a wall sit to work on his booty.
Because my man has some nice strong thighs on him, this actually worked super well. I was worried that when it was my turn to do the wall sits he would be too much weight on me, but his weight helped me to keep my wall sit in good form.
2. Planks With Alternating High Fives
At first glance, this one seems a bit too “cutesy,” doesn’t it? Who really gives high fives anymore besides your dad or your five-year-old cousin? The thing is, lifting alternating arms during your planks will help your core stability and give you a better workout than a stabilized plank.
Obviously, this workout can easily be done solo as well, but doing it with a partner may give you that extra kick to lift higher or push harder. It also may make you realize that your form is shit compared to your boyfriend who’s actually athletic, unlike you…
3. Bodyweight Rows
Okay, so, unlike the tricep dips + wall sit exercise, this partner exercise only worked one way in my case. If you’re dating a a guy who wears skinny jeans and weighs less than you, this could work (although you’ll probably have trouble getting him to the gym in the first place).
Because my boyfriend has about 65 pounds on me, there was no way I was able to lift him in this position. Trust me, I tried. I would have attached the lovely photo of me keeled over trying to lift my boyfriend up, but I figured you’d survive without it.
While my man had no trouble “rowing” me, he also would’ve definitely used heavier weights if he was using dumbbells. So, while this exercise sort of worked, we both would’ve been better off doing it alone.
4. Squat + Push Up Wheelbarrows
This exercise consists of one partner doing push ups on an incline while the other does squats. The plus side of this is that your man will certainly enjoy the view (feel free to zoom in on my man’s face here). The down side is that your fit boyfriend will probably make fun of your horrific push up form/abilities.
If you can handle the teasing, I’d recommend this one. Doing incline push ups using a bench or table always makes my ankles feel weird, and having someone cradle your feet feels much better. Plus, I usually don’t finish my set of incline push ups since I suck at push ups, so having my boyfriend behind me certainly helped me want to finish strong/ finish at all.
5. Squats and High Fives
This is another one of those exercises that you really don’t need a partner for, you’d be fine doing jump squats on your own. But, because we’re soooo in love we obvi had to do our squats in opposite directions so we could jump up and high five in between each set, duh!
6. Sit Up Kisses
I had to save the most cliché for last. Pretty sure every fake Instagram couple or “couple goals” Tumblr page has posted this at least once. In reality it’s actually a bit difficult to master. The position just feels like a lot of knees knocking, and the person holding down your feet needs to lean over quite a bit to actually reach you. The plus side is that the person doing the sit-ups (a.k.a. me) has to sit up quite a bit to reach their partner’s luscious lips. This means that you won’t get away with doing those half-assed sit ups…maybe this is why Instagram couples are so fit?
