Shape it up: Sharing the path to fitness with friends

I had always thought of myself as being pretty fit. I figured if I could run a mile without too much trouble I must be pretty fit, right? My first day at UCLA proved me wrong.

One day of walking to class and stopping by Westwood for some boba had me exhausted. I was actually sore. After realizing a couple stairs and a hill were enough to make me want to lie down and never get up, I knew it was time for a lifestyle change.

In this column, I want to share with you how I have learned to keep myself healthy ever since that realization. For the next 10 weeks, I will introduce ways to incorporate exercise into daily life, separate myth from reality on popular diet trends and explore the Los Angeles area to find locations close to campus where students can take advantage of the California weather and scenery while getting fit.

I’ve always lived by the motto “go big or go home” and I completely applied that motto to my new dedication to health and fitness. I gave up junk food, became vegetarian, got a John Wooden Center fitness pass and found some friends to work out with.

The first thing my friends and I did was decide to run the perimeter of campus every night. After all, if a walk to class made me tired, running 4 miles around campus is obviously the solution.

Running the perimeter quickly became the highlight of my day. Ironically, exercise was like a break; it took away from the stress of class and my arm-length to-do list, and it left me feeling energized and motivated to actually focus on my work.

Because we live on the Hill, my friends and I started our perimeter run at Sunset Boulevard, followed it down Veteran Avenue and turned onto Gayley Avenue. That made the run mostly downhill until we hit Westwood Boulevard, which inevitably led to the uphill climb of Hilgard Avenue.

Coming back toward Sunset Boulevard again was my favorite part of the course. Instead of staying on the street, we cut through the tree-lined trail that is across the road from Drake Stadium that leads to Covel Commons. We were always running late at night, so in the silence it almost felt as if we were actually in the woods.

I won’t lie and tell you that we actually managed to run the perimeter non-stop from the start. But even without doing so, it had a huge impact. People even commented on how my mood had improved.

Finding the motivation to start working out wasn’t exactly easy, but anyone struggling with motivation can find it in friends. Making exercise a social event instead of a chore creates intrinsic motivation.

Alone, there’s no way I would have been able to complete a run around the perimeter. I probably would have made it to Westwood and then decided to reward myself with Diddy Riese for managing a mile. But having company distracted me from feeling tired and the workout became a night full of fun and laughter.

My high school coach always told me the best part is that talking while you run builds your stamina. So when you run with your friends, not only are you making it substantially more enjoyable, but you are actually making it more effective. It can’t get any better than that.

The best thing you can do to motivate yourself to get the recommended 30 minutes of exercise a day is to invite friends in on the plan.

Whether you’re an athlete who just needs to stay in shape or you’ve hardly worked out since your high school P.E. class, having someone with you greatly enhances the experience of working out.

I can honestly say that the memories with my friends are some of my fondest memories of my first year at UCLA. They have made me feel better about myself, regain incredible energy and develop some lifelong bonds.

What motivates you to get fit? Email Davis at [email protected].