The Friend Everyone Needs: The BFF (Best Fit Friend)
We all have different friends that, for lack of a better way to phrase it, serve different purposes. There are the ones you’ve known since third grade who can be counted on to crack a funny inside joke from decades earlier. There are the ones you don’t talk to as much but you know you’re always on each others’ minds. There are ones who happen to be pregnant at the same time you are — which is perfect because then you don’t feel like you’re always taking your pregnancy complaints to your hubby, who bless his heart, just can’t possibly understand what it feels like to be packing a watermelon-sized belly. There are other mom friends, who are essential for sanity when you begin the adventures of parenting. Experienced moms are great to know, but you also need friends who are “in the trenches” right along there with you, dealing with spit-up down the cleavage and toddlers who won’t stay in their big-boy beds or who wake up at 4 a.m. ready to play and/or kick you in the nose.
Another essential friend everyone should have? The BFF, or Best Fit Friend. We have a week dedicated to BFFs going on over at Fit Bottomed Girls right now, and I’ll just highlight how very important these friendships are. Jenn has always been one of my fittest friends. Way before we started the Fit Bottomed websites, I was taking her workout classes and she was motivating me to move. We’d take walks over lunch, hit Zumba together, and when it had been awhile since my last workout, I was always inspired by her workout dedication to keep moving. I’d feel guilty if she’d manage to work out and I didn’t — she’s the type who is a good influence that makes you want to be better.
The other day, we were both online working and intermittently chatting. I had been debating whether to attend a midday Zumba class that day, and had seconds before made up my mind to skip it. I just didn’t have time, I thought. I had posts to write, emails to check. And then Jenn messaged me saying she was going out for a run. And just like that, I unmade my decision to skip my workout. If she could do it, so could I, so I skipped my way out the door to hit the gym. Of course, I didn’t regret going — one rarely regrets working out, right? — and it reminded me how great it is to have a friend who makes fitness a way of life.
Even though I know I inspire others with my dedication, even I have moments when the energy barrier to exercise just seems too high. So next time you want to skip your workout because you don’t feel like it, check in with your BFF. When you find out that they’ve been up since 5 a.m. and completed a workout that included 100 burpees, I guarantee you’ll want to get moving, too. After all, you have to be able to keep up with your friend!
Do you have a best fit friend who motivates you? —Erin