Exercise and Dating (unabridged)

I recently did an interview for Look Magazine about dating fit guys. There were quite a few questions and some were edited out so I thought I’d share the full story.

Q. How long have you been into fitness for?
A. For 13 years.

Q. How fit would you say you are?
A. Very. Train 6 days a week and compete regularly.

Q.How often do you work out?
A. 6 days a week.

Q. And you’re looking for a man who is as into fitness as you?
A. Not all men I have dated have been as into fitness as me but I generally gravitate towards sporty people as they “get it” and it gives us things to talk about. It also inevitably leads to banter and friendly competition.

Q. Why?
A. Being an active person can make you impatient with people who aren’t. I’m an early bird and one boyfriend was a night owl. We were like passing ships! Needless to say, it didn’t work out (and nor did he!).

Q. What benefits do you think there are to dating a super fit man?
A. Aside from the obvious aesthetic benefits, a super fit man won’t resent the time I spend training. Especially when training for competitions, I can be very focused and possibly a bit one-dimensional. The last thing I need is a hard time from someone ‘competing’ for my attention or moaning.

Q. How are you going about finding men as fit as you? On dating apps? At the gym?
A. I am a member of a number of clubs and meet people there or tend to go for those with similar interests online. I have tried specific fitness dating apps but nothing ever really progressed. I would say, though, that if you are into fitness or have lots of hobbies or interests generally, dating becomes less of a focal point and certainly less- pressured. For one thing, you look forward to getting into your own bed and sleeping a lot!

Q. Have you ever done something fitnessy as a first date?
A. Yes! All my friends laugh at me but I have been swimming for a first date. It wasn’t till I stripped down to my swimming costume that it struck me as slightly unusual to be dressed like that on a first date! I let him win though as I didn’t want to totally scare him off!

Q. If you’ve dated men who aren’t fit in the past, was that a problem? Why?
A. Answered above really. Fitness in others isn’t my be all and end all but it does tend to help especially as most of my hobbies and holidays are built around training or racing. Your partner also needs to be your number one ‘cheerleader’ and if they aren’t into it, it can be dull for them and make me feel a bit guilty. Also, there are certain things I could never do now – like date a smoker.

Q. Have you encountered any other problems when looking for super fit men? Are they vain, for example?
A. Super fit men can be incredibly vain, yes, and in the age of Instagram and the selfie, often you can feel you are playing second fiddle to the mirror. I think it also makes them greedy and if guys are super ‘dench’ they are much more likely to want to ‘play the field’. The other issue I have encountered is a jealousy or overspill on the competition front. I “chicked” a guy once (i.e: did a quicker time than him). He didn’t like that one little bit. Sulked for forever : )

Q. Are men who are fitter better in bed? Stamina and all that?
A. They do tend to last the distance longer and can make it like some sort of amateur acrobatics set-up! The downside is that if the hotter and more field-playing, they are, they less technique they have. As Carrie said in Sex and The City: ” Men who are too good looking are never good in bed because they never had to be”.