Community is the part most training advice skips. Not because it’s “cute” or optional, but because it changes what actually happens on a random Tuesday when your plan meets real life.
You can have the perfect routine on paper and still disappear for weeks. Not because you suddenly became a different person, but because training alone has a quiet exit. No one notices when you skip. No one’s expecting you. And the brain loves the easiest option when the day is full.
Why group training feels easier to keep
Group training doesn’t work by magically giving you more willpower. It works because it adds a structure you can lean on.
One study looking at group-based exercise participation found it’s closely tied to different forms of social support, like companionship and validation, alongside things like exercise identity. In other words, the “I show up” part is often social, not individual.
That matters because long-term adherence is rarely about loving every session. It’s about having reasons that still hold up when motivation is low.
The underrated emotional payoff
When you train with people, you don’t just get “accountability.” You get emotional benefits that make the habit feel worth repeating.
A major review in World Psychiatry summarizes the evidence that social connection is an independent predictor of mental and physical health, with some of the strongest evidence tied to mortality outcomes.
And Harvard’s Study of Adult Development has been pointing to the same core idea for decades: relationships are a key driver of long-term wellbeing.
This is why shared training often sticks. It doesn’t just improve your fitness. It improves the experience around it.
“But I’m not a group person”
You don’t need to become the most social person in the room. The point isn’t crowds. The point is connection that’s real enough to keep you coming back. That can look like:
- one training partner
- a weekly class
- a local run club
- a standing session with a friend
- a team sport where you’re missed if you don’t show
The best “community” is the one that feels natural, not forced.
What the data suggests about sticking with it
A review of community-based group exercise programs (focused on older adults) noted that, based on limited findings, long-term adherence rates in these programs can be high, with some indication around ~70%. It also emphasizes that program design and participant experience matter.
You don’t have to take that number as a promise for every situation. Take it as a signal: when movement is built into a social setting, “dropping off” becomes less likely.
The simplest takeaway
If you want long-term adherence, don’t only improve your workouts. Improve the part that happens before the workout: the context.
Community makes training feel more like a normal part of life and less like a personal project you have to constantly restart. That’s why it lasts.
And it fits the Mormaii mindset: sport as lifestyle. Not a performance. Not a phase. Something you share, live, and come back to.
Read more: Discipline beats motivation: how to build habits that survive real life
