Our country, it should come as no surprise, is increasingly polarized.听The divide is听worsened by the bubbles听we live in, and the internet makes听it听easier than ever to only associate with like-minded people. As a result, we become more entrenched in our views and less likely to interact with 鈥渢he other.鈥澨
I want to offer a simple solution: work out at your local gym.听
Not the fancy one that鈥檚 more country club than training facility. Not the hipster one where everyone looks the same. Not the boutique one where classes cost $35. And definitely not in front of a screen on a . I鈥檓 talking about the gym that has been in your community forever,听the one that offers financial assistance to those who need it and attracts people of all types. For me, it鈥檚 my local YMCA in Oakland, California.听
Are there gyms around me that have nicer equipment, posher locker rooms, and perhaps even more interesting classes? Sure. But none of them offer听the same kind of community, diversity, and opportunity to engage with people I wouldn鈥檛 normally interact with.
On the top floor, where I strength-train, you鈥檝e got dudes听with听full-body tattoos deadlifting 500 pounds next to tiny 80-year-old听women curling three-pound weights. While bench-pressing, I鈥檝e been spotted by gay people, trans people, and straight people,听big people and small people,听white people and black people. On the second floor, spin classes attract community members of all shapes, sizes, and abilities, including those who are blind and missing limbs. The basketball court, meanwhile, is usually buzzing with pickup games consisting of white, black, Indian, and Asian people, some of whom seem like they are an inch away from playing in the NBA, and听others who seem like this is the first time they鈥檝e handled听a ball. The bottom floor houses the yoga room, where, unlike every other yoga studio I鈥檝e ever been to, you see all kinds of bodies鈥攏ot just 20-to-40-year-old slim, white ones. And then听there are the kids (a surprisingly rare site in metropolitan gyms these days) running around pretty much everywhere.听Everyone is respectful to each other. Everyone gets along.听
In her forthcoming book听, Stanford psychologist Kelly McGonigal writes about research that shows that听engaging in physical activity with other people connects us. Some of this, explains听McGonigal, is biological鈥攖he release of feel-good neurochemicals like endorphins and oxytocin.听But equally potent is the humanizing听power of working your body hard while seeing others do it, too. 鈥淚t is as if our biology is tuned to recognize and respond to common humanity,鈥 writes McGonigal. When you are pushing yourself in the presence of others doing the same, you connect with them on a visceral level.
It鈥檚 true that some of my experience could be related to Oakland as a whole, which is an exceptionally diverse听city.听But I鈥檝e visited other gyms and workout facilities in my area, and none of them look anything like the YMCA. They all lack the wide range of age, race, gender, and ability. I鈥檝e also visited YMCAs in other states, most recently in听Michigan and North Carolina, and they had a very similar vibe to my own. I鈥檝e come to conclude that whatever I lose out on from not going to an upscale听or hyperspecialized gym, the YMCA makes up for, because听it gives me a much broader sense of community and allows me to听interact听with people鈥攊n real life, no less鈥攚ho听I otherwise wouldn鈥檛.听Does this solve all of the world鈥檚 problems? Of course not. But I think it鈥檚 a small step in the right direction.
Brad Stulberg () coaches on performance and well-being and writes 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 Do It Better column. He is bestselling author of the books听听and听. Subscribe to his newsletter听.听