Alexander Anderson
Alexander is a lifelong gamer who used to play video games competitively. He has a bachelor's degree in psychology which gives him a unique insight in the world of gaming. You can follow him on twitter
1. Lifting gives many health benefits
Various researches and studies have shown that there is immense benefit from exercising or lifting weights. It can improve your heart’s functions, strengthen the cardiovascular system, increase the amount of blood cells, improve your body’s immune system, and the digestive system. Mentally, lifting can reduce stress, ease depression, and strengthen focus and concentration in days to day activities. Sadly, according to the CDC, 80 percent of American Adults don’t get enough exercise.
2. It challenges the ‘gamer’ stereotype
Movies and TV continues to portray gamers as a classic stereotypical nerd and it won’t stop any time soon. A person who doesn’t know anything about video game culture tends to see gamers and gaming in a negative light.The label ‘gamer’ is commonly associated with socially awkward, passive, uncool, and physically unappealing.
If all gamers start lifting weights, it will help combat the public perception of gamers as unsociable cave dwellers. It can be hard to undo years of social programming, but it can be done. Nevertheless, this perception of nerdy gamer has persisted for many years and it will continue to persist because it is partly true.
Go to a gaming gathering event and pay attention to the other people around you. Look at how they dress and how they communicate with each other. Pay attention to their body language, tone of voice, mannerism, and what they talk about. Then go to a sporting event and repeat the process. Which group of people would an average person prefer to be around?
You will never see these guys at a football game
The stereotype phenomenon is similar to how many people viewed #gamergate as a purely misogynist movement. People will generalize to save time. We develop stereotypes when we are unable or unwilling to obtain all of the information we would need to make fair judgments about people or situations. In the absence of the total picture, stereotypes in many cases allow us to “fill in the blanks.”
3. It will teach you skills
People these days are soft. Lifting weights is hard and will requires some sort of planning and commitment. First time lifters will have to buckle down and learn about many subjects such as nutrition and the different muscles in the body. Like playing a new video game for the first time, they will have to experiment with different sets of reps and keep working at it. Results don’t come overnight and it can be extremely difficult to fight against yourself wanting to quit.
Exercising is a battle against yourself. There are no cheat codes and there is no blaming your random teammates or the imbalanced game mechanic. You will have to set goals and work toward them. You will learn how to stay focused on a task and not get distracted. You will learn to stop making excuses. Overall, you will learn many valuable skills simply as a by-product of lifting weights which you will carry with you in other aspects of your life.
4. It will give you something else to do
Hardcore gamers such as myself default to playing video games when they have free time. Gaming is fun, but sitting for hours and staring into a monitor can be detrimental to your well-being and you can feel it after a 10-hour gaming session. Lifting weights can be a new healthy hobby for those with times to spare. The logic behind it make sense—why bother leveling up your character in a video game when you can level up yourself in real life?
Weight training will make you more energized and proactive. A hard training session with heavy weights will charge you up with energy. Everybody who works out knows about the great high you get from lifting weights.
5. It will give you an edge over other gamers
As mentioned above, lifting come with physical and mental benefits. As a result, it will make you perform better in any video games you play. Professional gamers in South Korea lift weights precisely for this reason.
Lifting isn’t part of the gaming culture. When most gamers see the headline of this article, they’ll skip it and look for something else to read. However, just because it isn’t part of the culture doesn’t mean you should not participate in exercising. Humans subconsciously prefer the company of those who are bigger, stronger, and smarter than the rest. You will stand out among your gamer friends if you are the only one in the room with muscles. Your social standing will increase, your health will improve and you will gain more confidence from regularly exercising.
Read More: Why Does It Seem Like Everyone Is Speaking Out Against #Gamergate?
