Exercise as punishment?

[Butcher]

I dont know if this is the right place for this, I was kind of thinking about it from the S&C coach/athlete perspective. I read something on another forum about burpees being used as punishments during workouts, workouts where the participants are showing up willingly on their own accord. So what do you think of this?

My thoughts are its probably not the best idea. No one wants to be punished, we dont like it. Exercise as punishment seems like it would engrain negative associations in regards to exercise. I think exercise should be encouraged, seen as a good thing. When its used as punishment, people are basically being encouraged not to exercise/be punished.

So what is everyone else's thoughts/experiances with this?

[McLaughlin]

It's used in the military as punishment, but some of the guys I knew in the Navy were the most fit I've ever met.

Maybe it wouldn't be good for a weak minded person, but for someone that is driven and has fitness goals for their life, some extra burpees or pushups aren't going to stop them or even really slow them down.

/2cents

[Sensei]

It depends on context. If it's a weight-loss camp where the participants probably hate exercise to begin with, it's a really bad idea. For little kids who are forming neural associations positive and negative for a whole host of things, including exercise and diet, probably not a good idea either.

For people who like to train I don't think it's turning them off on exercise, just burpees.

At the RKC instructor certification 'workshops', burpees are doled out from time to time for rule infractions and poor performance. It works - rules are followed and performance improves.

[DieselWarrior]

For people who like to train I don't think it's turning them off on exercise, just burpees.


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