The buddy system.

I will if you will" are five of the most empowering words in the English language. Empowering and on occasion stupid-making, according to my mom. "Would you jump off a bridge if Pam did?" she used to ask me, knowing full well that I was afraid of heights.

I'm not talking "monkey see, monkey do" here. I'm talking buddy system.

Camp counselors who didn't want us to wander off a hiking trail and get eaten by bears introduced most of us to the buddy system. As it turns out, partnering with another person is equally effective at keeping us motivated and committed to all sorts of activities today. One of the most useful is exercise.

My friend Rachel recently began walking near her home. To help her stay committed, she asked friends to join her. "I can't count the times I would have skipped my walk but knew I'd be letting someone down," she told me. "And I always feel so much better after a good walk."

It's great when you already have friends who like company when exercising. But if you aren't so fortunate, it's not a crime to seek them out. Some of the best places to discover these rare breeds are where the activities you enjoy take place. Hiking with a local club, for instance, might net you a new friend who's into hiking. The same holds true for biking, Rollerblading, snowshoeing, or nearly any other sport.

Taking part in an adult team sport is another ideal way to stick to your fitness commitment while meeting new and interesting people. Having a buddy makes the whole exercising experience fun. And fun is what keeps you coming back for more.

Another benefit of the buddy system is getting to catch up with friends without cutting into your otherwise busy schedule. If I rely on phoning to stay in touch, I rarely get to chat very long. I simply don't have time. Neither do they. However, if we combine chatting with walking, biking, or swimming, we can manage to keep current while keeping healthy. OK, swimming can be tricky unless you've conquered the subtle nuances of sign language or the fine art of communicating underwater. Maybe it's best to catch up in the car while on the way to the pool.

My sister Faith employs many exercise buddies and finds that an assortment of people provides variety in the type of exercises enjoyed. She can swim with Ruth and walk with Sheila, reaping the benefits of cross training.

According to Dr. Robert Larson, who serves as my chiropractor and coach, everyone needs to cross-train. I learned this the hard way, racking up repetitive use injuries for every sport I attempted, because I didn't mix up my workouts. He told me that in order to prevent injury you shouldn't do any activity more than three times a week and every six weeks vary how you do what you do. Seems variety really is the spice of life--or at least it's fat-free whipped topping.

Buddies also challenge our fitness levels. When I used to run with my dad, I had a hard time keeping up. But all that effort paid off during track and long-distance meets at school. If you exercise with others, even in a class setting where you may not know everyone all that well, you tend to try to match their fitness levels.

Interestingly, the Bible extols the virtue of the buddy system. "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves" (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

Since fitness enhances so many physical areas of our lives, there's no reason that it can't benefit us socially as well.

Celeste perrino Walker writes, jogs, swims, and chats with her buddies in Rutland, Vermont.