I almost never look at myself in a mirror. (If you saw my hair today, you'd agree that this must be true.) When I'm brushing my hair in the morning, I look at my hair for a moment, but don't notice or pay attention to any other part of me, or my body looks like as a whole. When I brush my teeth, I walk around the house or look at my teeth, but don't notice anything else. When I use the restroom during the day, I don't even glance at the reflection right in front of me when I'm washing my hands. Once every few weeks, my own reflection catches—sometimes when I'm walking past a large window or if I'm trying on new clothes in the store. When it happens, I'm always surprised. "Oh, so is what I look like!"
 
If your weight has had ups and downs (especially lots of ups), or if you've struggled (as I have) with body hatred or a negative self-image, sometimes it's easier to just ignore your reflection than to face it—and the hurtful silent comments that come with it. I no longer hate looking at myself, and I no longer say bad things about what I see. But I still general ignore mirrors—I think out of habit.
 
Recently, I started workout out at a new studio that has mirrors in the Spinning room. You could either pick a bike that directly faced the mirror or one that faced the other direction (with the mirror to your side, out of your direct line of sight). I chose the bike in front of the mirror, unsure whether it would help or hurt my exercise efforts.
 
I actually loved facing the mirror. And when I returned to class the next week and the week after that, I picked the same bike every time. Watching myself work out was a distraction (in a boredom-busting way), and it somehow motivated me to push myself harder. I suppose whether you like what you see ("Look at me go! I'm a machine!") or you don't ("Burn, baby, burn that fat!"), I could see it being beneficial.
 
Last winter, I watched myself running on a treadmill at the gym to pass the time and inspire myself to work harder—and it worked. (Check out my five other tips to take the dread out of the treadmill.) Watching myself exercise, I've learned, makes me feel empowered, which inspires me to keep working hard.
 
I would always encourage people to use the mirrors as a feedback tool, especially when it comes to strength training, because it can help you with your form. This is especially true if you aren't super coordinated (you know who you are!) or don't have a good sense of how your body is moving in space if you're not able to see it.
 
Whether mirrors motivate or not depends on the person. And research is mixed in that area, too. Although some research shows that watching yourself in a mirror while working out can sap your motivation, other studies show that it can be a boon to your form and performance.
 
If you're the type of person who ignores mirrors—or avoids them at all costs—I would encourage you to try exercising in front of a mirror just to see how it affects your form, motivation and willingness to work hard—no matter how you feel about yourself or the appearance of your body. When you see it moving, doing positive things, performing or getting stronger it just may help you to appreciate what an amazing machine it truly is, no matter how that machine really looks to you (or others).

So tell me: Do mirrors help you (in any way) during your workouts or not? Do you simply avoid them at all costs?

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