Some sports and activities are quite expensive and often that expense prevents people from participating. It would be great if we all were able to afford personal trainers and lessons for whatever activity we participated in. Some activities require little equipment, however, and little training. For those on a tight budget there are options to exercise rather than excuses not to. Here are some ideas - add more if you can think of any. Community center gyms: These usually can be booked monthly without a long term contract. Usually there is a staff member available to show you how to work the equipment. Occasional free training sessions are often offered to show people how properly to use the equipment. Jogging: You do not need an expensive pair of shoes, but you do need comfortable ones. There are discount shoe stores which have last years fashions, but fully functional shoes. Jogging is a good activity because you can just go and do it - no need for a lot of preparation. Cycling: You will need a bike, but used bikes are not too expensive and any bike that works (is the right size) will get you out exercising. Swimming: If you live in an area with beaches, you can swim for free. Sure, it will be seasonal, but it is great exercise. People always talk about the number of laps they do in the pool, but when people go to the beach, they pop in and out of the water but rarely swim.
Don't forget about doing everyday things, such as walking/taking a bike to work instead of the car. Using the stairs instead of the elevator. Taking a walk in the park/beach/city to catch up with a friend instead of just calling them etc. It's the little things that matter, and all of them are free. Swimming and running are of course good ones, but there are a million other things. Just buy a frisbee (costs what, $3?) and go throw it in the park with a couple of friends etc. So many things to do for free, either alone or with someone else.
I am thinking when exactly did this idea evolve that one needs a lot of equipment to stay fit? Every time I turn the TV on, which is not often, I see lycra-clad muscle bodies pumping the latest gadgets, telling me that it's the only way to get into shape in the shortest amount of time. I know people who buy stationary bikes and gym equipment and never use it. For them it's just a project for later when they have more time. I wonder when that time begins. I don't have any fancy equipment and I don't like gyms. I ride my bike to work, I swim, I run with my dog and I practice yoga. I feel fit. I don't need to have those six packs and super tight and toned body parts.
Good old fashioned body weight and natural resistance exercises are probably the best things around for keeping fit on a budget. Push-ups, added weight push-ups, crunches, swimming, boxing, jogging on a warm sandy beach, these are all free things that can really ramp up the physicality over time.
I feel that our generation is actually very lucky when it comes to looking for ways to exercise on a budget. In addition to what most people have brought up such as walking and jogging and taking the stairs as often as possible, I think we can also easily turn to the internet. Instead of reading trashy blogs we can choose to go to youtube and exercise along with an instructor right there from the comfort of your home! "Back in the day" so to speak, I remember my mother buying the work out VHS tapes and exercising in the living room. We have way more resources to do the same! We just have to use the resources around us.
That is quite necessary especially when the budget is specific and you gotta be working on it according to the way you need and surely it is having a great way of improving it all and making things with a cooler way. So yes what you have written is making sense completely and works in a positive way.
One thing that I consider for my exercise is the cost. If it makes me shell out a quite amount of money I forget doing it. It's the reason I don't subscribe to gym. And yes what I do are jogging and swimming. They are really very cheap and enjoyable at the same time.
I found the cheapest exercise ever! In fact they pay me! I started cleaning hotel rooms and have at last check lost 9lbs.! It isn't for everyone, because this is hard labor! But I found out that if I don't work hard at something physical, I get fat!
This is a very smart idea! I've seen some short features on tv showing how much work hotel cleaners have to go through so I'm sure that it does serve as good exercise and you are right that the fact that they are paying you makes it even better. Not to mention it also serves as a great motivator to keep going.
I don't think you need a gym membership to exercise. There are so many other methods available nowadays. I like to go to Fitness Blender on the web and do the workouts there. I can always find something for whatever mood I'm in! I also get out of the house for walks with my family or we go to the pool at our apartment complex. Just get moving! It doesn't have to be on a treadmill at the gym that you have to pay $30/month for! I don't know about where everyone else lives but here, we have Planet Fitness gyms. The membership is no-contract and only $10 per month. I have thought many times about checking it out but haven't done so yet. Right now, I'm getting along just fine with my YouTube videos and pushing my son's stroller!
Yard work and everyday house chores is probably the cheapest and most efficient form of exercise. Gym memberships are really expensive you can always do some home exercise with makeshift equipment, for example, a bottle of water can serve as weights, things like that. Also, try to stand up more. I use to work in front of the computer always sitting for 8 hours a day, but since I switched to standing desks I noticed a lot of weight loss and a more slimmer physique. But the best advice I can give you is to clean your whole house for a whole day, you get a total workout and you're house if cleaner, it's a win:win!
