I've been working out at the gym for a while now and the monthly bills add up to hundreds every year. Many people I know have home gyms but they don't seem as fit as the people that go out to the gym. Plus I like the social side of it and the people working at the gym are really nice and helpful. But if I wanted to save a few hundred dollars every year, is it worthwhile setting up a home gym? I'd be looking at weights, yoga mat, and some sort of cardio in a small area of my house.
It depends on what sort of person you are. I personally budget in a gym membership for myself, because I then won't get distracted as what often happens when trying to work out at home. When I'm at the gym, I have much better workouts because I'm solely focused on that and not the other million things that go on in day to day life. As you mentioned as well, having the staff and exercise classes at gyms can be a great benefit too. Just in the last month, I've started taking a yoga class and gotten a weights workout routine with a trainer to make sure I was doing my lifts properly. Those sort of things are more difficult to get at home.
I'm not one to spend a lot on gym memberships and I never really liked going to the gym anyways so the home gym is what works for me. It really depends on your personality, some of us are quite shy to be seen working out and some us are okay with that. But if you're goal is to really stay fit and keep the contents of your wallet intact then I guess it's better to do it at home instead.
A at home gym and instructional videos are way helpful if you are looking to save money and achieve goals faster. You can spend time doing the same routines at gyms with the factor of ending up plateauing. Most of the at home videos today has motivation factors and body level changing techniques which will create results faster than those in gyms. I myself do P90X 3 which is only 30 minutes a day, but more intense then P90X since they higher the intensity and smaller break times.
Home gym is definitely the way to go. Add maybe some pull up bars to the door and if you want to invest in a some weights. You've got pretty much everything you need. You can just go running outside instead of worrying about a treadmill. It's also just generally better for you. I gave up going to the gym after about 5 months and did it at home. I start whenever I want, I go for how long I want and there's nobody around me which I much prefer. Seeing as it's mostly push ups, sit ups, pull ups and running/weights - there isn't a lot of leg work so I should probably find something for that. Maybe make a home-made weights machine using household items for my legs. Anybody have any suggestions?
I think it depends on how devoted you can be to it...there are plenty of people who do home workouts/self-guided workouts and do just as well or even better than those who pay for the gym, but it does seem to take more motivation and discipline. Personally, I'm a little more on the introverted side and so I do probably 80% of mine in my apartment, the rest outdoors by myself. I actually have a gym in my apartment that I can use for free if I want to, and sometimes I'll go up there in the very early morning before anyone else is really up there. But I definitely wouldn't pay for one, as I do better on my own. I guess it depends on the person overall, but if you feel motivated enough, it can definitely save a fair amount of money.
It's cheaper for one. No gym memberships. If you're a shy person then working out at home may be your best bet. Also, having to get dressed and drive to the gym takes a lot of time out of your day.
A home gym is great, I don't quite have one yet, but I do workout at home. When I used to go to the gym I went at times where people would not be hogging the machines or socializing while sitting on one I needed, so the social aspect isn't a big loss to me. It's a lot easier for me to get motivated to workout if I know I won't have to drive for half an hour to start. So I love working out at home, I save a lot of money, I get more motivated, and I've seen better results than when I was going to the gym.
I've done a lot of body weight training over the years and there are heaps of effective leg exercises that can help build strength and muscle. The best to work up to is one legged "Pistol Squats" but it can take a lot of time to build the strength. If you can do three sets of 10 reps, you'll have very strong legs. My other favourite is the "Static Wall Squat". Lower yourself into a squat with your back pressed against a wall. You perform three sets and each set hold that seated wall squat position for 1 minute. Jumping squats and box squats, step ups, lunges ... there is a long list you could put together.
I think that you just answered your own question here. Why spend a few hundred dollars a year on a gym membership, when you can use that money to invest in equipment that will last you for many years to come. I think it's a really good idea to get some basic equipment and work out at home. You might even want to invite some friends around for the social aspect, or better even, form a group and perhaps visit each others home gyms for a change of equipment.
If you really want to save up then it is the best way to go. I mean, if you know that you're spending hundreds upon hundreds of dollars every year because of the gym then I think the solution is staring you in the face. There are a lot of workout videos online and most of them are free.
For me at least, the gym membership is one of those things I feel I really get benefit from. I have a treadmill and elliptical at home, but the motivation to use them just isn't there a lot of times. For some reason I feel more strongly about going to the gym and partaking in a group exercise than I do about going down those stairs to run for a while. If motivation isn't an issue for you, then saving the cost of a gym membership is definitely worthwhile. There are great workout programs like P90X, Focus T25 that will give you amazing full body workouts if you can stick to them. The problem is I can't.
For those that have a treadmill and other machines, how many times or how often would you say you'd have to use it so that you'd get your money back? I've seen that treadmills are no less than 600 and there are so over 2,000!
Hey, great post! I've always thought about this topic, and have always aspired--and still do aspire toward actually owning and setting up my very own home gym! I think it's a great way to get in shape on your own, especially if the sometimes unbearable gym fee is something that you can't be bothered with, or if "the gym is not really your scene", perhaps because you may feel intimidated because of all the other "in-shape people" that are around. Well, whatever your reason may be for wanting to engage in use of a home gym, I think that the guiding principle that is gonna make it work is DISCIPLINE. I think that even someone who frequents the gym has the risk of getting fat and out-of-shape in the same way that someone who chooses to work out at home does. If either party doesn't fully commit to doing a certain level and type of exercise, for a certain amount of time each week, then their body is bound to feel and display the consequences: whether good or bad, of their positive or negative choices. At the end of the day, the gym often merely acts as a greater motivation for the person who desperately seeks to get in shape, and may not feel led to "jump to the charge" on his or her own. I'd say home gym all the way for me, because I workout on my own more than I frequent the gym, and it works for me!
I'm surprised by a lot of the responses in here. Is it really cheaper to build your own home gym workout set? I suppose if you're just doing workout videos like P90x, then sure, but even those videos require some equipment to buy. Most gym memberships are insanely reasonable that generally workout to be about $25-$30 a month. Which is probably the price of one nice equipment machine or weights+Yoga mats+all the other gear etc, and you don't get the benefit of using all the gear a gym has to offer.
There is no one right answer to this. What's important is to make the most out of the resources you have and get your regular exercise. Not everyone has the space at home to set up their own gym. It can get really costly, too, although it is arguably cheaper than getting a gym membership in the long term. This is particularly true if you plan to use a lot of weights. There are cheaper options, of course, such as running around the park instead of buying a treadmill and using heavy objects for weight lifting.
It really varies a lot from person to person, for some people the convenience of having the equipment at home makes it easier to slot in quick workouts, but for me there are too many distractions at home so I need to go to an actual gym. Not only do I have a trainer there to help me, the obligation of paying for the membership makes me actually go there as often as I can.
I see no reason to do anything else. Swimming is the only thing that you cannot do at home, but apart from that I never do to a gym, the fees are simply too much compared to what I can do at home. Just skipping gym for a couple of months and I can buy my own equipment which I can then use for a lifetime.
I think that investing in a home gym is incredibly worthwhile. Although it might be better to first start off going to a gym and paying a monthly fee to see if you will really be committed, in the long run you can usually save more money by constructing yourself a home gym. I constructed my own home gym in a DIY project and although it doesn't have as many things to do as in a commercial gym, it has everything I need to stay fit and healthy.
Given that you have a proper and sufficient knowledge to maintain a home-built gym and that you know what you could, I think it's really pretty good to have one. You'd be able to save a lot of money and time. But if you are not that yet well equipped especially with the equipment and how to use them, then I would suggest that before storing up your own gym in your house, you should go and head to gym first and familiarize yourself with the equipment and the routines. But if you have a credible consultant, then you still can push this.
