Sports provide you with much needed physical activity which will keep you healthy even if you don't have to do any other additional exercises. Even something as simple as table tennis if you don't have much space at home can help you stay fit. I know a fat man who used to play table tennis for 1 hour only [each day] and gradually he started losing weight. In a year his paunch was gone. Why pay for gym membership, guys? Play table tennis and you'll be fine.
Great idea! According to one article, the best sports for loosing weight are as follows: Basketball - much like 'hit' exercises you move, run, jump and can burn up to 700 calories per hour. Ice-Hockey - focuses on lower body strength and energy and can burn over 700 hundred calories per hour as well. Tennis - it demands a lot from your cardiovascular system and can burn up to 320 calories per hour. But out of the 3, I would think basketball is the cheapest sport to play as most communities have free hoops somewhere in a public park or school gym.
I agree. Most of the time all a person really needs is just movement, and sports provides a great way of moving without it becoming too repetitive and boring. I guess the only thing lacking would be the bulking up part in which you might need a gym to lift some weights but other than that if it's just to keep fit and healthy then I'd say playing sports is already sufficient and definitely a great option.
Playing sports is a great way to exercise, no doubt about it. However, it depends on one's goals really. I get what you're trying to say though. The important thing is that we get some form of regular exercise and that not having money for gym membership isn't an excuse to skip exercising.
Exactly! I play football a couple of times a week and I bought a set of weights and workout at home, I have no idea how much money I have saved on gym membership, but I hope it is a lot and I feel great, especially when I walk past a gym and see people going in like they are going to the dentist! Football (soccer) is the sport that burns the most calories for me.
I have never paid for gym membership, simply because working out in gyms bores me. I prefer riding my bike and going for brisk walks in nature. I also love swimming, which keeps me fit and toned. I think unless you want to specifically build up certain muscle parts of your body with machines, there is no need to go to a gym at all.
I think that this is a great idea. There are so many people who sign up to gym memberships but then don't use them because: a) they're not motivated enough to actually do the exercise b) they're not organised enough to set time aside to do it c) there is no set time that they have to be there d) the exercise is not fun When you join a sports club, things will be much cheaper, and you are given a specific time each week when you will have to turn up for practice. You will also get to meet people who are interested in the same sports as you, and that means that you could make new friends and enjoy what you're doing so much more than if you had just been running in the gym.
Doing sports is indeed a fantastic way to lose weight, there are usually lots of activities locally that you can join for free, just check you community center or whatever you have available to you. Other than team sports, there is also the option of going jogging or biking, both ways can but tons of calories and are completely free (with the exception of buying the bike of course).
I totally agree with this! Recently I started playing badminton with my partner and it feels great. I feel a lot better after an hour of playing badminton and chasing the ball like a cat (because I suck) than I was feeling after an hour at the gym. And it's so much nicer to spend time outdoors and not in a gym full of sweaty dudes The only impediment I see for playing sports is that once winter comes some locations (like the street) become unusable. You can always rent space to play a sport, but that defeats the purpose if you're trying to save money.
Following on from my earlier post - I could never go to a gym anyway as I get incredibly self conscious when working out with other people in the same room as me, when you work out you make funny faces and sometimes silly noises and I'd be too embarrassed of people laughing at me. :/
I really have to agree with the theme of this post. I thoroughly enjoy "getting down and dirty" by personally getting involved in sports, and interacting with others while doing so, as opposed to a day at the gym. And that's not even to say that I'm knocking the gym and its benefits, because trust me: there are HUGE benefits to going to the gym. Some gyms are 24/7, so you can get in and put your workout in at your convenience, you can vary your workout very easily, from the treadmill, to the spin-bike, the elliptical, and then to the weight room, but for my liking, I'd definitely have to give the edge to getting into my favorite sport! I'm a lawn tennis fan, I live it, eat it, breathe it, and sometimes watch it on television, whether it's the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, or the good ole US Open! And, when I'm seeking to get the very best workout,I'm going right toward the court! From the service box to the baseline, I'm sweating buckets! But, apart from tennis, based on my love of sports, I'd really have to say that in all sports, they share an advantage over the gym workout. With sports, you're not forced to focus on the fact that you're working out; you're so into competing to your best level, that you are fully enjoying your workout, without even knowing it. I'm a sports fan, always will be!
Agreed. Gym memberships are really for people who are serious in shaping their bodies to really muscular sculptures but for people who just wanted to lose weight and stay healthy, sports is the best way to go. At least in sports, you get to have a lot of fun.
