Looking to lose those freshman 15 still hanging on even after your first year as a professional? Is your stomach proportionally larger than your wallet? Staying in shape is essential and does not have to cost much. Say goodbye to popping buttons, tight pants and the belted double bubble belly – this is the year you make your wallet fatter and your stomach flatter!
Fitness professionals often recommend treating a workout session as a very important scheduled item. For example, if you have a work meeting scheduled with your boss, you wouldn’t cancel it just because you’re running behind on a deadline for that day. This same mentality should be applied to scheduling your workout sessions throughout the week.
Quite often, the first scheduled event to be dropped during a stressful week is exactly what is needed to avoid feeling stressed – the workout. Many people believe that in order to lose weight they have to join a gym in order to make the “ultimate” commitment to working out.
Gym memberships experience ebb and flow throughout the year; the resolution spike in January, the buff-bride mid-year spike, and the pre-holiday wind-down in December.
Let’s face it: if working out was as easy as drinking a fine wine, we would all be in great shape.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA),
“All healthy adults aged 18 to 65 year need moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity for a minimum of 30 minutes, five days a week, or vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity for a minimum of 20 minutes, three days a week.
"Moderate-intensity aerobic activity, which is generally equivalent to a brisk walk and noticeably accelerates the heart rate, can be accumulated toward the 30-min minimum by performing bouts each lasting 10 or more minutes.
In addition, every adult should perform activities that maintain or increase muscular strength and endurance a minimum of two days each week. Resistance (weight) should be used that results in substantial fatigue after 8–12 repetitions of each exercise. Resistance training at least twice per week provides a safe and effective method to improving muscular strength and endurance by 25% to 100%.”
This is probably not new news to you, but if you’re not out running right now, and reading this, there’s a good chance this is information you understood and buried deep inside your memory bank. The long and short of it is that working out increases energy, both physical and mental, makes you feel good and helps your wellness years down the road.
Taking this information to the gym is great; there are lots of classes and programs offered to keep members constant with their attendance. But if a gym membership is not in your budget, there are many other options starting right at your doorstep.
There are plenty of ways to keep fit at your own home, or office, starting with jogging and walking.
But if you are like most, and turn your nose up at running, there are many other “vigorous” forms of exercise that can be performed in the comfort of your own home. For example:
- Have cable or internet? Then you have no excuse not to find a high-impact aerobics show that bests fits you! There are many online fitness video sites to choose from including hulu.com, exercisetv.tv, and even youtube.com. These online sites are a great way to learn what makes you “tick” when it comes to fitness.
- Fit TV (on cable) is also a great option with many different workout series to choose from that range in complexity and duration. Many of these online and cable options are “hybrid” aerobics, including cardio kickboxing and dance, that combine spurts of intense aerobics with muscle conditioning.
- Dance is another vigorous form of aerobic activity that is often overlooked. While classes generally range been the price range of $10-$15, there is no need to pay membership dues. Yoga and cardio boot camps are also often in the same price range, and without membership commitment. Having flexibility in pricing is another great way of working around a budget.
This year, make your fitness goal happen, and save money at the same time! Treat your scheduled workout times as important calendar events. Incorporate vigorous activities throughout the day time, and see if you’re most committed to working out in the morning, lunch or after work. Working out at home will cut down on expenses, and cut your travel time down significantly!
What are your top fitness tricks that are cost-effective? Share in the comments!
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