Author Topic: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?  (Read 5097 times)

HappyHoya

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Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« on: October 14, 2013, 03:21:36 PM »
A few months ago, I left a job which provided me access to a gym on premises in exchange for one that has no fitness facilities. My family gets most of our activity outdoors, weather permitting (which means 8-9 months out of the year where we live). We do a lot of hiking, some biking, and I walk as my primary mode of transportation. Since I have a fairly active life, I only ever used the gym at my old job for weight training. I especially liked the weight machine circuit that was all laid out for me for days I was at a loss for what to do or was mentally tired but needed to get a workout in. I lost a lot of muscle strength in the months after I was cut off from the gym with the weight machines, and I'd really like to get back into that shape (or better!). I have already decided against joining a gym. The ones in my area are extremely expensive and it's not in the budget right now. I have two kettlebells, a 10lbs. and a 15lbs., that I got for free, and I've found a good routine for them through a DVD at my local library. However, I have a dog, and a really tiny apartment. I find the time it takes for me to move around the furniture and secure the dog so that I can swing around the kettlebell without killing her or putting a hole in the wall is a bit of an obstacle for squeezing a workout in to a tight schedule. I'm not opposed to procuring some equipment, especially if it was versatile enough that it would be useful for both myself and my (stronger/needs heavier weights) husband. Has anyone found a good solution for weight training on a budget, in a small space? I've seen the Fitness Thread, but it seems to assume that everyone already either has access to weights or strong, sturdy furniture that would support them using it as a workout prop.

enpower

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #1 on: October 14, 2013, 04:27:55 PM »
I go down to the local school playgound and do exercises on all the bars. Pull ups, etc. I take a few hand weights or kettle bells with me. Sometimes friends join in.

Google bar brothers.

umterp1999

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #2 on: October 14, 2013, 04:34:10 PM »
I have a home gym, but it's in my basement, I have weights up to 65lbs that I have accumulated through Freecycle and Craigslist over the year.  Given your space constraints, I think you are limited to mostly body weight exercises.  You can pick up one of those pull up bars that goes in a door frame.  Push up and pull up are two of the greatest exercises.  Try to get a copy of "you are your own gym"  its a great book of only body weight exercises.  You can do inside or at the local park.  Good luck! 


ruthiegirl

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #3 on: October 14, 2013, 04:56:51 PM »
There is a group who meet for kettle ball workouts at our local playground.  A lot of parents come, let the kids play and exercise while keeping an eye on the playground.  I have joined a few times and it is awesome. We do a lot of sprints up and down a small hill, a few kettle ball maneuvers and lots of push ups, jumping jacks kind of stuff. 

Fun, easy, free


Well, "easy" is relative.  Those kettle ball workouts are tough. 

cats

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #4 on: October 14, 2013, 10:26:57 PM »
I also live in a tiny apartment (600 square feet).  What has worked for us is to make sure that the furniture is arranged in such a way as to create a permanent open space that is suitable for workouts.  Would this be an option for you?  In our case, I will admit that having the free space means we do not have some common items like a couch or a coffee table (We live in a studio, FYI), so to make it work you may have to ditch some of your furniture.  It helps that both my partner and I are committed to being able to do home workouts.  We also like the feeling of having a more open space, I think even if working out was not a priority we would like having the more open space!

In terms of equipment, I mostly use a few free weights (20-30lbs), and I have some resistance bands that I use occasionally.  And a chair from our dining table that I use to stabilize for some exercises where I'm only lifting on one side.  We keep our "gym" in a big rubbermaid plastic storage tub right next to the workout space.  If we have guests over and need the space it'll get stashed out on the patio for a while.  I haven't tried doing a kettlebell swing at home yet but there's certainly enough horizontal space to make it work, I'd just be worried about hitting the ceiling (though this is probably not a realistic concern, I'm not *that* tall).
I also use the pull-up bars at the park nearby a lot, if that wasn't available we'd probably add something to replace that at home.

Like you, I walk or bike almost everywhere and we're pretty regular hikers so I do not worry too much about getting many formal cardio workouts in at home.  I will do a 20-min sprint workout once or twice a week though, which happens outdoors. 

Dulcimina

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #5 on: October 14, 2013, 11:20:48 PM »
I go down to the local school playgound and do exercises on all the bars. Pull ups, etc. I take a few hand weights or kettle bells with me.
Last week, I did some exercises from New Rules of Fitness for Life in my apartment <600sf - planks + row using exercise tubing instead of the cable machine; lunges; step ups, pushups, squats - goblet squats and bulgarian split squats. I went to the park today.  It's too far (about a 1 mile walk) to take weights with me, so I just did body weight exercises (planks, pushups, pullups (assisted) and squats. There were some benches that looked perfect for box-jumps/step ups, and most parks/playgrounds would probably have something like that.  I've heard of books like "you are your own gym" that focus solely on body weight exercises.

Another option might be to check if any of your local gyms have corporate memberships that you qualify for or are amenable to you starting a membership like that with friends. Both times I had a corporate membership was when someone at my job negotiated a deal with a gym to get a steeply discounted rate in return for getting some minimum number of people to join.  I think everybody had to pay the point person once a year and he wrote one check to the gym.

My current gym is loosely affiliated with my employer (shut down for the past two weeks) but I don't believe you have to be an employee to join.  I pay $240 once a year to have access to the main floor.  Prices go up from there if you want to take classes or pay monthly.  I wonder how many of these "hidden" gyms there are around that don't advertise.

iamlindoro

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #6 on: October 14, 2013, 11:24:38 PM »

« Last Edit: October 14, 2013, 11:27:37 PM by iamlindoro »

GuitarStv

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #7 on: October 15, 2013, 07:11:47 AM »
A decent barbell and some steel weights will go a very long way towards keeping you fit.  I've had my barbell since highschool (more than 16 years) and have used it on and off throughout that time.  Spending 300$ for a bar and several hundred lbs of weights is a pretty sweet investment.  You can build your own weight bench for under 20$, squat stands/bench uprights for under 30$, and a pull-up bar for under 10$.  That coupled with the weights will pretty much last you forever.

HappyHoya

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #8 on: October 15, 2013, 06:04:38 PM »
Thanks for the tips, everyone! I have a lot of interesting options to try, starting with the least expensive ones at first, of course!

bikebum

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #9 on: October 15, 2013, 10:47:23 PM »
I got one of those door frame pull-up bars for $20 bucks at Walmart. One of my best purchases. I'm thinking about getting a weight vest; you where it while doing push-ups, pull-ups, squats, and so on.

Check out http://www.alkavadlo.com/. He stays ripped by doing all body weight exercises on playground equipment.

HappyHoya

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Re: Any Fitness Related Spending or Savings Tips?
« Reply #10 on: October 16, 2013, 07:05:10 PM »
We have pretty minimal furniture. No coffee table or sofa. Instead, we have two of those cube ottomans in front of our loveseat that also serve as our seats at the table and storage. They're easy to move so I don't find those too obtrusive. Maybe they should live under the table as a matter of course, though, instead of where a coffee table would be. Anything to undermine my own excuses, right?