How do you work out?

[lastwaysleft]

I run and bike a lot, but recently got a free week pass to a nearby yoga studio and I love it.  The problem is that it's $100/mo to become a member and I don't think I can afford that.  I like yoga, but don't have the drive to do it on my own without belonging to a studio.  Do you pay for a gym?  How do you justify these expenses?

[onehappypanda]

I run and bike a lot, but recently got a free week pass to a nearby yoga studio and I love it.  The problem is that it's $100/mo to become a member and I don't think I can afford that.  I like yoga, but don't have the drive to do it on my own without belonging to a studio.  Do you pay for a gym?  How do you justify these expenses?

A gym pass is included in the school fees I have to pay at my university, but if it wasn't I would probably look for a cheapie one on special near me. I lift weights to build/maintain muscle, but I don't need a lot of bells and whistles (basically a squat rack and some barbell stuff). So I could probably do that for $20/month if I had to.
Other than that, I run/bike for cardiovascular fitness, so costs associated with that are pretty low (shoes 1x/year, bike maintenance). I'd love to do yoga but passes at places near me are expensive (as they are everywhere) so I do it at home. Every now and then I'll download a podcast from yogadownload.com or look up a free youtube video to keep me motivated. I'd also love to try Crossfit, but it's hellaciously expensive so I just lift at my school gym for now. Some day when my financial ducks are more in a row I might justify occasionally paying for classes, but I can't really do that when I'm still working on paying down debt and saving up cash.

[Grigory]

I do a lot of walking at work, and I use a kettlebell for upper-body workouts. Cheap and simple - all it ever cost me was $20 for the kettlebell. :^D

[joerice01]

I bike to work and uni, the uni gym is aboud 260nzd a year, pretty cheap but I wont pay that, for the same money I bought a cheap bench press and a set of york weights that includes a straight bar and two small dumbell bars and about 50kg of weights , thats all I really need. I pick up extra weights if they are cheap.

Other good equitment I would recomend would be a skipping rope and a swiss ball.

[Melissa]

When it comes to working out I think of those types of expenses as insurance policies.  They keep me healthy and keep my medical costs way down.  If you know you aren't goig to work out on your own and have found something that will keep you active and in shape then I think the $100 a month isn't too bad. 
Unless you are already downing in debt and can't keep up with your other monetary commitments...

[dancedancekj]

Weight training and stretching is facilitated with resistance bands of varying strengths ($20)
Aerobic/cardio is facilitated with running, biking, bike trainer stand ($100) for when I can't bike outside
I also change it up with free styling hip hop, breakdancing, and ballet for a very comprehensive workout. That works some muscle groups that you didn't even know you have :)

[foodguy]

Run.  Marathon this year was the plan, but stress fracture pushed that off a bit.  Weights and bike for cross-training.

[Mike Key]

I walk my Husky 5 days during the week briskly, I use runkeep to keep a watch on my pace and distance, and now we push 3 miles on average.

Now I'm also trying to bike 10 Miles each day on average as well.

I also strength train, Mon, Tues, Wed with some weights and a pull up bar here at my house. Nothing fancy.

[Parizade]

Hike, bike, etc. Gym is free through work.

Is there a free yoga meetup group in your area?

http://yoga.meetup.com/

[Sparafusile]

I use to take martial arts. That's where I met my wife. Once we got married we decided we could no longer justify the $100 a month each to continue. 6 years was long enough. Now we both have a gym membership and life weights several times a week. I still haven't decided what's worse - getting kicked in the head or the DOMS from a heavy squat day.

[velocistar237]

I bike to work. I have a squat rack/bench combo with bumper plates in my basement. I haven't used it in a while, though. I was doing Starting Strength, and in 4 months, I went from squatting 200 lb to 315 lb. It's time to get back into it, but this time at a slower pace. I like being strong, but it was just too difficult to keep up, especially without a lifting partner.

[AJ]

My work has a small gym, so I work out there. We also live walking distance from a mountain with great hiking trails, and try to go any weekend that isn't raining. We also take our niece and nephew swimming a couple times a month. We try to do something active every day.

[arebelspy]

I don't work out, not really.

...I can't be the only one, right?

[velocistar237]

I don't work out, not really.

...I can't be the only one, right?

Careful, there, or you'll get singled out in a "Throw Down the Gauntlet" thread. :)

I read once that people who live long, healthy lives are typically very active people, but they don't necessarily exercise.

[arebelspy]

I read once that people who live long, healthy lives are typically very active people, but they don't necessarily exercise.

Makes sense.  And going for a hike isn't "working out," but it is exercising.

[Mercutio]

Mainly, I bike, walk the dog, go for runs, play basketball and volleyball weekly, and lift weights when I feel the urge to, otherwise, it's mainly bodyweight exercises at home.

[DC]

I practice martial arts 3 times a week (one hour each session). I also walk almost everywhere and use a free app (Drop and Give Me Twenty) for push-ups and sit-ups. It suggests a daily amount of exercise depending on how you perform the first time you use the app. I'm slacking lately and there's been a while since I last used it.

[CptPoo]

I am a on-call computer tech for a nearby apartment complex that has a workout facility. I try to use it whenever I get called over there. Other than that, I like to bike as much as possible when it is warm. Call me crazy, but when it is cold, I don't enjoy riding my bike, I actually prefer to freeze my butt off on my moped.

[Melissa]

My husband introduced me to running and indoor rowing. Rowing is a great full body workout. I also enmoy weight training as well.
We do have a full gym in our basement, but I am also a personal trainer so it's also a business expense

[Bakari]

For the past few years it was just a 10mile skate to a 2 day/wk job, working as a mover/hauler the rest of the week, and the occasional parkour or martial arts class.

Then a new crossfit gym opened up close to my girlfriends house, with (relatively) low prices (like $40/month) and we did that regularly.
After about 6 months or so the price went up to over 100, so we quit.  I went to bootcamp, lost muscle mass (too much cardio, not enough weights), went to mechanic school (also with the Coast Guard), gained it back, came back home and was lazy for 8 months, and lost lots of strength and 10lbs.

We finally got a membership at the Y, because she was always to distracted at home to actually do any workouts.  Its been about a month, and last week we both set new personal records :)
We had good timing, because she was between education jobs and on unemployment, and we managed to invoke their sliding scale - its like $40 per month - for us both combined!

[Guitarist]

I bought a bowflex from some friends for $200.00.
I also try to walk after dinner every night and eventually I want to get back into running (probably start in March). I would like to join or start a soccer team at some point. I haven't played since high school and I really miss it. Indoor would be fun in the winter if they have it around here.
I just need to get my stamina back up and shed a few pounds.

[zinnie]

Running outside on weekends=free. Weekdays I run on the work gym treadmill.

Biking on weekends=free and the best way to see new places!

OP, I do a lot of yoga too, and there is so much free online--I did podcasts and youtube while I was learning, now I just create my own sequences which keeps it fun and interesting.

[Gerard]

I don't work out, not really.

...I can't be the only one, right?

I'm sure you're not the only one. But mustachians seem to include a higher percentage of worker-outers than the average.

I don't think I've ever worked out. What does that involve? Going to a gym? Exercising?

[RoseRed]

I walk a lot, dance, run up a hill several  times once a week and usually fail to get round to doing the Primal Fitness bodyweight exercises which can mostly be done in a small space with no equipment, ot in just about any children's playground.

[goon]

I tend to go in spurts of running.  Starting around March through about November, I run.  When I was working (up until last week), I walked to/from work for a total of about 3 miles roundtrip every workday.

If you like yoga, netflix has a couple decent options, but your local library probably also has some videos you can rip.

[arebelspy]

I don't work out, not really.

...I can't be the only one, right?

I'm sure you're not the only one. But mustachians seem to include a higher percentage of worker-outers than the average.

I don't think I've ever worked out. What does that involve? Going to a gym? Exercising?

Yeah, that's true.  A lot higher percentage of people who ride bicycles, too.

[j3000]

For the past couple of years or so I experimented with a way to workout without any equipment/space/time, motivated by living in a very small studio apartment while I went to school and was trying to save money (plus I don't like the gym and going outside was kinda gross since I lived in Hollywood for a bit).  I went through lots of different routines, with various sets/reps, different bodyweight exercises like pushups and crunches, and simple cardio like jumping jacks and running in place, but ultimately I found that it wasn't about high reps and long durations but more about intensity, so I started to refine the bodyweight exercises and lean towards slower, more intense exercises like elevated pushups, doing very slow negatives, isometric holds for minutes at a time, isotension, and pull ups, but the best discovery above all was an exercise called burpees.  These are pretty intense, and even now with how much more in shape I've become by doing them, they still wear me out so much.  They also require just enough space to basically lay in.  I eventually turned these into tabata burpees, which is a form of interval training that takes a mere 4 minutes.  I also experimented with frequency and went from everyday with weekends off, to M-W-F, to finally M-Th, which seems to be just right for me.  Thus, I spend about an hour twice a week exercising, and am in the best shape I've ever been and continue to make gains steadily!

My routine is as follows:
- 3x8 elevated pushups (slow negatives [10 seconds], different hand positions each set)
- 3x6 L-pull ups (slow negatives [5 seconds], different grip each set)
- 3 frenchies (w/ 10 second holds)
- various isotension exercises for a couple of minutes
- tabata burpees

Actually I guess I don't use "no" equipment, but my investment has been very minimal:  an "Iron Gym" pull up bar ($30) and a tabata timer app (free).  There are even websites that have a tabata timer that I used to use.  And not only is it cheap, but I can pretty much do it anywhere and with little time commitment (thus no excuse for skipping).

[ultrarunner]

I trail run quite a bit (80-130 miles a week).   It's sooo much fun to get out in the mountains and just cruise for hours (or days), but we have a really great and extensive trail system here (Boulder), which makes it easy to do. 

Lately I've been doing core work at home (free) to correct a bunch of imbalances that are affecting my running.

I try to keep my "working out" fun... never in a gym and rarely inside, instead, getting out for trail running, cycling, backcountry skiing, rock and ice climbing, mountaineering, etc... 

[madhadron]

At the moment I spend $0 on my exercise. I have a little park across the street and before breakfast in the morning a couple times a week I go and do an intense bodyweight session, and the other days I stretch. Here's the best reference I know: http://www.jqhome.net/taiso/

Basically, you don't need a gym. You don't need a personal trainer. You don't need fancy classes or special clothes. Put on an old pair of pants and an old t-shirt, find a corner of your living room or a park nearby, and work yourself hard for half an hour a couple times a week, and stretch the other days. Spend a few minutes a day sitting quietly just being aware of your breathing (don't try to control it), while any thought that passes through your mind you simply acknowledge and let float on by. There are all kinds of things beyond this, but coming from someone who's done years of martial arts, dance, and various bodywork, this is most of the benefit.

I had river next to my previous place, and a path along it that led up to a ruined mill race. It was the best practice space I've ever had, and the best any of my friends have ever had. It cost me absolutely nothing other than a hello to the folks out for their morning walk along the river. Now I live across the street from a small park. It's not my mill race in the woods, but it's just fine.

Going and studying a course of something may be a good investment. Is the yoga good for getting clear head space? That's what my girlfriend uses it for. But you don't have to pay in perpetuity. You should focus on *learning* yoga. The goal is to be able to do it yourself, without a teacher or fancy gear. Oh, and just be aware: yoga is second only to running as an ineffective means of strength training.

[Kriegsspiel]

I do powerlifting, and I am doing conditioning workouts twice a week (running, rowing, etc).  Costs me $0 as our gym is on the top floor of the building I work in.  A large % of the military is really into Crossfit.  I'm not, but I like that they are, because Crossfit gyms typically are outfitted with great stuff.