How-To: Home Gym!

Maybe you don't want to spend the expensive monthly fee or be tied into a 2-year contract. Maybe there isn't a gym nearby your home or work. Maybe you don't like working out in front of people. Whatever you're reasoning behind not going to a big-box gym - fear not! You can develop and maintain a healthy lifestyle and get GREAT workouts without ever leaving the comfort of your living room (or basement, or guest room, whatever!).

In the past decade, at-home workout programs have grown leaps and bounds in their quality! Forget Jane Fonda workout tapes on VHS....now you can get complete programs: DVDs, equipment, nutrition plans, workout schedule, the works, all in one purchase! The cost of most of these is usually equal to 2-months membership costs at a gym. WOW! One-time investment for a comprehensive program you can use until the wheels fall off, or a monthly investment that you may or may not (more likely may not) get your money's worth! Seems like a no-brainier to me, but what do you think?

Aside from comprehensive workout programs - you could also invest in some equipment and create your own workouts. Dumbbells are always a good place to start - have a fairly wide range, light to heavy. Kettlebells would also be a fairly inexpensive weights investment. Pull-up bars that fit right over your door frame are cheap and work great! If you have more cash to burn, getting a barbell/squat rack/etc. would be amazing! For cardio - a jump rope is a cheap, portable, amazing little creature! Do you have a bike - if so, strap on a helmet and hit the road! Have functioning legs? - get outside and walk/run/jog! Again, if you have the money (and you'll actually use it for its intended use, not as a clothes rack), a treadmill or elliptical is also great!

We don't use a gym partly due to location, but mostly because we can get good GREAT workouts through doing the aforementioned! It is what's most convenient and EFFECTIVE for us! Over time, we've accumulated various workout programs and pieces of equipment, and we constantly are adding to the collection, so we always have a workout/program to do and we always have toys to play with :-)

Here's some websites you might find helpful:

Click here for comprehensive at-home programs (DVDs, equipment, nutrition and workout plans all together)

Click here for a website that has free workouts & minimal equipment (disclaimer: workouts are advanced)

Craigslist - wonderful resource for getting {used} equipment - certainly cheaper than Dick's Sporting Goods!

We want to hear from you! What do you think about at-home workouts? What holds you back from having your fitness journey not involve a gym?



In Health,


Lindsay & Timothy