Exercising Without the Hefty Gym Price Tag

Do you have a gym membership you don’t use? I do. I haven’t been to the gym in about six months. Neither has my husband, yet we continue to pay $60 a month on the off chance that something may click in our brains and we’ll get back to the gym. That’s six month of wasted money that I could have used to purchase one of our three plane tickets to Maine for our summer vacation.

The health and fitness industry actually makes its money on people just like me, who have every intention of using the gym but just don’t. To be fair, my husband and I both used it for years. We’re just at a different place in our lives right now and can’t seem to make it a priority. Gyms count on this. They oversell memberships for this very reason.

There are lots of ways to exercise without joining a gym. If you could use an extra $60 or even $100 a month, drop the gym membership and try some of these alternatives instead:

City parks and recreations centers are a great way to get your fitness on for free or very little money. The lone recreation center in my small town actually has a fully equipped gym, and my entire family can use it for about $100 a year. There also are classes like aerobics available on a punch card system. If you miss a class, you don’t pay for it.

Many city parks also have hiking/biking trails, tennis courts and skating rinks that provide you hours of fitness opportunities at no cost. In the summer, look for a city pool to do laps, or cut a deal with a neighbor to use his or her pool.

Do you have a Wii or Xbox in your home? Both offer several fitness games that accommodate all members of the family. We love the Wii Fit in our house. My son also loves to play Just Dance 2. Spend 30 minutes playing that game and see how you feel. It can be quite a workout. The Biggest Loser has programs for both gaming systems, and I’m sure other fitness gurus do, as well.

DVDs are a great way to take a fitness class in your own home. To make yourself accountable, use the DVDs with a group of friends. My son and I have used the Biggest Loser DVDs. Admittedly, I’m in poor shape right now, but even my energetic seven-year-old was begging for the short workout to end. There are a million other DVDs on the market that would work just as well. I got mine for $5 each through my movie membership club.

The key is to find an activity you like. I recently went roller skating with my son and felt it in my legs days later. Those are muscles I haven’t used in years, and it was fun. I bet I can even convince my local gym to let me buy some type of membership. The important thing is that you get moving. That doesn’t have to cost a lot of money.