Although going to the gym can be a great social experience; for many of us, going to the gym can be a rather intimidating situation. That's why many Americans are now bringing the gym home. Home fitness products have improved tremendously in quality and price in the last few years. With the right attitude and motivation, you can absolutely achieve the same workout at home that you do at the gym. And as an added benefit, you do not have to share the shower room with hairy Larry.
Treadmills, stationary bikes, elliptical machines, swimming and weightlifting are the most popular workout methods in the average gym. So, all you have to do is take a small loan from the bank, buy the equipment and erect a small building on the side of your property. Congratulations, you have a home gym. And now you do not have to pay that darn monthly gym membership fee.
Not what you were hoping to hear? OK, fine, lets be realistic here. Most of us do not even have one room in the house we want to owe to exercise equipment. Could you imagine trying to avoid the freshmen 15 in a college dorm room by cramming in all that equipment? Not ideal. The solution is simple, small … and much less expensive than you think.
Lets start with an elliptical machine. The ellipticals you might see at the gym are very heavy duty. They are designed to withstand abuse all day long, and they come with a hefty price tag in the thousands. Although ellipticals for home use are not quite so heavy duty, they can offer you the same cardio workout in the $ 100- $ 400 range. But what about the space issue? If you are concerned about space, check out the Mini Elliptical Machine by Sunny Fitness. One model comes with handlebars that come up for balance.
Moving on, lets take a look at some stationary bike solutions. As with the ellipticals, the stationary bikes you see in the gym are also designed to withstand the most strenuous workouts all day long. Home stationary bikes are available with a wide variety of features in a price range from $ 120- $ 500. Of course if you want, there are fancy pants stationary bikes that will cost you a pretty penny, but my recommendation would be to stay away from those unless you really want to spend the money. Just because you spend more on a machine does not mean you will be able to get a better workout on it. For those who are concerned with space, Sunny Fitness also offers three models of Mini Stationary Bikes in the $ 50- $ 90 price range. These Mini Bikes are a fantastic way to save space and money. The Mini Bikes double as a great upper body workout as well.
Now the more difficult workout machines. Treadmills are machines that can not easily be shrunken. Although they provide a great workout, they are quite large. Home treadmills can range anywhere from $ 150 to several thousand dollars. The good news is that you can get the same workout with the $ 150 model as with the big fancy model. You just have to do the work. To save some space look for a small foldable treadmill.
Weightlifting dumbbells are one of the most space saving and effective ways of getting a great home workout. Ranging in size from 1-50lbs, dumbbells can be found in the $ 5 to $ 50 range. And you do not need a huge dumbbell to attain a great workout, in most cases a pair of 5lb dumbbells will do the trick. Or, even better, try the adjustable dumbbell. It easily adjusts from 5lbs to 25lbs.
The moral of the story is this. The gym is great, and quite frankly, it's one of the best places to have a social experience while you exercise. But, if you want to lose weight, build muscle, or just maintain your current physical health without going to the gym, YOU CAN.
