recession-Busting $100 Workout
With the economy in a tailspin, many so-called luxury items are being cut from personal budgets. Unfortunately, gym and health club memberships tend to fall into this category. Fortunately, there is a way to cut costs and get fit. For less than $100, you can create a state-of-the-art home gym and have access to any number of professionally created workouts.
By Earl Salzman
Forget those TV ads for big expensive exercise equipment. It’s just not necessary. You can start doing push-ups, squats, lunges and sit-ups using just your body weight as resistance. It’s free, and when you are ready, you can add equipment items such as a fitness ball, strength bands, hand weights, dumbbells, and a yoga mat.
That’s all you need for a quality strength workout. Best of all, the total cost of all these items is ridiculously low and very little space is required: just 80 to 100 square feet is more than enough.
So let’s look at some of these exercise tools in more depth.
Fitness Ball
A fitness ball, which costs $20 to $35, is a must for training the core abdominal and back muscles. It’s also great for doing push-ups, leg curls, back raises and squats.
Strength Bands
These flexible bands with handles are available in various thicknesses and tensions, and can be used to perform an amazing array of exercises for upper and lower body – all for a cost of just $10 to $20.
Dumbbells
Highly effective for working dominant and non-dominant sides of the upper and lower body, dumbbells cost $.50 to $1.00 per pound. Buying a ‘set’ will save money.
Yoga Mats
A yoga mat provides cushioning and traction for resistance exercises such as push-ups, sit-ups, lunges and abdominal work. You can buy a yoga mat for $15 to $30.
Given all of these savings, you might want to hire a personal trainer to help you achieve optimum results for your training time. Why not get a friend or a group together to share the expense? This will reduce individual costs significantly.
There are also free resources available to help you plan your workout and learn how to do exercises properly. On the internet there are many workout planning sites, on-line personal trainers, exercise videos and weight control programs. In addition, TV features dedicated exercise channels, and the local library is a great source for videos and workout books.
Don’t forget about all the potential cardio resources – such as footballs, baseballs, tennis racquets, soccer balls and basketballs – which are just gathering dust in your garage. You can also walk, run or cycle. Join or create a group to make it more fun.
As you can see, despite our rocky economy, exercise need not be a cutback casualty. With a little ingenuity, you can create a quality exercise program and workout space without breaking the bank!
Earl Salzman is a Markham-based Certified Personal Trainer and educator, providing one-on-one and group training to private and corporate clients. Contact: 416-529-7173 or muscleandmusic@rogers.com
2600 John Street, Unit 207, Markham, ON L3R 3W3 T: 905.475.5222 F: 905.475.6369
