Working Out On a Budget

You don’t have to pay for an expensive gym membership to have a great physique and healthy body. Some of the best exercises you can do don’t cost much other than a one-time fee of buying the equipment or the gas money it takes to drive to the park. Here’s a list of the best cheap/free workout ideas.

-Sprints

There’s a reason why you’ve never seen a fat sprinter. When you all-out sprint and run as fast as you can, you are putting a tremendous load on your body and its systems to convert stored energy into forward motion. On top of this, sprinting is a full-body exercise, not just for the legs. It takes balance, coordination, grace, and flexibility. Also, it’s a lot of fun. I prefer doing shuttle run sprints, running back and forth between a 30 yard distance, 3 times up and back full-speed counts as one set, and I do 5 sets with a 2:00 to 2:30 break in between. My favorite workout by far.

-Jump rope

Work out anywhere.

Jumping rope can burn up to 1000 calories per hour, making it one of the most efficient workouts possible. It tones muscles in the entire body, developing long, lean muscles in all major muscle groups, both upper and lower. Jumping rope optimizes cardiovascular conditioning and maximizes athletic skills by combining agility, coordination, timing, and endurance. A jump rope will cost you around $10 for a good one and it’s a great investment.

-Jogging and Running

Jogging is great for building bone density and increasing cardio vascular health. Ideally you would run on a dirt path and avoid concrete which can cause some joint pain and potential problems. However if you are an athlete or have athletic ambitions, long-distance jogging or running is probably not going to make you much faster or agile. Explosive speed comes from sprinting and weights. Still, jogging is good for fat burning and improving your health. Jogging makes the heart stronger. It increases the capacity of the blood circulation and of the respiratory system. Also it’s a great and enjoyable experience to be out in nature working out. Very peaceful.

Pullups and Pushups

Find a park with pull-up bars or get creative and find somewhere, anywhere, that you can safely do them. Do three sets of pullups and three sets of pushups, then throw in some abs and you’ve got a nice little workout. Also these days kettlebells offer a lot of value for a one-time fairly low price and there are numerous guides with great ideas for various exercises to do. Also an ab-wheel if fairly cheap and is a great way to target the abdominals.

-Yoga or Pilates

You don’t have to get a membership to a club that does this activity. You could get a DVD to follow along to or take a few classes and then practice these activities whenever and where ever you want. Yoga is good for increasing flexibility, increasing lubrication of the joints, ligaments, and tendons, it detoxifies the body, tones the muscles, and massages body organs. Pilates is like a form of European yoga and offers many of the same benefits, it offers relief from back pain and joint stress, corrects over-training of muscle groups which can lead to stress and injury, enhances mobility, agility and stamina, compliments sports training and develop functional fitness for daily life activity, and improves the way your body looks and feels.

There you have it, some budget-friendly workout ideas. To maximize the fitness benefits, challenge yourself by timing your rest periods and pushing past your limits one step at a time. Good luck and stick with it.

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