When people talk about getting fit or building more muscle, they often think of joining the gym.
And in a lot of ways, this makes sense.
The gym is a place where you can surround yourself with fellow fitness enthusiasts, use professional fitness equipment, and even work with personal trainers to help you achieve your goals.
But with the modern cost of living, you may view a long-term gym membership as too much of an ongoing expense.
And if you do have a gym membership, here’s some interesting stats for you. In a UK survey of 1000 gym members, 11% said they hadn’t been to their gym in the last year, and 21% said they had been three times or less in the last year. So almost a third of people use their gym membership less than 3 times a year.
The gym obviously isn’t right for everyone. But why? And what are the alternatives?
Why is the gym not right for some people?
There are many different reasons why going to the gym may not be right for some people.
One of the main reasons is cost.
On average, the cost of a monthly gym membership in the UK is £40 per month. This may be outside of some household budgets. Even if you can afford the £40 monthly cost, you need to assess the cost per session. If you’re hitting the gym regularly, the cost per visit can be quite reasonable (10 visits per month = £4 per session). But if you’re not able to maintain a regular gym habit, it’s easy to understand why it might not be a priority in the current economic climate.
Another reason that some people avoid the gym is that they feel self-conscious and intimidated. Part of this may be anxiety about being judged on their weight, how they look, or their performance during their workout – or even not feeling confident about how to use some of the gym equipment.
Gyms can also get very busy at peak times, with lots of noise and people having to wait in line for the equipment they want to use. This can be off-putting for some.
You can often avoid the noise and waiting for machines by visiting the gym at off-peak times, but this leads to another reason some people avoid the gym – it can be difficult to find time to fit it around their schedule.
Alternative to the gym: Online video classes
Online video classes are a great way to complete workouts in the comfort of your own home.
You can work out on your schedule, without worrying about waiting for machines, or feeling self-conscious about what you look like.
Over the course of the last few years (largely because of the need for home workouts during the Covid pandemic) online video classes have surged in popularity.
You’ve got a lot of options available to you!
Platforms like FiiT offer a wide selection of over 1000 premium home workouts for less than 50p per day. You’ve also got the ability to connect your fitness tracker, and compete with other FIIT members.
Les Mills is another premium alternative, and has the benefit of being integrated with Android TV, Apple TV, Fire TV and Xbox. So whatever technology setup you have, Les Mills is likely to be available. It has over 1500 workouts available, and costs around £12.99 per month.
But there are also free options available online.
Some of the best free YouTube channels for free video workouts include:
- Fitness Blender: https://www.youtube.com/user/FitnessBlender
- BeFit: https://www.youtube.com/user/BeFit
- HASFit: https://www.youtube.com/user/KozakSportsPerform
- The Fitness Marshall: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheFitnessMarshall
Alternative to the gym: Create your home gym
If you want all the benefits of going to the gym, but without the hassle of waiting for machines or exercising in front of others, you might want to consider creating your own home gym.
The initial financial outlay is likely to be more than the monthly cost of a gym membership, but over time it will pay for itself – especially on a ‘cost per session’ basis if it helps you become more consistent with your training habits.
There are lots of different options for setting up your own home gym, but some popular choices include:
Multi-gyms
A multi-gym is a versatile piece of home training equipment that typically allows you to train a wide range of muscle groups.
The variety of different exercises that can be performed with a multi-gym make them ideal for beginners and experienced fitness enthusiasts.
Make sure you measure your available space carefully before purchasing a home multi-gym. They take up less space than many people think, but it’s important to make sure you’re exercising safely and have enough room around you.
Some high quality multi-gyms can be found at Best Gym Equipment
Free Weights
Free weights are relatively inexpensive, and they provide a great way to get a workout without having to go to the gym.
Free weights also allow you to target specific muscle groups and work at your own pace.
It’s important when you’re buying free weights that you choose a set that you’re able to gradually add incremental weight to. If you’re going to build muscle over time, the weights you start with will soon need a few kilograms adding!
There is a great range of different free weights at Best Gym Equipment.
Exercise Bike
Riding a stationary bike is great for your cardiovascular fitness, and can be a great way to improve your leg strength.
Adding an exercise bike to your home gym allows you to get a lot of the benefits of outdoor cycling, without leaving the house – which can be an enormous benefit in the winter months, and helps keep your exercise habit consistent.
Brands like Peloton have become popular in recent years, and they have a lot of social and competitive benefits. But it’s not necessary to invest this much into an exercise bike. There are some great affordable options for exercise bikes at Home Fitness Code.
Rowing Machine
Rowing is a great full body workout. Many people assume that rowing machines mainly use your arm muscles, but this isn’t true – if you have the right technique it targets your quads, calves, glutes, abs, pectorals and your arms.
A rowing machine provides a great cardiovascular workout, and is great for people of all fitness levels.
You can find a great range of rowing machines for your home gym at Home Fitness Code.
Alternative to the gym: Cardio ideas
There are lots of low-cost activities that can replace your time on the cardio machines in the gym.
There are many benefits to doing cardio outside of the gym, including getting fresh air, and enjoying the scenery. Fresh air can improve your mood and energy levels, and help you sleep better at night.
Walking
Walking is a low-impact form of cardiovascular exercise that has some great health benefits like improving your heart health, lowering your blood pressure, losing weight, and boosting your overall fitness.
Additionally, walking is a great way to relieve stress and stay active – and it’s free!
We’ve got a list of the things you need to get started walking, and also a guide for finding places you can walk in your local area.
Running
Running is a great exercise for helping you stay in shape, lose weight, and improve your mood and stress levels.
It’s regularly claimed to be one of the most effective forms of exercise, and one of the easiest to get started with. It also doesn’t need to cost a lot to get started – although you should look into some good running shoes.
If you’re interested in starting running, check out our guide for finding your local running clubs and running facilities, and also our list of common things you might need when you start running.
Swimming
Swimming is one of the best exercises you can do for your body. It’s a full body workout, helps improve your cardiovascular health, helps you stay in shape, and can be a great way to relax.
Swimming is also a great way to improve your flexibility and endurance.
If you’re interested in finding out more about swimming, check out our articles that outline the common equipment you need to get started swimming and how to find your local swimming pools and swimming clubs.
Cycling
Cycling has a lot of benefits – it’s a great cardio workout, it engages your core muscles, improves your stamina and balance, and strengthens your leg muscles.
However, cycling is one of the more expensive fitness activities to take up.
To get started you’re likely to need a decent road bike. We cover some of the main things you should look for in our guide “How much should I spend when buying a road bike?”
You’re also likely to require some additional accessories and equipment, check out our article on everything you need to get started cycling.
A more affordable way to visit the gym? Pay as you go passes.
If it’s the commitment to an ongoing monthly payment that puts you off the gym, it might be worth looking at websites such as Hussle which allow you to pay per gym visit.
Hussle works with a network of gyms, spas and health clubs across the country. You simply search for gyms in your local area, purchase a day pass on the Hussle website or app, and redeem the pass when your ready.
It’s ideal for people that maybe want to train on a running machine with an incline once a week, or train muscle groups that a home gym or free weights can’t access.
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