Respect your Body - Keep Fit

I have a membership at our local Curves center.  The cost is $36 a month.  Yes, that is $36 that I could be saving or spending on something else, but I find that I do better working out with other women and meeting new people.  I recently gave up getting acrylic nails ($50 a month) to save money as I had a decision to make.  We needed to cut back on expenses and I preferred keeping my Curves membership versus having my nails done every two weeks.  If you can’t afford a membership to a gym, here is what I recommend for a frugal fitness workout plan:

Shoes - $50.  Walking is the mainstay of my fitness program.  I started out at 2 miles and have worked my way up to as much as 5 miles according to the time I have to fit into a walk.  Many times I fit in a few short walks throughout my day.  The most important piece of equipment you need for walking is a good walking/running shoe.  I can get Nike or New Balance shoes for around $50 on sale.  These are not the top of the line Nike shoes, but are the moderate medium grade shoe.  Make sure that when you try them on that they give you good support.  This is all I need for walking as I am not a runner.  Invest in good shoes as if you buy a cheapy no name shoe, you will end up with back and hip trouble.  Watch for sales as it is worth having a decent shoe for walking.

Resistance tubes - $8.00 – These look like a jump rope with plastic tubing.  These resistance tubes come with a guide for using them for all sorts of resistance exercises to strengthen your upper body without having to use of bulky weights. 

Fitness Ball - $9.00 – Comes with a booklet for exercises to tone and strengthen the abdomen and lower back muscles

Pedometer - $10 – wear it to make sure you are getting 10,000 steps a day.

Other equipment – a refillable water bottle.  $3.00 or free as a promotional give away.  You need to keep hydrated as you walk and workout.  Keeping a bottle of water filled throughout the day gives you an idea of how much water you are drinking and it also encourages you to drink more. 

So for a total investment of $80.00 you have what you need to start your own personal fitness program.  The only thing you will have to replace over time is your shoes.  You will notice when they start to wear out on the inside as you won’t have the support that you used to have.  That is the time to replace them before you start having some hip and knee pain.   

Always watch the sales for walking shoes even if your shoes haven’t worn out yet.  Better yet after you buy your pair of shoes, set aside $5 a week so that you will have the $50 long before you actually need it to buy new shoes. 

If you can’t afford all of the above at one time, buy the shoes and get a water bottle.  Buy the other items as you save the money.  Look at garage sales for any exercise equipment BUT keep it simple and don’t buy equipment that will clutter up your house and end up not being used.