Health and fitness is more affordable than you think.
Who said you need a credit-draining gym membership or expensive equipment to start an exercise regimen? Exercise can be inexpensive, effective and just as fun as the fitness club or a roomful of bodyweight machines. In general, you need different kinds of exercise for a holistically fit body. You need to build endurance. You need to strengthen your muscles. You need to stretch them, too, for good circulation. And,
lastly, you need to take care of your mind, which controls your whole body. Here are five exercise activities that you can bundle to create a complete fitness regimen.
Running
A pair of running shoes and clothing are all you need to start running. No treadmill needed, just a route, if you will. If it’s not congested or dangerous, your neighborhood is a good place to run around. An alternative is the community park. Running for 30 minutes every other day is a good habit to shed off the extra pounds and build endurance. Just make sure to bring enough water to last you for the whole run. But running requires the right posture, planning, health briefing and pacing. This seemingly simple activity can wreak havoc to your ankles and knees if done poorly. For tips and advice check Runner’s World.
Aerobics
Like running, aerobics builds endurance. But unlike running, aerobics can be done right inside your room, which makes it a good alternative during rains and winter. Just tune it to the aerobics channel or turn up the beat music and you’re good to go. You can pace your aerobics, say starting from 10 minutes and gradually working your way up to 30 minutes. You can use different aerobics styles to avoid boredom. If you don’t have cable or video, try this YouTube category, which is awash with uploads that offer some of these techniques in their respective channels. Incidentally, some say that high-intensity aerobics is better than jumping up and down for long periods. You can check more about high-intensity workout here.
Tai-chi and Yoga
A mat, a quiet room and a focused mind. That’s all it takes to start meditating. Taking care of your mind is just as important as taking care of your body. After all, the mind controls the body. Breathing and meditation are handy to relax you and protect you from stress. And the two most popular mediations are tai-chi and yoga. You need not master the full range of these ancient Chinese and Indian meditations; just their basic steps will give you an adequate dose of relaxation. What’s good about tai-chi and yoga, not only are they effective mediation techniques; they are also
effective means to stretch the muscles. Life Particles, a site that caters to meditative exercise, offers a number of free videos including relaxing scene shots and sounds to help your mind get started.
Stretching
No equipment needed here. It is important to do stretching exercise first before diving into high-impact workouts. Stretching improves circulation and allows your muscles to prepare for action. If you’re not into tai-chi and yoga, you can do simple and just as effective stretching exercises. Check SparkPeople for some easy-to-follow techniques to circulate the blood from head to toe.
Resistance weights
If you don’t have a complete set of weights and muscle machines, you won’t need one. You already have an effective weight to build your muscle: you. Push-ups, pull-ups, squats and other resistance workouts are possible by just using your body weight. Around the house, you can use the stairs, edge of the bed, bench, or the chair as tools to help you assume the right position. The possibilities are endless, and this site alone has 50 techniques.
CONCLUSION
These tips prove that not having enough cash or credit is a lame excuse not to exercise. Besides, having a regular exercise regimen is good investment to avoid costly illnesses later in life brought about by living a sedentary life, among others.
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