Working out at a gym may give you access to some of the most advanced machines and equipment but working out at home will give you the convenience that will help you to follow through on your workout program. Besides that, you can work practically every muscle in your body at home with a few pieces of equipment and the best thing is…you won’t have to wait on anyone.
There are only a small percentage of people that will take the time to commute to a gym consistently. Many that I know who rely on a gym for their only physical activity, get tired of the inconvenience and simply give up.
Now, I’m not saying a gym membership is a bad idea, but you need to realize whether you need the services of a gym or not before committing to that contract. It could be a costly mistake. Many people join a gym at the first of the year or during a time when they are dissatisfied with their current health situation, only to find that after a few weeks or months, they are not even using it any longer. A few questions to ask yourself before signing up at the gym might be:
- Am I willing to put in the time necessary to make my gym membership worth the cost?
- Do I find it uncomfortable working out around other people?
- Is there a better way to accomplish my health & fitness goals without going to the gym?
- Will this add more stress to my daily schedule?
- Do I truly see myself sticking with this on a continuous basis throughout my contract?
If your answers to the questions above don’t support buying a gym membership, I would strongly suggest getting involved in a home workout program. There are many ways to workout at home and you will need minimal equipment depending on your current fitness level and your fitness goals.
Marine Style Fitness – All of our exercise programs are designed to be done at home. You will need a pull-up bar, some dumbbells and possibly a weight bench depending on which exercise program you choose.
You can choose to purchase a home gym or other home exercise equipment – There are many popular brands of home gym equipment on the market today including Bowflex, TotalGym, Stack Systems, etc. These offer great benefits and can even be incorporated into our growing list of workouts here at Marine Style Fitness.
Video games – There are many fitness games available on the Wii that can help you to get off the couch but I don’t recommend using these for a full fledged exercise program. You need something that will constantly challenge you; this is the only way you will see results.
DVD & video programs – Infomercial exercise programs have become popular because the video will guide you through the workouts and help you to stay focused. A lot of these programs offer “boot camp” type of workouts that utilize military style exercises just as we do here.
The way you choose to workout at home should be enjoyable to you or else you are not going to stick with it. Humans always gravitate toward the things that they enjoy the most or that they find the most pleasure in. Make your workouts fun and don’t think of them as something you have to do. Think of working out as something that CAN improve the quality of your life.
i am a near forty year old female who joined when recruitment standards had laxed because of the war in Iraq. I did not require a waiver to get in. I tried to join the marines first but they were accepting no more age waivers, esp. for females. The Army gave me a shot when no other service would. Throughout my 30′s i’d worked in shipyards, carpentry, trainyards, and kept my fitness level above the norm. I enjoyed boot camp in the sense that there were youngins there who were crying every night to go home, the place they could’nt wait to get away from before graduation. I told them to buck up, had’nt they every seen a boot camp movie, serious otherwise, what did they expect. Some thanked me after graduating from boot camp, affectionately dubbing me “grandma.” I didnt mind, i’d been through a lot more of “real life” than they had, and knew you could’nt find adventure on a plate.
My point is that it is up to the individual, no matter what service they are in, or none at all. I seen squared away, fit Army Sergeants, the same for the Air Force. It’s up to the individual how deep they want to dig, how fit they wish to be. If your Wal-Mart greeter appears fitter than you, it was a choice he made and followed through with. I’m not talking steroids or nutritional supplements, but if they get you out of bed in the morning ready to meet whatever challenge may confront you, I’m no judge. The Army gave me my life and fitness back. Long live the U. S. Army…
I joined the USMC last year as an infantryman and i remember people freaking out in boot camp too. Like in there life they never saw Making Marines or Full Metal Jacket, or anything else like it. It is mostly mental and it really turned my life around too joining.
Semper Fi