2. ASSESS YOUR LIFESTYLE

It's much easier to attack an exercise plan now that you know what you're doing it for, isn't it? The next step is to assess your lifestyle and figure out how much 1) time and 2) money you're willing to devote. Yes, a home workout means that both of these potential negatives will be much lower than if you had to go to a gym, but to create a proper regimen, you still need a general idea.

Time
Money

Time

Here's how to arrange a time schedule for your exercise routine:

  • Sit down with a daily schedule and pick out times in your week that could be devoted to exercising. The available slots in your schedule will determine what types of exercise you put into your routine. For instance, if you only have time late at night to exercise, you won't want to jog around your neighborhood as part of your routine.

  • Don't forget to consider those 10 to 20 minute lags in your day (probably the times you usually grab a snack). You can do stomach crunches in the morning while you wait for your coffee to drip. You can do a power aerobics session (such as jumping rope) after while you wait for your clothes to dry.

  • Longer slots of time can be used for slower-paced activities like walking or hiking. This is especially appropriate for weekends. Then you can claim to be outdoorsy too.

Chances are, the time is somewhere there in your schedule. The trick is to find activities that fit into your lifestyle and to keep it fun. Yeah, yeah, we know that there are probably a ton of other activities that you would consider MORE fun, but we guarantee you that as soon as those beta-endorphins start kicking in, you'll be hooked.

Money

We know that the title of this article is "So You Wanna Get a Cheap Home Workout," but "cheap" doesn't mean "free." So you may have to drop some cash for a couple simple items:

  • Sneakers. First of all, pretty much any exercise that you do will require a good pair of sneakers. Even though you're in the comfort of your house and you'd like to exercise barefoot and naked, you need to wear sneakers to save the wear-n-tear on your joints. To figure out how to buy the right pair, read our article "SYW buy a good pair of sneakers?"

  • Safety equipment. This is necessary if you you decide to go biking or rollerblading (e.g., helmet, wrist guards, etc.). If you're cheap/poor and don't want to buy the equipment, then just don't do those activities. It's OK to be cheap, but it's not OK to be stupid.

  • Exercise surface. If your entire apartment is hardwood floors, you'll have to get either an exercise mat or a piece of carpet big enough for you to work out on. It's just too hard on your body to do vigorous exercise on hard floors.

And that's pretty much everything. You don't need weights, ab rollers, or go-go dancers in cages; just sneakers, a mat, and safety equipment (if necessary).