Guidelines For Getting Healthy Without Hitting The Gym

So you don’t want to sign up for a gym membership, but you want to get in shape? I feel your pain. Membership fees at many gyms can be surprisingly expensive, and not everyone feels comfortable exercising in public.

Regardless of the reasons for your opposition against joining a gym, I’m glad to tell you that there are ways to get healthy and fit without joining one.

Here are just a few guidelines I’d advise if you’re going to go DIY with your fitness.

Eating Less; Eating Smarter and Healthier

Eating habits are always ground zero for getting fit. For example, people who visit fast food chains on a weekly basis might want to curb their habits.

Similarly those who have a diet largely comprised of high calorie and sugar-rich food need to find healthy substitutes or cut them out entirely.

The point is that if you can identify unhealthy eating habits, it’s best to get them under control before you even start working out.

So what are healthy and smart foods to eat if you’re shedding pounds and adding muscle? Stick to the clichés: ample servings of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins that aren’t limited to red meat.

There are plenty of viable protein substitutes that will do much more good for your body than would a greasy hamburger or a rare steak: all types of fish, beans, Greek yogurt, and hearty grains like quinoa are just a few.

Cut out entirely or severely limit your intake of fried foods, sugary drinks, and addictive sweets like ice cream and candy.

Cardio as Often as You Can

Once you have some semblance of a balanced diet down, it’s time to start your exercise routine on the right foot by taking care of your heart and circulatory health.

Without proper cardio exercises like running, jogging, jumping rope, biking, or even rollerblading, there’s no way you can go on to do advanced exercises like lifting weights.

Cardio is the foundation of all smart exercise routine; you need to get your heart rate up and your blood flowing before you tackle the tasks that will really test your strength.

Try doing some cardio exercises at least 3 times a week for no less than 20 minutes, slowly expanding the number of days and the lengths of the workouts that you do.

If you’re unsure about how much cardio you should take on, consult your physician prior to committing to any solid cardio plan.

Take Up a Recreational Sport Like Biking or Tennis

Some people aren’t as fond of cardio exercises if they aren’t any fun. For example, some people love to run and will do so just for sheer joy and solitude of the act while others would rather write a term paper everyday than go running on a regular basis.

If you aren’t keen on the more Spartan workouts, perhaps you can take up an activity that has a little more entertainment value.

Many people prefer to burn their calories by biking, kayaking, rock climbing, playing tennis, or any other sport that has more going on than running. the key is that you find something that you enjoy and stick to it—that way you’ll be getting fit and having fun simultaneously!