Sweating the Cost of a Home Gym? Instead, Shed Pounds for Pennies
Michael Wood's gym is decked out with a $3,000 treadmill, a $2,000 stationary bike, and a $750 rowing machine. As a certified fitness trainer and director of Sports Performance Group, a personal fitness studio in North Attleboro, Mass., Wood considers his well-stocked home gym a professional necessity. But he also recognizes that a great home gym doesn't have to cost a bundle. For less than $150, even a fitness fiend can fashion a private gym with a set of dumbbells, an exercise ball, and a jump-rope. "They provide the three key components of a good workout program--strength training, stretching, and cardiovascular exercise," says Wood.
That's good news for the growing numbers of fitness-minded people looking to home gyms for convenience and as a way around pricey health club memberships. More than 18 million Americans exercised at home at least 100 days in 1998, up 61 percent from 1987, according to American Sports Data.
From 1988 to 1999, sales of fitness equipment for home use soared more than 400 percent to $2.7 billion, reports the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association. Much of that was spent on expensive cardiovascular machines. But as Brett Pruitt, a spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise (ace), says, "Your muscles don't know if you're holding dumbbells or rocks, walking on a $5,000 treadmill or down the street. They just feel resistance, and that's what gets you in shape."
A top-of-the-line weight machine can help users build muscle strength. But you can get much of the benefit from a set of hand-held dumbbells costing a dollar or less a pound. Pruitt, an exercise physiologist and a certified personal trainer in Boulder, Colo., recommends starting with at least four to five pairs ranging in size from 2 1/2 pounds to 45 pounds, heavier if you're already in good shape. "Purchase them in 5-to-10-pound increments," he adds. Dumbbells come in a range of colors for those seeking aesthetic appeal.
On a roll. Instead of sitting on a weight bench to do your curls, consider an exercise ball, a $20 (and up) fitness device that also provides a good perch for dozens of other moves. "The exercise ball is an A plus. It's very functional, great for developing balance, flexibility, and improving posture," says Pruitt. He recommends using it as you would a weight bench while hoisting dumbbells or working out with rubber tubing. Because it moves around a little as you lift weights or do abdominal curls on it, you'll be tensing extra muscles to steady yourself, strengthening the trunk region. The ACE recently ranked it third of 13 popular belly exercises to tone your abdomen, behind the bicycle kick maneuver and captain's chair exercise.
Cardiovascular fitness comes even cheaper. Jumping rope may sound silly, but star boxers like Evander Holyfield and Muhammad Ali stayed in top shape skipping like schoolgirls. Look for a good one, though, not a cheap, plastic kid's rope, advise fitness experts. You'll want some weight in the rope section and a good swivel where the rope meets the handles so that the rope turns easily. And expect to take a few tries before skipping comes naturally, says Pruitt.
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