I don't have the motivation to work out at home. Have been trying it for a few months and have gotten nowhere. I signed up for a Curves membership tonight after my coworker did because she said she now works out and is finally losing weight because she doesn't want the membership money to go to waste and there are no distractions like tv at home. I find when I go home I want to curl up in jammies or chat on yahoo to my boyfriend or watch tv.

I guess I am the odd man out here. I prefer to work out at home but I have the room to do so. The reason I ultimately went this direction is that for the price of a gym membership, I could outfit my basement with the equipment I liked and wanted to use. Also, I never have to worry about waiting for others to get off of the equipment I want to use. I can go down stairs hit hard for 30 minutes and be done. No drive there and back.

Home. Motivation to do something at home is no problem for me - motivating myself to go *out* and do something is a problem (I do love walking when there's not fifty feet of snow on the ground though). We really don't have the room at home (small apartment), but we squished in an elliptical, and I have my weights and mat stashed under the sofa. Every time I have signed up for a gym or pool membership, I'd get to a day where the weather was crappy, or I needed a nap, or something else, and I'd just put off my workout until 'tomorrow'. Well, 'tomorrow' often turned into 'next week', and I would lose the momentum and stop going. Now, I can do something every day, and if I need a nap, I take it and do my exercises later. If the weather is crappy, I don't care. I can listen to the music I want to, not whatever the gym pipes in, and If I want to sing along, no one gets irritated by my horrible off key accompaniment :lol:

BP

Originally Posted by BlueToBlue:
Definitely the gym! My house is way too small for me to work out in. There is absolutely no room for any type of cardio equipment and if I did any sort of aerobics or anything, I'd most surely knock something over and break it. :sorry: There's barely enough room to stretch.

Also, I like having the choice of equipment, classes, and sauna afterwards. Sometimes I get ideas for exercises to try by watching other people at the gym. Finally, there are cute trainers to watch at the gym ;) --definitely a bonus.

I agree. 24 Hr has a bunch of equipment I wouldn't be able to fit in my 1BD ...haha. The spa or sauna is a nice touch for relaxation as well.

Originally Posted by diamondgeog:
Home for sure.
Gym is just too much hassle unless I got one very close to home. But normal 3-7 miles when I factor in time in the car (gas prices also) parking getting in, changing, getting settled, finding equipment, basically everything but actually being on equipment then going home it works out to more time than getting a good workout at home in total.

O man. haha. You are too much. When you break it down like that, you make it seem like an eternity to go to a gym! I have my gym within 10-15 minutes from me. I don't see it as a hassle. But I am in California...and we have over 200 24 Hour Fitness gyms.

Originally Posted by KimL1214:
I can't afford the gym, so I do most of my workouts at home. I do work at a school that has a pool though, which because I am an employee I can use anytime after hours for free. I've started swimming 3-4 times a week on the off days that I don't work out at home.

Swimming is fun. They have a big pool at 24 Hr Fitness that is real nice. Your budget can't fit in a gym membership? They have a lot of different plans at 24 that fit different budgets. They have been the most affordable in my eyes so far. $29 a month is what my budget could allow. You should check their site for offers.

Definitely home. I've amassed a collection of about 50 DVDs so I have tons of variety to choose from. I've got strength training with weights, Hi/Lo, step aerobics, circuit training, Runervals, Spinervals, kickboxing, yoga, dance, etc. etc. You name it, I've got it! I also have a treadmill, exercise bike, and assorted dumbbells, bands, balls and mats.

For me, getting to and from the gym is a barrier to exercise. I wind up blowing it off. The gym's schedule for classes is also a barrier. It just never seems to jive with my own schedule. Exercising at home means there's always a class available that I want to take at a time I want to take it.

I prefer a bit of both, i prefer the gym because i have to work out there wheras at home if the fone rings mid routine i will talk for an hour or so n then forget about it, but also i dont like to work too hard because i hate getting all red and puffy and sweaty in public wheras at home i can luk like the sweatiest beast alive! haha oh well im still not sure =] xxx

Both! I exercise at home 6 mornings a week, and I go to a cardio class at the gym on Mondays and Wednesdays. I enjoy both, though it's harder to force myself when I'm at home. I paid for the gym, so I want to get my money's worth.:p

Definitely the gym. I go there specifically to do my workouts, and there is nothing that distracts me like at home. Plus they have some kick butt equipment that I dont have.

ITA...there is a lot of sweet equipment at the gym that I can't afford to buy (at the moment..:p) or even store! Classes are sure fun to take, especially since 24 Hour Fitness offers about 30 different classes I can choose. They run the whole week too...Mon-Sun.

What kinds of group classes have you tried?

I can't do the gym. I've even won gym memberships and not shown up. There are too many days when I just don't feel like leaving the house to go to the gym. I also noticed that going to the gym is intimidating because most of the people I see already have sick bodies while I'm struggling to breathe on the treadmill LOL! It's much easier for me to just pop in one of my many DVDs and get moving that way.

Originally Posted by motownsunshine:
I can't do the gym. I've even won gym memberships and not shown up. There are too many days when I just don't feel like leaving the house to go to the gym. I also noticed that going to the gym is intimidating because most of the people I see already have sick bodies while I'm struggling to breathe on the treadmill LOL! It's much easier for me to just pop in one of my many DVDs and get moving that way.

Wow! That is cool, did you enter a contest for that? What gym did they offer free membership for...was it for like a year or just a couple months? Don't be discouraged...everyone starts somewhere at the gym. The more you go, the more confident you start feeling. :carrot:

Do you think it's better to work out in the early AM or late PM? What time of day do you have more energy?

I prefer the gym. I have a home gym with all the trimmings but for some reson never use it. I go to the local public swimming pool gym . Because of the people. They are older. not so fit. and really there to improve their health and quailty of life.
I don't feel out of place. There's no really "skinny young chick" next to me going hard out and making feel like I really should be sitting on the side of my large grave just waiting to slide in.
This I call 'ME TIME'
Once I get home it's full on family again

I workout at home. Have probably 2 dozen Leslie Sansone videos. When I workout I workout. This is my time and nothing interrupt that. My family knows this is important for my heath and my general well being. They are very supportive and don't bother me during my workout times. I suppose if I could A. afford to go to the gym and B had someone to go with I might go. There are days I don't feel like leaveing the house and I would make myself go if it had cost me money. Not sure I would get much of a workout if I didn't really want to be there. So far am doing ok at home, just me and my videos lol.