Staying Healthy on a Budget

Yesterday was my last session with my personal trainer, a friend of mine I made a deal with to get ten sessions in exchange for a video for her website. The ten sessions was on top of ten sessions I actually paid for starting in late December, which cost me $500 (stupid, stupid purchase). And don’t forget I recently had a $110/month gym membership.

As you can see, fitness is important to me.

But now it all comes to an end, and I have to rethink my whole schedule and how I’m going to get really effective workouts and stay healthy on a budget.

Here are 10 things I’ve come up with:

1. Eat Better-I workout just about daily, and usually at very intense levels to train for beach volleyball, yet when we did my  numbers/measurements today, I found that with all my working out, my body fat percentage stayed exactly the same. Pretty disappointing. The fact that my scale broke recently is keeping me in the dark, so my goal is to really start focusing on the quality and quantity of food I’m eating, and tracking everything in myfitnesspal, which is a great website and it’s free.

2.Beach Runs-I need to up my beach runs from two, to three times a week. I follow a Body for Life interval plan, which maximizes fat burning even after the run is over. Of course it’s also a great way to strengthen your legs, and again it’s free!

3. Beach Volleyball Training-My friend D has a VERY flexible schedule, so usually after the beach run, we have been creating our own vball drills, including plyometrics. An awesome workout. The bad news is usually I am pressed for time, so it’s hard to squeeze this in.

4. Free apps & DVD’s-The one aspect of training that is hardest for me is strength training. I’m totally lazy about it, which is why I liked to be pushed by a trainer. But now I’m flying solo and have to force myself to do it. The BEST FREE alternative I have found is the iphone (not sure if it’s available for other phones) app Nike Training Club. They are not joking around. If you have a few basic pieces of equipment like a medicine ball and dumbbells, you can easily do this at home. Of course that is one downside for me, is that I also kind of hate working out at home since I also work from home. I also have other fitness DVD’s laying around I could fall back on.

5.Yoga-The one major struggle I’m going to have is how to get my yoga in. Yes, I have yoga DVD’s, but again, there is nothing  like going to a separate, quiet location to detach (It’s also an amazing strength workout). I really only do it 1-2 times per week, but this one will take some investigating. For now, I have a groupon for three classes at a studio where my favorite teacher from my old gym teaches. That should get me through June.

6. Ride my bike-Although it takes 45 minutes one way to get to the place where I play vball on the weekends, I still need to make more of an effort, because not only is it free and good exercise, but saves me in gas as well.

7. Beach vball-No brainer. I used to do competitive tournaments but don’t really enjoy them anymore. That has saved me aprox. $40-$70/month. Now I just play for free with friends.

8.Farmer’s Markets-I need to take advantage of more in-season, low cost fruits and vegetables. There is one 1/2 block from my house every Thursday. It’s a win/win!

9. Water-I don’t know what happens in the course of my day, but one thing I do know is I don’t drink enough water. For some reason I just forget, and I also occasionally spend too much money on drinks I don’t really need like Kombucha, diet coke, and wine at dinner. So I’m going to make an effort to drink eight glasses a day, which I can keep track of on myfitnesspal.

10. Meditation-Not that I ever paid for it, but I think mental wellness is the third piece of the health equation, along with diet and exercise. Since I totally failed at meditating even just for five minutes in May, I’m going to print out a calendar so I can mark off the days that I do it. I need that kind of discipline right now.

What are some of the free/budget ways you stay healthy and exercise? Any more suggestions for me?