But Do I HAVE to go to the GYM?

janine2355

No, you don't have to go to the gym. About 75% of my weight loss was from calorie reduction. The rest pure running. And I eat back my calories. I have a gym membership, but I have not been for about a year. The gym is great for strength training, access to equipment for recovery, and showers as a hedge for when the power goes out for extended periods of time. But no, you don't need the gym to lose weight. On the contrary, I find its better for gaining weight/strength.

If you can run, swim, or bike, those seem to be the fastest ways to lose weight. Otherwise, walking helps but it will take a very long time in comparison, and I wouldn't advise eating back exercise calories from walking, unless its actually hiking (with hills, for hours, in a park).

I agree, although, I definitely see a difference in my body and weight from power walking. I have recently incorported jogging, but the walking does help. I think it depends on how out of shape you were when you started MFP and how much you want to loose. I wan't in that bad of shape so the walking just kicked it up a notch.

phoenixx866

Yep. I don't have a gym membership and I'm losing.

My grandmother at one point when I was a child lost over 70 lbs. She never set foot in a gym.

She loved her Richard Simmons VHS's and she would walk whenever she could. She would walk to a nearby high school that would have a track and would run a few miles while I played on the nearby jungle gym.

I have 1 Richard Simmons DVD and a few Jillian Michaels DVDs (but she normally kicks my behind so I don't do hers just yet). I also look on YouTube for Zumba and other fitness videos -- it's all right there on YouTube! Also check your local library for fitness DVD's, I'm nearly certain they'll have some.

Your best method of exercise is your own two feet. Go out and go for a walk, go for a run. If you have a smart phone, I can think of two amazing apps off the top of my head -- Zombies, RUN! and Couch Potato to 5K. If you have stairs in your home, go up and down them. You can do squats, sit ups, push ups, etc.

There's always a way to do it!

daedalus01

I lost 170lb working out from home. You can do any form of cardio from home, staircase sprints are my new thing. Weight lifting on the other hands, invest in dumbbells, barbell & a squat rack.

SuzieQNutter

It is possible

I cut out fruit juice and cordial and drank water instead - I don't drink alcohol or coffee or tea anyway.

I changed thick shakes to smoothies - a thick shake put me up 2 kg and took my 3 weeks to get off. I had smoothies every week and went down.

I changed soft drink to water - this was the hardest as the miser in me didn't want to pay for water. I had to make myself do it.

I swapped bread for vitawheat - only every day for work, I didn't give up bread. If I eat bread I prefer multigrain brown bread

I swapped icecream for yoghurt - ice cream is very fattening for me.

I swapped full fat milk for low fat - full fat milk is very fattening for me.

I cut out sugar where I can.

I started a desk job and was sitting from 8am to 5pm.

I lost 40 kgs in just over a year, no gym no extra exercise to before losing the weight - less in fact with the sit down job.

You don't need to join a gym, you can have aerobics videos at home or just walk around and around your clothes line, it is totally up to you.

yellowsnowdrop

I'm really sorry but I think that the only way to loose the weight (at least for me anyway) is count your calories (eat less) and go to the gym 3 or 4 times a week doing a mix of weights and cardio.(move more) This is how I've lost 21lbs in 11 weeks so far and how I lost 39lbs last year before I injured my back.
I walk and walk and walk some more (45 miles in 5 days last week) because I enjoy the treadmill and stick with it, either that or I walk beside the sea for a couple of hours. I honestly NEVER thought that I'd be an exercise junkie but I really enjoy it and I miss it on the days I can't/don't go.

GummyBears7779

Nah, just try move more in your day