Do you prefer to workout at home or the gym?

TakeOne

I guess this would techniquely count as home, but I prefer the great outdoors. I MUCH prefer to walk/run outside in fresh air and on the pavement. It just gets me in such a great mood and I feel so good afterwards : ) For the other stuff (strength training) I don't really have a preference..except the gym has more to offer as far as equipment goes.

MissAnjy

I only workout at home. I'm a mom with 2 young boys (2 yr old twins) so i find it much easier to just go downstairs during their nap or after they've gone to bed then i would having to find a babysitter so i could go to a gym. Just doesn't work for my lifestyle. I appreciate all the JM DVD's I have & love. They are my GodSend.

jerseygirl777

I do both... but I prefer to go to the gym just because it gets me out of the house and away from any distractions.... including food! lol

julwills

I definitely prefer going to the gym. I had a REALLY hard time staying motivated just with using all of the work-out DVD's I bought. It lasted about 3 weeks. Now I pay for a gym membership and I really get my money's worth! I love being able to go to classes and I'm thinking about getting a trainer so it will motivate me even more.

mom2littleguys

Thanks everyone for all the great advice and opinions! I think I might see if our gym will let me do a free week or discounted week and decide from there.

chrisdavey

I have home gym with:
power rack
bench
3 BB's
about 400lbs weights
rubber flooring
resistance bands
medicine balls
a few KB's
boxing stuff
ab wheel
rings
elliptical trainer

I have probably spent about $2500AU or so on all that stuff but that is over a period of time and I have been using it for about 4 years now and will continue to. I don't need motivation to go the gym so that isn't an issue for me. No waiting for anything. Do it whenever I want. Go straight back inside afterwards, no driving, car parks, people staring etc.

I love my home gym!

mideon_696

I much prefer home workouts. But i simply dont have the room i need for the equipment i need.
Plus when lifting i can drop it and have no concerns...

Once i move, i'm going to buy a squat cage(providing squat/pullups/bench/dips capabilities) and an olympic weight set, rowing machine, some new med balls and some more Kettle bells...then i'll never need another membership.

The only other machine's i really use are the rower and the bike. Treadmill is useless for me, i just run outside : )

TBH, i sometimes find the gym to be so demotivating, lol. I reckon half the people who "lift" there are lazy...they spend more time talking about **** than they do lifting heavy stuff...and i find it so frustrating when i see people using bad form...!
SOO much nicer when there's no-one around and no distractions.

ObviousIndigo

I had a gym pass for a year... used it the first month or two faithfully and then just stopped going. I didn't like waiting for the machines and getting a machine that had sweat all over it. I didn't like the competitive feeling there. Not saying that others are competitive but I FEEL like they are:) I have resistance bands and numerous WII games and a medicine ball and a beautiful lake to walk around 2 blocks from my house. I also found that the classes didn't fit in with my schedule. All the ones that I wanted to take were during the day or on nights that I couldn't go. I work out hard at home and don't pig out because I have myself to be accountable too.

Mrs_McFadden

Oh I forgot to mention one other thing...
ickiness factor. I've read so many articles about Staph infections. Yeah I know that it's a bit paranoid of me and you can get it anywhere, but there is that increased chance. Anyway, whenever I start working out more efficiently and I need to ramp up my fitness routine to get increased results I will use a gym and get a personal trainer.

feelgoodoutside

Home for me, way quicker and easier.

I have:

Pullup Bar with gym Rings (my favourite)
Dip Bars
Pushup Bars
Power Push Up 2 resistance cables
10 dumbbells
Exercise bike

Future items I'd like:

Weighted vest
Kettlebells

That together with bodyweight exercises is enough to keep me more than busy, only problem is I have to be creative to find good subs for key barbell type lifts.

lhague

I like the gym for several reasons.

1. at home I am more apt to stop and not push myself

2. even tho there are the people we "love to hate" because of how magnificent they look, it's inspiration

3. you can see people there who are where you "started" from and it's a good pat on the back and keeps you focused and perhaps a stronger workout.

Those are just a few, good luck

lhague

Oh I forgot to mention one other thing...
ickiness factor. I've read so many articles about Staph infections. Yeah I know that it's a bit paranoid of me and you can get it anywhere, but there is that increased chance. Anyway, whenever I start working out more efficiently and I need to ramp up my fitness routine to get increased results I will use a gym and get a personal trainer.

I too am a germaphobe, so I always take my own disinfectant wipes, I see lots of people to the same.

fuzzymel

I go to the gym. It has more variety and its a mile walk from home so the walk is good exercise too.

kwardklinck

The gym offers more than just a treadmill. I actually attend the gym for the classes. Zumba and Power Pump are great. I do some working out at home. I have several dvds and several sets of dumbbells for at home workouts.

backinthenines

Gym!!!

I love my gym. It's so much more motivating. You're in an environment where people train, so you train. No stopping after 10 minutes to make yourself a cup of tea or answer the phone etc.

I can't even get my head around the idea of hopping around in front of my TV doint 'zumba' or whatever. Classes are great, but I would never do this on my own at home.

After a running injury my physio gave me some remedial exercises to do and I don't even do those at home, but when I take my resistance band to the club with me I do them!!

I love the atmosphere in my gym. I know a lot of people there and basically for me it's just a lot more fun.

However if you're not a lover of gyms then it's just not for you.

Yesterday there were two young girls in the gym I hadn't seen before. I have NEVER seen such utterly bored faces before. One sat next to me while I was in the middle of a 5k rowing session. She did just over 3 minutes very slowly on no resistance and then sat there looking at herself, arranging her hair, and then she walked off and did the samething on a couple of other machines, with her friend who looked just as bored. Never more than a couple of minutes, never with any effort put in. I kind of thought "if you think it's that dull, why bother".

backinthenines

The gym offers more than just a treadmill.

Very good point. Personally the stuff I love doing I couldn't really do at home even if I wanted to. I have a few classes that I love (mainly RPM, spin & Body Pump). But in the summer we do outdoor circuits, I like C2 rowing, I love my free weights and don't have that many weights at home (just a couple of kettlebells). I prefer to run outdoors anyway so I'm very rately seen on the dreadmill, but there is so much else to do.

Ally_Clare

I'd have to agree that the gym is the way to go for me. I can't seem to motivate myself to do something at home whereas at the gym i feel like i am already there so i may as well work out for an hour and then go home and relax afterwards knowing all the hard work is done. Spin classes = AMAZING

mideon_696

gym's have treadmills?
lol,. jk. i've honestly never set foot on a treadmill, lol.

Kkmama

Home!!! And just going outside!
I belonged to a gym and wasted a lot of money! I rarely went. I even had a personal trainer for about a year and it was all a waste of money, in my opinion.....
I am working out at home, and have not missed a work out and have not talked myself out of a work out either, which I thought I would never do.
The key for me is putting on my work out clothes and "Just Do It"! I have made it a non- negotiable, if I don't workout then I have to go for at least a 40 minute walk... and living in Canada in the middle of winter I would rather drag myself through a work out than walk in the freezing cold.
Good luck, just make sure it is something you will do.

crazeness

I work out at home to Biggest loser DVD's. I feel too self conscious to go to the gym at my current weight.

I am the same. At the moment I prefer to work out at home, also with a child it is much easier than waiting for hubby to get home or trying to find someone to watch him etc.

Quite a few years ago I used to like going to the gym but I weighed less then. Hopefully when I am not so self conscious I will start going again.

At the moment the home workout suits me just fine though.

morawjo

I prefer to workout at home. I feel like when I go to the gym...everyone stares at everyone else...it is really awkward. Like others have said already, I prefer to sweat and grunt and groan in the privacy of my own home and where I don't have to feel like everyone is staring at how bad my love handles are...lol.

ifeelsqueaky

I am happy doing either really. We used to have a cross trainer at home which was great and I used it a lot, but we moved to a smaller apartment so it's become a bit impractical. I recently joined a 24 hour gym which is perfect for me because I can't always get to the gym during 'normal' hours so if I do want to go late at night I can. The only thing I miss is classes but they might be starting some up soon anyway so it may all work out

I think it's all about personal preference and practicalities really - if you have the space for a home gym, great! If not, then the gym is good but I would say make sure you go for one that's convenient to get to otherwise you will think of excuses not to go

fmande

I need the gym. I have videos, a treadmill and many other exercise products at home, but I need to physically remove myself from the various distractions that are home. I also have a toddler, so when we go to the gym (YMCA) he has play time and I do not have to worry. I also really enjoy classes at the gym. Even if I am staring at the clock, it is often had for me to leave them early, so I end up getting a pretty decent workout.

squidgely

If I had the money, I'd love to go to the gym again. I like the whole going off to the gym thing. But at the moment I have a 21 month old and a 7 month old and I am at home all the time with them. When they are old enough to go to playschool etc I will be going back to work and so witll afford the gym again!
In the meantime, I am only using the Wii fit plus and going for walks and I am doing quite nicely on it. I've lost 9 pounds of the two stone of baby weight I need to lose.
The Wii fit keeps be motivated with the graphs and calorie counters. Using a workout dvd wouldn't work for me (and never has) as I need 'keeping track of progress' part of the Wii fit to make me want to keep on.