To fellow Michiganders/bad weather exercisers

reba971

Hello, I live in northern Michigan and it is getting too cold to go outside to workout...ok I could go out there and walk, but I hate to be cold...so I wont. I don't do exercise videos, hate them, and I do ride my exercise bike, but I need some new ideas. A gym is too far, we are in a very rural area, I would have to drive at least 30 miles to go to a gym and I can't afford it anyway. I was looking into kettle bell, and a few other things. What are your favorite indoor/at home workouts?

ALH1981

I think if you really want to you can do it - push yourself to go to the gym, put in a really great session a few times a week - it will be worth it - a sense of satisfaction.

I know what you mean about outside though, i came from a VERY warm weather climate and was used to running outside every day - now living in chicago and i can't do it - i have to get on a treadmill which i hate, but i ALWAYS feel good afterwards...

Push yourself through it - the results are worth that bit of pain

SeaSiren1

I have a full gym, squat rack with all the bells and whistles, full set of free weights, calf machine, tread and stepper. I have added on a piece at a time.

I'm actually from the east coast (MD Beach), and I preferred climate control and trained mostly inside. It really fits now that I live in MI!

KyleB65

Yoga mixed in with some calisthenics.

Roadie2000

What do you have against exercise videos? I never thought I would like them either until I tried Insanity and got hooked.

ninamm3

Change your mind about going outside. Get some good compression tights and tops and layer up (old navy.com is cheaper than some others)! You'll burn calories from walking AND from trying to keep your body temp up! IT really is a winning situation. You can do jacks or run in place inside to get the warmth started before you head out the door...maybe you'll even find yourself jogging and enjoying the fresh air!?

Goose28in

Get a Wii.

OLFATUG

I run outside in the rain, snow, and temperatures down to about 0. However, when it gets to be too much, I do any one of the following:

Treadmill in my basement
Weights and treadmill at my gym (about 15 minutes away)
Push ups and sit ups (25 PU/ 25 SU, 24 PU / 24 SU, etc all the way down to 1) ... it feels like your being killed.

Usbornegal

I use the gym - but it is only about 10 minutes from my house. Perhaps you could schedule trips to the gym along with trips to the store, etc. in bad weather. If I got snowed in and totally couldn't get out, I have a stationary bike in the basement and would do some of the things I have learned from my trainer that don't require special equipment. And I should get my treadmill fixed just in case.

mzkynd

Another Michigander here, who doesn't like cold, lol and lives way out, so going to the gym is not feasible, I try try to work with my exercise ball, ab roller, crunches, up/down stairs numerous times. ( make a point to always leave something up/down stairs so no matter what I am I am constantly going up or down the stairs. a I am not a fan per say of exercise videos however I have some that I enjoy and they come out all winter long. Leslie Sansone, WATP, Tae-Bo, etc...
and every day that the sun peeks out I make myself take a power walk, I may be cold when I start but once I get going isn't so bad. Hubby is trying to get me interested in winter sports, such as snowshoeing, and while I don't love them, it does help with the cabin fever!

andiimarie

I'm also in Michigan so I feel your pain. How about exercise classes? I find them more fun than just going to the gym by myself. I especially enjoy water aerobics. I've been doing an aquafit interval class. Also, every time I need to shovel snow, I throw on my heart rate monitor and count every teeny tiny calorie I burn doing that. Shoveling is something that has to be done but you can turn it into a positive by rewarding yourself with the calories burned!