Strength Training Without a Gym

lambjoo

Can anyone share some strength training that works without going to a gym? I really can't afford a gym membership or the expensive home gyms. Does anyone have any ideas of a way to strengh train without spending over $40 or $50 on equipment? The budget has gotten a little tight lately.

A little history ...... I do cardio 4 to 5 days a week, usually on the ellipitcal we have at home or running while the kids are at band practice, and I take Tae Kwon Do twice a week with my boys and in my few spare moments do some pilates maybe once or twice a week because I enjoy the "zen-ness" of it. I would really love to do more strength training but can't afford to join the gym (and with kids, a full time job and taking care of my parents who are in poor health, I don't know where I would fit it in time wise).

I read on the forum all of the time how much strength training helps. I am 44 year old and about 10 pounds away from where I want to be, but would love to on incorporate strength training as a permanent part of my work out routine and be able to do it at home.

jayaprathappsg

I would do free squats and push ups. No equipment required. Its one of the natural and most effective exercises for mankind. They both strengthen the core
I am sure there are tons of videos on you tube on the right way to do it.
After this, you can prolly invest in a pair of dumbbells(used maybe?) and there are so many exercises to do at home.
If you have a little more budget, may be a bar and some free weights or a kettlebell

srhershey

I love Jillians 30 Day Shred workout and the DVD is pretty cheap. All you need is some hand weights and you're good to go. When I did the workout, I definately lost inches and started to build muscle. Squats are great and so are pushups. If you can afford it, buy Insanity. I'm on my second round of Insanity and love it. Both types of DVDs have helped me build muscle, lose inches, and lose weight.

Yukongil

resistance bands might be good for you, a decent set is like 20 bucks at most places. A nearly unlimited number of exercises can be performed with them, and they can add additional resistance to squats, situps, pushups and the like, makiing them even better!

bcf7683

You would benefit greatly from researching body weight strength training. Push ups, pull ups, pop squats, lunges, dips... Things that utilize your own body weight as the resistance. You could also get an exercise band, some free weights, or a kettlebell (they're fairly cheap at Walmart. I also see free weights/kettlebells pop up a lot at garage sales). If you do some research, I bet you can find a whole routine already formulated, all you would have to do is follow it.

I have a large square area rug in my basement with my kettlebells, free weights, exercise ball, bands, and jump rope for days when I don't have time to hit the gym for my regular routine. I can usually get down there for about 30-40 minutes and still have a good workout with minimal equipment.

Here's a good starting point- http://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/full-body-bodyweight-workout.html

katamus

I don't go to a gym either. Check out the link I found for strength training body weight exercises:

http://greatist.com/fitness/50-bodyweight-exercises-you-can-do-anywhere-030612/

suelegal

well if you are thinking heavy lifting, there's no way around not having free weights in the house. I workout at home, I'm doing New Rules of Lifting for Women, and thankfully my husband bought the equipment several years ago so I have pretty much everything I need - squat rack, bench with pull down bar, barbells, dumbbell bars and loads of free weights.

As a lighter lifting program, how about filling bags with canned goods totaling the weight you want to use? Not as stable as free weights but it could work until you decide if you want to invest in the at home equipment.

DeathKitty23

I strengh train at home - just get some free weights and follow the same workouts as someone would do in the gym
Weight equipment isn't expensive and remember that you donl;t need a huge amount at the beginning
If you get better and need extra weight you can buy a a couple of more discs here and there as you progress
x

waldo56

It takes more research, but you can train to extremely high strength levels at home with little equipment (pullup bar is an absolute necessity, things like DB's, weight vests, parallettes, etc... are niceties that you can add as time goes on as needed).

Everyone knows the basic callisthenics (pushups, squats, pullups).

Places like beastskills.com, alkavadlo.com, and gymnasticbodies.com, and groups like the barstarzz on Youtube will help lead you toward ever higher resistances as you get stronger and stronger.

You'll have to learn how to program yourself and learn how to apply the concept of leverage to progression, but it is very doable. But you also have to be able to withstand the constant pressure of conventional ironhead wisdom (for example you will have to question the very nature of what strength is when it comes to legs, strength is measured a variety of ways in the upper body, with legs the only strength that matters to a lot of people is how much you can bilaterally squat for some reason, you have to break free of that dogma internally, I personally see vertical jump height as a much better measure of leg strength).

MinnieInMaine

Definitely look into plymetric body weight exercises as others have said. My friend's nephew is in training for a circus troupe...they only do these sorts of exercises and this boy is buff! Just make sure you're really careful about your form, as with any strength training.

One really cheap way to get free weights is to use gallon jugs of water - they weigh about 8 pounds each. You could even start out only filling them part way and them work up to using them completely full. And if the handles are narrow enough, you can even double up once you build up strength.