Want to work out in a gym-like atmosphere but don’t want to fork out the hundreds of dollars required for a membership? For those of us who either don’t like to or can’t run outside, and can’t find a way into the local fitness center, we’ve compiled some tips for you when it comes to creating your own home gym.
Check it out at the library. A staple of any home gym is exercise videos. These are a great way to get sweating with minimal cost involved, but when the minimal cost drops to “zero” it’s as budget friendly as you can get! Most libraries carry work out tapes and videos in their media sections, and the larger ones are likely to have DVDs as well. This is a great way to get some serious variety into your workout video regimen, as well, since you can bring back the old tapes and pick up new ones every week without spending a dime!
Work out with a buddy. Instead of spending 50 dollars or more on a personal trainer, why not try working out with a friend in the comfort of your own homes? This is a great way to get you both motivated to work out, as you’ll have to deal with the sense of “letting the other person down” if you cop out for a day. You can either encourage each other or compete against each other as you desire and it’s all free!
Used gym equipment is cheaper. If you’ve always wanted a stationary bike but just can’t justify spending the hundreds if not thousands of dollars required to get one into your home, try Craigslist for used equipment. You might balk a little bit at first, but think about it, people pay hundreds of dollars to share gym equipment with total strangers at gyms. What’s so different about purchasing an item that’s been in somebody else’s home? Give it a chance and you’ll save big.
Make your own weights. This will depend on how strong you are and how much resistance you need, but you can often create a reasonable exercise plan for yourself by either using your own body as weight – push up, sit ups, lunges – or by filling jars and cans with rocks, sand, or other heavy materials and using that in lieu of expensive dumbbells.
Use cables instead of weights. If you need more resistance but don’t want to buy traditional weights, try cables. These can be used in many ways to give even the strongest individual a great workout, but are much smaller, easier to store, and less expensive than dumbbells.
Posted in Recipe on May 12, 2012
Ingredients
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup finely chopped cucumber
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon dried mint, crushed
4 large pita bread rounds
4 lettuce leaves
6 ounces thinly sliced fully cooked deli chicken breast
1 small tomato, thinly sliced
1/3 cup crumbled reduced fat feta cheese
Directions
For dressing: In a small mixing bowl stir together yogurt, cucumber, dill weed, and mint. Set aside. For Sandwich: Place a pita bread round on a plate. Top with lettuce, chicken, tomato, and feta cheese. Spoon dressing on top. Roll up the pita bread. Secure with wooden toothpicks. Serve immediately.
When thinking about heart disease, we know that a change in diet is often needed. In today’s world of fast and convenient foods, people think more of saving time than saving calories and fat. If we can be just a little bit more conscious about what we are eating, then we can greatly reduce our risk of heart disease in the future.
One of the best ways we can change up our diet is by restricting our use of solid fats like butter, bacon, and gravies. These are known as Saturated and Trans fats. We often use these fats to help prepare the food we cook. Some great low-fat alternatives are olive oil, yogurt, and fresh fruit. Try to also be label-conscious and read the contents. Look for ingredients like polyunsaturated fats found in nuts and seeds and monounsaturated fats found in canola and olive oil. Be wary of the boxes labeled “reduced fat” though as they often still contain the bad fats.
Something else we can do is to choose meats that are lower in fat. Fish is always a healthy choice and most even contain the heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids our bodies need. These omega-3 fatty acids can actually reduce our levels of triglycerides. Lean cuts of pork, beef, chicken breast and turkey are also great choices. Beans and other legumes are a wonderful meat alternative, while still providing our bodies with needed protein. Soy and tofu have become popular in recent years also adding to the meat alternatives list.
The largest dietary change we can make is adding more fruits and vegetables. Many Americans do not even eat half of the servings the food guide recommends as it is not convenient. Fruits and vegetables are chock full of vitamins and minerals, the things we need each and every day.
Soluble fiber is often found in fruits and vegetables and is an excellent source for reducing our cholesterol levels. Fruits and vegetables have also been proven to help reduce heart disease. By snacking on these tasty treats, we are less likely to snack on something higher in fat.
It is easy to keep fruits and vegetables in the fridge ready for snacking as most just need a quick rinse in water and we can munch away. Sometimes even keeping vegetables such as carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower already cut up in the fridge or a bowl of fruit on the counter makes it easier for us to grab and go if we are in a rush.
Whole grains, as found in bread and pasta, are another great dietary change we can make to help our heart. Choosing 100whole wheat breads and pastas gives us the nutrients we need that we cannot get from other foods. We also need to be aware of our salt intake. Salt is a huge heart enemy resulting in higher cholesterol levels. Processed foods often have added salt, so by choosing fresher foods, we are cutting our salt intake.
By adding more of these foods to our diets on a daily basis, not only are we reducing our risk of heart disease, but an added side effect is weight loss!
