How to Save Money on Exercise
Posted by admin on December 17th, 2011Working out at home with exercise videos can help you get fit while saving time and money. The videos can also be a lot of fun. Your kids may even want to join in when they see you dancing in front of the TV. While buying new exercise videos is cheaper than joining a gym, you can save even more money by getting them for free or much lower than you would pay at the store. Read on to find out how!
1. Free Videos Online
YouTube has a large selection of exercise videos. Some are excerpts taken from longer programs, and others are complete programs. Just type “exercise” in the search box to find them. You can also look for more specific types of exercise. For example, try searching “aerobics,” “yoga,” or “strength training.” If you want to confine your search to full programs, click on “filter,” and select “longer than 20 minutes.” While YouTube is one of the best online resources for exercise videos, many other sites also offer videos for free. The best way to find them is to use Google. Do a search for “free exercise videos,” and you will get literally millions of links. You can narrow it down, just as you can with YouTube, by adding words relating to specific kinds of exercise. You can also add the words “full length” to your search words to see videos that have complete routines.
2. Free Videos on TV
You can find a variety of exercise programs on TV. In some ways, these are even better than the videos you have to pay for, because many TV exercise programs show different routines in each episode. Doing new routines helps make exercising more interesting. Most of the public broadcasting stations show exercise programs on a regular basis. Many of the shows are broadcast in the early morning. If you are busy getting the kids ready for school when the programs air, you could record the shows and watch them at a more convenient time. If you have cable, check to see if your channel line-up includes an exercise channel. Sometimes, health channels will also show exercise programs. Also check your “On Demand” service. Some cable systems include a section for exercise videos in their “On Demand” service, even if you don’t have a regular exercise channel. Even though you have to pay for feature movies in the “On Demand” service, you can play the exercise videos for free.
3. Videos at Your Library
A great resource for free exercise videos is the public library system. If you haven’t used your library in a while, check to see if they have an online site where you can reserve materials. If they do, then you can reserve the exercise videos of your choice from the convenience of your home computer. Some library systems also let you reserve material from different branches and then pick it up at the branch nearest you. Some libraries also offer streaming video from their online sites. If yours does, then you won’t even have to leave the house to pick up a DVD. You can just hit a few buttons and play the exercise program right away.
4. Cheap Videos at Yard Sales & Thrift Stores
Many people like to try new exercise videos and get rid of the ones they already have. You can pick up great bargains at yard sales, garage sales, rummage sales and thrift stores. If you still have a VCR player, you can find many VCR tapes that may cost as little as a few cents each.
Janey Grey likes to write about fitness, saving money & frequent backgroundcheck.org.