Fitness on a Budget

My client, we’ll call her Carol, is a single mother with two children and an ex-husband that can’t seem to keep a job.  Since she can’t rely on child support, she must work long hours to cover her expenses and take care of her children.

I met Carol when I first moved to Phoenix.  She’s a great nail technician! I was so thankful to find her.  Two years ago, when I lost my job, I couldn’t afford her services anymore.  We decided to barter our services with each other.  It has worked out great.   I train her once a week and she takes care of my nails and pedis. 

If you have a service or a business, you may want to consider joining a barter group.  The barter group I belong to, Value Card, has 5 personal trainers listed and 2 fitness clubs to choose from in the Phoenix area.  In addition, there are several health and fitness related business’s that are members.  Some barter groups are local and some are regional or national.  Value Card serves Arizona, California, New York and a few other areas.  They are a great way to take care of your personal needs.

If you don’t have a business or can’t afford to join a barter group (typically about $200-$500 to join) then you might want to consider finding a local personal trainer that you could trade services with.  Just because you don’t have a business doesn’t mean you don’t have something to offer.  Some ideas to consider:  housecleaning, running errands, marketing or office work.  Most personal trainers hate marketing, bookkeeping, etc.  They want to spend their available time working with their clients.  Post what you have to offer on Craigslist or just call a few trainers and offer your services.

Another idea is reduced fees for becoming a walking billboard for your trainer.  As you become more fit you rave about your trainer to those people you know and send business his/her way.

Okay, maybe you don’t have time for bartering or can’t think of any bartering skills you may have.  The next best thing is to go to Amazon or eBay and purchase some good fitness books or dvds that you can use at home.  First you want to visit some reputable fitness websties such as ACE, IDEA Fitness or NASM to see what books/dvds they are promoting and then search for them at a reduced price on auction sites.  The previous mentioned fitness organizations are also great sources for getting started on a fitness program.  Many have workouts you can download that will help you get started.

Not having the money to join a gym or hire a trainer is no excuse for not exercising.  You can workout at home with minimal or no equipment.  Bands, balls and body weight are great for indoors.  Outdoors look for  parks, sidewalks, hiking trails or recreation centers.   There are so many resources on the internet!  Be creative!

Hello world!

Welcome to Fit to the Core’s “Everything you ever wanted to know about fitness” blog.  Everyday people are bombarded with conflicting health and fitness messages by the media.  It can be overwhelming.  I hope to clear up some of those conflicting messages by sharing what I have learned over the years and what I am still learning.  The fitness industry is a young industry that is constantly changing and evolving.  Let me clear up some of the confusion.