Getting in shape is all the rage these days…and you just have to watch the late night infomercials to see how much people are looking to spend on gym equipment in order to get in shape.

But rather than doing that, I want to show you how to lose weight without braking the bank. The tips and ideas I will give you are designed to slim your waistline while fattening your wallet.

Getting in shape involves two things…strength training to build muscle and proper cardio training to get your heart rate up for long enough to burn fat. I am going to show you how to do both from your living room.

Strength Training on a Budget

Dump the gym membership and Build Your Home Gym-It might sound expensive…real expensive…but there are a few simple tips that will allow you to save a boatload of money while not paying the gym dues.

First of all, rather than a large set of dumbbells, get a set of resistance bands. These are hollow rubber tubes that mimic the resistance offered by dumbbells. The great advantage of resistance bands is that they weigh just a few ounces, are easily transportable to your office or while you are on vacation and can easily be changed from one tube to another to vary the resistance per workout.

Resistance bands start around $30 and go up from there, but within about 60 days they will pay for themselves by not paying gym dues.

The only other piece of equipment you may want to consider is a chin-up bar. This is designed to attach to a door frame to allow you to do pull ups from home. I got mine for $30…so between this and the resistance bands I spent around $100 and get all the benefits of going to the gym.

Cardio on a Budget

When you think of cardiovascular exercises, you probably have this image of people walking endlessly on a treadmill. Well, no treadmill is necessary to get your heart rate up. Here are a few ideas to get your heart up sans treadmill…

  • Kickboxing-it certainly is a far more active workout than the treadmill…and you definitely will not get bored. The way I would recommend going about this is to go to your local library and get a DVD/Blu Ray of a few programs and try them out. If you see one you like then you can buy it on eBay or Amazon…but it will allow you to try out a few programs to see which is the best for you.
  • Yoga-quite possible the best overall workout you can do…yoga combines strength training, cardio vascular benefits and flexibility. I would recommend the same approach. Get the DVD/Blu Ray from the library and check them out.
  • Walking-how much does it cost you to take a power walk outside? Unless you are going to a state park it’s free. The key is to walk fast enough and long enough to make the exercise effective for you.

About The Author:

Tony Rovere regained his health, strength and vitality by losing 60 pounds and managing to keep it off for over 4 years.

This is why he shares his weight loss tips at health-and-weight-loss-tips.com, where he shares his passion for health and fitness with others so that they can accomplish the same goals that he has achieved.