Fitness

Exercising requires budgeting time and money so you reach your fitness goals

Published

54 mins ago

July 22, 2024

Exercising requires budgeting time and money so you reach your fitness goals

For Lauren Pradhan, squeezing in a workout means waking up earlier than everyone else in her family and surely not having time to go to an actual gym.

Her home in Edina would have to suffice. So during the pandemic, Pradhan invested in a Peloton bike, a stationary bike with a touch screen for streaming classes that currently costs $1,445 for a new model or $89 for a monthly rental.

Pradhan’s new routine started with 5 a.m. workout sessions.

“Waking up and actually getting out of bed when it is pitch black outside in January is ridiculously hard,” she said. “Telling the voice in my head that said, ‘You don’t need to do this’ [that] ‘I actually do’ was a massive mind-over-matter mental shift.”

It took a solid 60 days of consistent exercise to build the routine, she said, but she’s currently riding a 77-consecutive week streak.

“I quickly saw that daily fitness made me a better leader, strategist, partner and parent,” said the chief executive and founder of Tesser Advisory, a Twin Cities strategic consulting firm. “It made my mind clearer, my ability to hold the complexities of my day easier, and my patience grew. Also, if I wanted my kids and those around me to be active, I realized I needed to model the behavior.”

For many people like Pradhan, finding 30 minutes of exercise time in a daily or even weekly routine is a challenge and that’s before factoring in the cost of gym memberships or equipment. Experts say starting a routine and developing a road map is the biggest hurdle, so here is some advice from trainers, fitness experts and people who mastered their own fitness journey on how to create an affordable workout plan:

Pay for personal help

Either throughout your fitness transformation or at the onset, having a personal trainer or coach is worth the investment.

From a beginner unsure of how to start to someone returning to fitness who needs an updated routine, having an expert removes the intimidation factor from the process, said Stacy Anderson, global brand president at Anytime Fitness.

“A coach can help not only orient you to the equipment but also teach you how to do the movement in a way that you’re not going to hurt yourself,” she said.

Jon Schoen, the founder of Minneapolis startup Trunkdrop, was previously a personal trainer in Los Angeles. Some of his clients were executives, attorneys and even celebrities. At the onset of the training program, Schoen would ask lifestyle questions to determine how to fit fitness into their daily routines.

Whether it was 5 a.m. or 5 p.m., each client set aside mandatory time for exercising. Having someone hold you responsible for scheduled workouts helps in those initial weeks, he said. It takes 21 days of consecutive, intense workouts to build a solid habit. After that, the body becomes dependent on positive neuro chemicals released during workouts, he said.

Despite the never-ending library of fitness tutorials on YouTube, a trainer helps close the education barrier, Schoen said. And it’s not just paying for education or workout plans. The initial assessment from a trainer is crucial, he said.

“You have to know where you’re starting from,” he said. “You need a road map. And it’s got to be with someone who is worth their salt.”

Schoen recommends people ask for referrals when seeking a trainer. The best referral is from someone who has had success (or possesses a physique you aspire to have).

When joining a gym, like Anytime Fitness, a reoccuring coaching session is an added cost. According to industry data, the cost for an in-person trainer can range from $30 to $300 an hour.

“A lot of people just don’t know how to get started or hadn’t seen the progress that they wanted to see when they have started,” Anderson said. “The most important equipment you can have is a coach that helps you, who guides you through the moments where you might not be feeling so motivated and cheers you on.”

Make it affordable

In addition to lack of time and motivation, price is another barrier that can prevent people from getting fit.

While not everyone can afford a Peloton, personal trainer or even month-to-month membership to a gym, it’s not as expensive as you would think for basic access to exercise, especially if you analyze where your excess cash is going.

“When you think about where you’re spending your money, what’s more important than your health?” Anderson said. “When you think about all the things we spend in a day — subscriptions services, a $6 cup of coffee, a drink, fast food, dinner out, all those things — if you start to think about it, for less than $1.50 a day, you’re getting support inside and outside the club, and you’re getting physical and mental health, and you’re getting more healthy years. It almost seems absurd that we invest in sitting in front of the screen and not investing in our health.”

That’s the rationale Pradhan applied to buying an exercise bike.

“I honestly thought about it on a cost per day basis and realized that for $5 a day in the first year, I could really make this commitment,” she said.

The average membership price at Anytime Fitness is around $45 per month, Anderson said, adding that fees depend on location, as the company operates on a franchise system. Planet Fitness memberships start at $15 per month. Crunch Fitness basic memberships start at $9.99.

Some gyms and fitness studios offer free one-day guest passes and weeklong trials to give potential clients time to decide. You can also buy one-day passes. If you already have an annual membership, you can ask to freeze or pause your membership.

For those seeking inexpensive hybrid options, most gym chains and fitness providers have an app, where trainers offer live and on-demand classes you can view at home or from a hotel if traveling. Apple Fitness, for instance, is free for the first three months and then $9.99 per month for those with Apple products. It’s free for those with an Anytime Fitness membership, Anderson said.

Use your body

Not all exercises require equipment, either. Bodyweight-only exercises are a good source of strength training, Schoen said. There’s also taking short walks, Anderson said.

When he started his fitness journey, Subhadip Kumar of Blaine had his employer reimburse 50% of his gym membership fee, up to $300 in value. That is part of his employee benefits program while working at Canadian Pacific Kansas City.

Kumar had reached 250 pounds when he decided to lose weight through exercise. After two years, he lost 100 pounds. A comment from his wife sparked his health motivation.

“She feared I wouldn’t live to see our child’s wedding if I continued down this path,” he said.

Kumar joined a kickboxing and strength training class. He also joined Crunch Fitness and goes at least five days a week. He also switched his diet. While it was important for him to consume more healthy foods, it became more expensive to do so. Compared with his previous meal types, “preparing food for your healthy, balanced diet is more expensive than regular junk food,” Kumar said.

“When asked about my secret, I always say it wasn’t the exercise,” he said. “It was the discipline.”

Fitness

Pilates instructor shares a 20-minute full-body Pilates workout to sculpt muscle and boost metabolism

Published

8 hours ago

July 22, 2024

Press Room

Pilates instructor shares a 20-minute full-body Pilates workout to sculpt muscle and boost metabolism

Work your whole body in just 20 minutes with this full-body Pilates HIIT workout.

Created by Alo Moves and led by Pilates instructor and ex-dancer Bianca Wise, the workout requires one weight — Wise uses a Pilates ball, but you could use one of the best adjustable dumbbells, a medicine ball, kettlebells, or similar — and an exercise mat.

Part of the Alo Moves no-jumping HIIT Pilates series, the short routine is designed to bring high energy using boxing and Pilates principles alongside a light weight. Here’s how to do the workout yourself, the benefits and our verdict.

Watch the 20-minute full-body Pilates workout by Alo Moves:

Pilates is renowned for building a strong core, improving balance, stability, posture and coordination and strengthening muscles from head to toe.

It’s amazing what an hour of Pilates can do for your body when you practice consistently.

The Alo Moves series focuses on different areas of the body, and this session is a full-body workout. It’s moderate difficulty and level 3 intensity, which means you can expect to sweat and ramp up your heart rate, but it’s rated an intermediate-level class. It’s also low impact and kind on your joints without plyometric movements like jumping or burpees.

“Work yourself from your head to your toes in this 20-minute Pilates HIIT class — no jumping necessary,” the team says. “You’ll start with a timed circuit, add an EMOM in the middle and finish with another circuit moving fast and furious with a Pilates ball.” EMOM simply means you’ll perform exercises every minute on the minute, which is a great way to add intensity and keep you accountable.

If you don’t have a Pilates ball, pick up a dumbbell or similar instead. Even a filled water bottle could work if you have limited gym equipment, but be mindful of the slamming and tapping motions if you’re not using the ball.

Things get fiery fast and just because you’re not jumping around, that doesn’t mean the intensity doesn’t skyrocket; Wise uses fast-paced Pilates exercises and brings them together with very little rest and some ballet-based work thrown in for good measure.

My verdict on the no-jumping HIIT Pilates routine

You’ll move through this class in stages: act one is a cardio-focused heart raiser and act two is strength and core-based, slowing things down to work through exercises like downward dog, bear planks, a take on lateral shoot-throughs and supermans, with control focusing on muscle contraction and activation. Act three repeats act one but on the other side of your body.

Wise is proof that although throwing heavy weights around in a gym can be fun, a high-tempo Pilates workout worth its salt can be just as challenging for your muscles, especially if you’re not used to training this way.

Programming is also a key factor; Wise works one side of the body at a time, dividing both the circuits by left and right sides. She sandwiches the strength session in the middle like a juicy filling, so while it’s a chance to get your breath back, you’ll feel every muscle group switching on as you work to keep your body stable, posture correct and breath under control.

If you don’t have much experience with Pilates, I recommend checking out some Pilates for beginners routines first. Working with a Pilates instructor will help you understand the main principles of the practice, work on alignment and get a feel for exercises you’re likely to encounter outside of the class setting.

It’s also crucial to learn how to engage your core properly before heading into any workout, not just Pilates or yoga. Proper core engagement is the powerhouse of all movement, including weightlifting and running, and often the difference between a functional, healthy body and picking up tons of injuries during your workouts.

If you haven’t tried the series before, I recommend a light ball and slowly increase the weights as you get stronger.

Fitness

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Published

15 hours ago

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Fitness

Is It Possible to Burn 1,000 Calories a Day?

Published

23 hours ago

July 21, 2024

Press Room

Is It Possible to Burn 1,000 Calories a Day?

Burning 1,000 calories a day might sound like a lofty goal, but it’s not as far-fetched as it seems. Whether you’re an athlete looking to boost performance or someone looking to shed extra pounds, understanding how calorie burning works is essential for reaching your health and fitness goals. That’s why we spoke with certified personal trainers and fitness experts who explain how you can burn 1,000 calories a day through regular exercise and increased daily activity, making it an achievable goal regardless of your fitness level.

Increasing your daily calorie expenditure can accelerate weight loss, improve cardiovascular health, and boost overall fitness. Additionally, torching more calories can ramp up your metabolism, helping you maintain a healthy weight. However, it’s crucial to approach your calorie-burning goals with a balanced perspective and a well-structured plan. Pushing yourself too hard, not recovering between workouts, and poor nutrition habits can thwart your calorie-burning efforts, potentially leading to injuries and burnout. That’s why health and fitness experts stress the importance of incorporating rest days into your routine and eating a balanced diet rich in essential nutrients.

Now, let’s explore how you can burn 1,000 calories a day, along with practical tips and expert advice on maintaining this goal in the long term.

What are calories, and how is calorie burn measured?

“Calories are units of energy used to measure the energy content of foods,” explains TJ Mentus, CPT, a certified personal trainer at Garage Gym Reviews. “The calories in food give your body the energy it needs to function and perform all the activities needed to stay alive, such as breathing, moving, and circulating blood. The excess is stored as fat when the body consumes more calories than it needs for energy. When caloric consumption is less than the body needs, it burns fat to make up the deficit that does not come from nutrition. A heart rate tracker is the best way to measure caloric burn since calorie burn is correlated with heart rate. This is because the heart rate increases, so does the need for oxygen, which requires more energy.”

10 Ways To Maximize Your Calorie Burn in Just 30 Minutes

Calorie burn is influenced by several factors, such as your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), which is the number of calories your body needs to maintain basic physiological functions at rest. According to the National Academy of Sports Medicine, your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) includes BMR multiplied by a certain physical activity multiplier based on how much exercise you get a week. Factors like age, weight, gender, and activity level also significantly impact how many calories you burn daily.

40 Easy Ways to Burn Extra Calories Every Day

Is burning 1,000 calories a day possible?

burning calories on fitness tracker concept — Shutterstock

Burning 1,000 calories daily is possible, but the odds of success vary widely depending on your fitness level and body type. Physically active people and those with larger bodies or more muscle mass may find burning 1,000 calories easier than those who are sedentary, smaller in size, or lacking muscle.

“A typical strength workout will burn 300 to 400 calories in one hour on average,” says Mentus. “One hour of running will burn between 600 to 700 calories. Looking at those two typical forms of exercise, you will need to exercise at least two hours a day, which may not be realistic for most people. Unless you’re already in good shape, I would not suggest going right into two hours of working out as you will place yourself at a higher risk of burnout and possible injury.”

6 Workouts That Burn the Most Calories & Help You Lose Weight Faster

How long do you have you have to exercise to burn 1,000 calories?

table demonstrating how long it takes to burn 1,000 calories from various exercises — Eat This, Not That!

Again, the time required to burn 1,000 calories varies widely based on body type, age, fitness level, and the form of exercise.

“Higher intensity activities generally burn more calories,” says Kyrie Furr, CPT, a certified personal trainer and performance coach with Barbend. “For example, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts can vary widely in intensity, but they typically involve alternating between bursts of high-intensity exercise and periods of rest or lower intensity.”

Furr points out that for many individuals, torching 1,000 calories may require a combination of exercises and physical activity scattered throughout the day rather than one long, intense workout.

12 Most Effective Exercises for a Quick Calorie Burn

Safety and risks of burning 1,000 calories a day:

middle-aged woman jogging or running outdoors, concept of workout to lose body fat in your 40s — Shutterstock

Burning 1,000 calories a day is an ambitious goal with potential risks. Pushing yourself too hard can lead to overtraining and inadequate recovery time, potentially resulting in injuries, fatigue, and burnout. That’s why balancing intense workouts with proper nutrition, hydration, and rest is essential to continue exercising consistently and burning calories sustainably.

Before starting any new workout routine, speak with a fitness professional or your health care provider to help avoid injury and burnout while staying on track toward your health and fitness goals.