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Battle of the Bulge on a Budget:

7 Tips to Get Fit – plus 5 Must-Have Fitness Tools

Tough economic times taking a toll on that waistline?  Lean economic times don’t have to negatively affect your health, and while you can’t control the stock market, you can take charge of your health without spending a lot of money.  You may argue that your budget is stretched too thin to afford healthy foods and expensive gym memberships.  The truth is this: lack of money is seriously no excuse.  The economic situation is crazy right now – but that’s even more of a reason to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get moving!  Stress is the #1 killer – so do something good for yourself and take control of the things you can: your health and fitness!  Get this: 25% percent of Americans are increasing their exercise as a way to cope with the stress caused by our economic recession (Reuters).  So here are ideas to get and stay fit on any budget. 

 7 Tips to Get Fit on a Budget

1)   Stock up

Go to Costco or Sam’s Club and stock up on the non-perishable or freezable items such as lean chicken breasts, big boxes of brown rice, and frozen bags of vegetables that could feed an army.  Bonus: your fridge will be so full that you won’t have room for unhealthy options!

2)   Brown Bag It

A loaf of bread, lean turkey breast lunch meat, and the fixins’ for a healthy side salad cost you about $10 and yields about 10 meals, or about $1/meal whereas the average American spends about $7 per day on lunch. 

3)   Lace ‘em up

Chances are you already have most of what you need to get a good workout: tennies.  Even if that’s all you have you can hit the road running, go workout at the park, take a walk, do pushups/jumping jacks/pull-ups, go for a hike, do yard work, visit a local school playground…the ideas are endless.  Just get off your bum and move!

4)   Hit the library

Visiting the library is an additional way to get the body you want while saving money. The library will have all the resources you need such as: work out DVD’s, books on exercise, and magazines full of great workouts and healthy recipes. Plus: you’ll get to try new things out every few weeks so you can avoid getting bored.

5)   Log it

Research has proven that people who log their goals and workouts lose on average more weight than people who don’t track their progress. In one such study by Kaiser Permanente results showed that participants that kept a food journal lost an average of 20 lbs. more than participants that did not keep a journal.

6)   Eat at home

Nearly 71% of Americans are starting to cook more meals at home more versus eating out (Food Marketing Institute). Not only will you save money by dining in at home, but you’ll slash the number of calories, fat, and sodium you’re taking in too.  Added bonus: leftovers for lunch tomorrow (free)!

7)   Make Healthy Trade-offs

Most gyms offer specials for monthly fees as low as $20 per month – that’s the equivalent of giving up one Starbucks coffee per week.  Between the calories burned at the gym and calories saved by nixing the Frappuccino you save money and whittle away the waistline. 

 Now you’re armed with tips – here are some low-cost fitness tools to arm yourself with so that missing a workout is never an option. 

Top 5 Fitness Tools under $20

1)   Jump rope

Checkout the new weighted, adjustable jump rope from NIKE. For only $18 it is a take-anywhere, insta-cardio workout.

2)   Hand weights

 Pick up a set of 5 or 10 pounders for those quick at-home workouts – available at any sporting goods store or online at Amazon.com

3)   Fitness journal

It is proven, write it down, make it happen; the very premise behind the fitbook, a revolutionary line of 12-week fitness journals that includes weekly goal setting, daily tracking, fit tips – and it’s super portable and durable at less than $20.

4)   Free nutrition info

Look up nutrition information on just about everything – plus enter your recipes to see just how healthy they are, access articles on nutrition, and look up exactly what nutrients you need per day at  www.nutritiondata.com

5)   Free fitness calculators

From calculating your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) to determining the ideal ratio of protein, carbs, and fat you should be consuming – bodybuilding.com has fitness calculators for just about everything. While you’re there check out their great articles and extensive product selection.

Let’s face it – times are tough right now…but that makes it even more important to take care of yourself and enjoy life!  Say goodbye to your excuses all you penny pinchers –  you’re now armed with tips to get fit on any budget, plus the tools to make it happen.  So forward these to a friend, rally the troops, and get moving today!

About the Author:

Angela Manzanares, MBA, CPT, is the founder of fitlosophy, inc., a company dedicated to providing innovative fitness tools to revolutionize the way we integrate health and wellness into our lives. www.getfitbook.com

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Battle of the Bulge on a Budget

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