DIY Fridays – Do You Workout at Home to Save Money?
Hey people!
I want to try something for the next Fridays. The idea came from a cool discussion I had with one of my friends about saving money. We were discussing how people are trying to do everything themselves (the Do-It-Yourself or DIY movement) in order to save money. I’m actually a big fan of this technique but only to a certain extent. I sometimes find that it’s worthwhile paying for services sometimes as you need more specific advice or professional skills to achieve a certain task. I’ve tried to DIY many things in my life. Some with great success, others with great mistakes! So for the following Fridays, I’ll share my DIY adventures with you. Today’s DIY Friday is about working out at home.
Is it possible?
Are you just going to buy $1,000 of stuff that will collect dust in your basement?
Can you get “professional” results without a trainer?
It’s definitely not the easiest thing to do but I think you can make it. Here’s my story.
How I lost 35 Pounds and Got in Shape in 12 Months
Back in 2009, I was finishing my MBA. With 2 young kids (they were 2 1/2 and 6 months back then), a full time job and a full time MBA, all I wanted to do is to lay down on my couch or in my bed when I was getting back from work. This is how I got to 210 pounds in early 2009 (I’m 5’ 9’’). While I wasn’t the fattest guy on the block, I knew that I couldn’t continue this lifestyle any longer. In June, my MBA classes were done and was only left with my final paper to write. This is when I decided to take control of my health and weight and joined a gym.
huh?… I thought we were discussing a DIY method to workout at home?… bear with me a second… I’m getting there!
I started a workout program with a tight but feasible schedule: 1 hour per training session, 4 sessions a week. This wasn’t too much for my own schedule and I was going to get results. So in the span of 12 months, I lost 35 pounds and built muscle so I was THREE times stronger than I used to be (meaning I could weight three times what I started with). I didn’t take drugs, or shakes. In fact, I stayed away from extra protein and supplements too. I concentrated all my effort into 4 sessions of 1 hour a week. What’s the secret then? I never missed 1 training session in a year!
Now My Life Has Changed
Since 2010 (after my 1 year intense program), I have continued going to the gym with the same schedule. For 3 years, I’ve been changing my training program every 2-3 months to make sure I saw a constant progression. This was a true life changing moment as I’m not only in better shape physically; I’m also in a better shape psychologically. There is nothing better than running 30 minutes in the morning before going to work!
But now that I have 3 kids, I find it difficult to go to a gym, workout, take a shower, dress-up and go to work. This is a lot of time wasted in my day and it also cost me $60 a month. It was even more complicated for my wife as she can’t really leave the house with a 3 month old toddler to go to the gym (she is breastfeeding). So she asked me if we could buy a treadmill and put it in the basement. If my wife was going to workout at home, why wouldn’t I? This is why I decided to build my own gym at home. With my 3 years of experience in a gym, I knew I could do it.
My DIY Gym
You don’t need the big “pro set” to workout at home. In fact, you can build an awesome gym for less than $1,000. Here’s what I have in mine:
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