Gym v. Home Workouts - What Is Right For You?

Staying healthy takes a lot of work. I like to give rehabilitative exercises to my patients and make it easy to do them at home. I happen to go to the gym for my workouts and enjoy it but many people do not so it can be hard for them to be motivated to get to a gym.  Working out at home may be your best option to stay in shape and be healthy.  

Here are some pros and cons about working out at home versus a gym:

Every time you make the trip to the gym you have to make time to change, bring clothes to work if you are going directly after and leave time to take a shower afterward. Depending on how far the gym is, it can be a bit of a drive as well. It can take 2 hours to get a workout in and leave and get home. This can be hard to do if you work long hours and have a family you have to get back to. If you workout at home, you can save time. 

However, in my professional opinion working out at home is harder for most people because they get distracted and end up not working out. Coming home after work to do exercises can be hard if you have kids too. When you are home they want your attention. Gyms get crowded especially around new years resolution time (January and February). You may have to wait for equipment or may not be able to find room in the class you like. 

Normally after February most people have stopped going consistently and things go back to normal but if you are on a plan, it could get discouraging. Try to go on non-peak times. Mornings are pretty slow. Lunch and right after normal working hours are crowded. If you like people this may actually motivate you to go to the gym more because there is socializing at times and the energy level at the gym intensifies which makes setting goals or having a partner to work out with more possible. It is always more fun when you work out with someone who can motivate you! 

Things to think about:

1.  Machine costs:

Elliptical machines, treadmills, weights not only take up space at the house but can be costly to buy and maintain. You want to have high quality equipment for a safe workout and to make sure you are getting what you need to reach your health goals. The gym has it all covered and no maintenance is required on your part. Now, if you workout at home, you can buy therabands and place a mat to do certain exercises. Cardio you will probably have to do outside like a brisk walk, jog, run, bike ride.

2. Comfort:

Being comfortable when working out is very important. If you are the type of person that is self conscious of how you work out it can be very intimidating. Working out at home solves that problem. However, getting a trainer or committing to classes will make you follow through with a plan and become more comfortable with the sessions. Which one costs more money? Gym memberships normally just cover usage of the gym itself. Personal training, special classes and other services cost extra. Understanding this will make your life easier. Working out at home can cost money as well if you buy dvds or subscribe to workout programs. Either way you are spending money, you can go to a high end gym and pay hundreds per month or very little per month. You could also spend a lot of money dvds or online subscriptions. In my opinion, just choose what you feel more passionate about so you get motivated to use what you have purchased. So, whether you want to workout at a gym or at home is up to you. Just make sure your decision is getting you toward your goal. If not, you may either need to change the way you are going about working out or you may have to switch things around.

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(Hours may change due to doctor availability)

Hours in the mission district, San Francisco

Monday

8-12pm

Tuesday

Closed

Wednesday

3-6PM

Thursday

8-12PM

Friday

3-8PM

Saturday

8:00 am - 12:00 pm

Sunday

Closed

Hours in the mission district, San Francisco

Monday
8-12pm
Tuesday
Closed
Wednesday
3-6PM
Thursday
8-12PM
Friday
3-8PM
Saturday
8:00 am - 12:00 pm
Sunday
Closed