Workout Wednesday: Home vs. Fitness Center

I've always been a one-or-the-other-not-both type of exerciser, either making routine visits to a fitness center or working out to videos at home. I've also always had to have a routine, whatever it was, but this time around everything is different, and surprisingly I'm completely fine with working out wherever and whenever. However, even though I have been able to successfully incorporate exercise at both locations, each provides unique benefits and challenges to supporting my weight-loss goals.

FITNESS CENTER

NOT the fitness center I use; I don't

want to be sued ;-)

Pros

My first preference is to exercise at a fitness center. It becomes a place I look forward to visiting, a place of refuge where I am allowed to stop thinking about everything else in my life and simply focus on me. I like being with other people who are working toward similar goals of strength and good health. Cardio machines become dance floors as I crank up my favorite songs and get to moving like nobody's business (yes, it's been a while since I've been on a real dance floor). This time around it has also become a place of firsts as I am doing things I've never done before, things I thought I couldn't do for a long time, or ever, such as boxing. I've wanted to try it for years, and after just one session I'm hooked, so much so that I'm going to look for an actual boxing class to satisfy my new desire for throwing punches ;-)

Cons

I'm still not comfortable doing floor exercises on my own and I don't know if I ever will be because I don't like being watched; I prefer to hide in the background for certain things and this is definitely one of them.

Also, it's not always convenient to go to the gym. Last week I found out the hard way that to get in one hour of exercise before work, I have to arrive 2.5 hours before I have to be at work. That's no small sacrifice!

AT HOME WORKOUTS

Coconut, one of my foster kitties,

takes a well deserved break after

doing some mountain climbers ;-)

Pros

This is perfect for when I just want a little something extra, particularly during the two days I take off from the fitness center. So far I've focused on small things, like sit-ups and planks (grrr, planks, I will conquer you yet). I've even learned to be a bit creative, like last night when I wanted to get my heart rate up for a while. I pulled out my dusty old step (remember step aerobics? No? Pfft, youngster) and did this sort of sideways one-foot-at-a-time hop back and forth across it for a minute at a time with a minute break in between. This raised my heart rate to the level I reach when using the elliptical, so I may have found a good at-home substitute :-D

And of course, there's privacy. I can wear what I want (don't ask) and try anything I want without any second thoughts.

Cons

I'm not proud to admit this, but I don't push myself very much with challenging exercises. I give up. I'm starting to think that there is a mental barrier I need to work on in order to get past the physical barriers, and without someone to push me (i.e. a trainer) I simply stop.

Regardless of the pros and cons, I am now able to workout at home or the fitness center because of dedication and focus. I'm dedicated in ways like never before, specifically to prevent some of the potential downfalls that can come later in life. I'm also driven to experience life to the fullest, and I mean that seriously. Hike the Grand Canyon? You betcha! Participate in crazy activities like a Spartan Race? Hell-to-the-yeah! At home or in a fitness center, exercise is key to those amazing experiences.