I'm finally giving up my gym membership

[FitBoop]

It's official. I am 100% a home exerciser. That's a major admission for me because I started out as a gym goer and have held onto my membership for my entire adult life. I haven't gone to the gym in several years, although I have kept up my membership "just in case" I got in the mood to go.

The truth is, the very thought of having to get myself dressed to go work out in public, and having to drive there and find parking, and worse---touching gym equipment with strangers' sweat all over it, was so unpleasant, that I couldn't convince myself to go.

I kept thinking that the classes might be worthwhile, but whenever I looked at the class descriptions, I realized that I had the same "classes" on my DVDs, and that the quality of the workouts was going to be better on the DVDs than at the gym.

So, I have reached a major milestone in my fitness life. No more gym. If for some reason I get the desire to exercise outside the house, I will go somewhere like Physique 57 or sign up for a day pass somewhere.

Has anyone else made the same decision?

[Daizyduke]

Yes, me! I joined the Y this passed summer. I'd much rather be walking outside, riding bikes as a family or jumping on my trampoline. I hate the gym.

[princess76]

Yes, I switched to home exercise 12 years ago to save money when we bought our house. I don't miss going to the gym.

[Jennifer R]

Pretty much when I moved to Hawaii. When I lived on the most developed island, Oahu, there weren't gyms close to where I lived. That has since changed.

So in 1999 I moved to a much less developed island, and my home exercise habit became much more entrenched. There are classes here and there, and a sort of gym opened in the town where I work a couple of years ago. But after checking it out, I figured the only thing they had that I didn't was a suspension trainer system.

I'm still shopping for one of those.

[Jane1721]

Good for you! I gave up my gym membership 10+ years ago and don't miss it one bit.

[TracyK9]

Yes, me too. I used to go to the gym years ago and I really enjoyed the group classes - the energy and fun music was motivating. But I only do home workouts now for a lot of reasons - my kids make scheduling gym time hard, there's not a gym close by, the money, the fact that I now don't want to get dressed up to go. I like being able to do workouts in privacy now and wear whatever I want.

[Breezy Trousers]

Good for you, FitBoop! Isn't it nice? I haven't completely let go of the side of the pool. I still take yoga classes. DH and I did quit our kettlebell studio last fall, though. It was initially difficult for DH to transition to home workouts but now it's a happy, contented routine for us. A couple weeks ago, after finishing an RKS workout, DH told me he can't believe we wasted all that $$$ on a studio for 3 years when we had racks of kettlebells & weights sitting at home. Live & learn, I guess.

[Debbie S.]

Abbe, this was me. I put my gym membership on hold after my first car accident, and paid a $10.00 fee monthly for 10 years! It was so tough for me to make that phone call asking them to cancel my membership.

[paideiamom]

I am leaning that way again. I just started back in January, but I must be becoming even harder to get along with.

The nasty people (sweat and personalities), the gym comedian, the woman who sings her arias as she is doing the leg press machine, the people who steadfastly ignore the "one set only if people are waiting" signs on every machine, the broken equipment, the lackluster classes, yeah, I see myself headed that way.

BUT I decided that I need to stick it out till summer just to not be me, that is, quitting when things aren't just so.

[Vintage VFer]

Abbe, it is SO hard to let go of some things. Especially when it has been a part of your life for so long.

(I have never had a gym membership. Back in the day, I was too cheap. Now, I am too anti-social.)