Home Fitness - Get Leaner in the Lounge

Posted 11 March 2009

Home fitness is revolutionising how we exercise. And newspaper features are telling us that in 2009, the home is 'the new gym'.

Home fitness is a relatively new phenomenon. But before the days of washing machines and other domestic electronic devices that helped us do more using less energy and time, home fitness was simply built into day to day lives. Now, our homes are where we spend more time sitting on the sofa, in front of a screen, rather than doing domestic labour. As a result, our waistlines have expanded and we've turned to more electronic devices and gadgets to introduce home fitness programmes into our lives.

Home Fitness - Get Motivated

Up until now, many fitness enthusiasts were more likely to join a gym, but there has always been a section of society who felt intimidated by gyms. Home fitness appealed to those who felt ungainly about their weight, had no confidence about their fitness and were insecure about the idea of donning Lycra in public. And now even those prone to joining gyms are turning to home fitness due to the economic downturn making more of us tighten our financial belts in the quest to tighten our actual belts. Gym club subscriptions are on the decline and TV's Mr Motivator is back on our screens catering for this boom in home fitness as more of us choose to get fitter in the comfort and convenience of our living rooms.

Home Fitness Boom

The home fitness boom is clearly a result of, as the Independent put it 'those feeling the pinch of waistband and wallet'. The newspaper reports gym membership is predicted to decline by 20%, home fitness is back in favour as more people turn to the Internet for home fitness tips and gadgets that help motivate and guide their home fitness routine. The sale of exercise DVDs is up 65% on last year, and as the message keeps hitting home of the dangers of obesity, more of us are waking up to the simple steps we need to take to tackle the weighty issue. Mr Motivator, Derrick Errol Evans told the Independent: "There is a need for all of us to be more physical."

Home, Park and Road Fitness Take Off

Alongside home fitness DVDs that tap into enjoyable fitness routines - such as dance-based exercise, you can log online to download toning programmes that use your sofa and tins of canned beans instead of expensive gym equipment. As more people cancel gym membership, more people will embrace home fitness programmes - with home, park and road fitness routines becoming popular.

Tone in your Own Home with Fitbug

As a Fitbug member, you are already on course for a fitter, healthier body and if you are meeting your weekly targets you are doing great work for your heart and lungs. If you want to achieve a more toned appearance then the best way to do so is to add a little bit of resistance work into your weekly routine. Resistance training has multiple benefits for your body. It will help you to increase your muscle mass, which will in turn speed up your metabolism and help you to burn more calories even when you are resting. The great news is that you don't have to get down to the gym and lift heavy weights to experience the benefits of weight training. In fact, you can get noticeable results in your own front room just by using furniture, your own body weight and simple household items like bottles of water or tins of beans.