A year ago on this blog, I wrote about my desire to purchase a new home exercise machine. In Tuesday’s Science Times column, I wrote about the fact that it mostly gathers dust in my house.
Last year, Consumer Reports found that nearly 40 percent of people surveyed said they used their home exercise machines far less than they had planned. The phenomenon is a source of fascination for behavioral scientists. The hope is that by better understanding the behavior, they can help people make better buying decisions — and help them start exercising and stick with it. To read more about the issue, check out With the Right Motivation, That Home Gym Makes Sense.
In hindsight, I realize my gym-quality elliptical machine is far too big and bulky for my space — sometimes I even hit my head on the sloping ceiling when I use it. I’ve also realized that despite my best intentions to work out at home, I hate indoor exercise, at least in my house. I’d much rather jog on my local trails, take a yoga class or work out with a live personal trainer than spend solitary time on an elliptical machine. Even on the day of my purchase, I didn’t sound confident that I would use it.
“I made my purchase today,” I told readers last Jan. 12. “It is big and ugly. Now I have a great machine, but will I use it? That’s always the big question.”
What about you? Is your home exercise machine gathering dust? Why do you think you haven’t used it as much as you had hoped? If you do use your machine regularly, what’s your secret?
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From 1 to 25 of 173 Comments
First of all, I’d be more than happy to rid anyone of their unwanted and dusty exercise machines as I am simply too cheap to buy any on my own. That being said, I don’t own any machines but I do have a few free weights and an exercise ball. I have gotten great use of the little I have because I prefer to do squats, lunges, and other exercises in the privacy of my own home. Honestly, I’m just too embarrassed to do certain exercises in front of complete strangers. I guess that’s my secret!
— RunningReplace your phrase “I hate indoor exercise” with “I hate contrived exercise” and you’ve got my position. I actually prefer indoor to outdoor (I hate hot weather and cold weather is not that pleasant either).
My ideal exercise is giving the house a thorough clean, it actually achieves something worthwhile for the sweat and I can stay in my climate controlled house to do it.
I succumbed to getting a treadmill which was worth it really. It gathers dust in the garage but it stops my mum harping on about her gym habits. Good investment really.
I think the main benefit of exercise (contrived that is not just being active in doing your daily tasks) is that you get left alone by the judgmental gossips who think being 15lbs overweight makes you a social pariah. Really that and general smugness is all the exercise fanatics have over those of us who are happy to be healthy fatties.
— JillyflowerI started relocating to whatever city I was working as a banking consultant. I do like attending a nice gym but have always been uncomfortable with the hard-sell as well as the re-up at the end of the term. So I compromised and prepaid a years membership in whatever city I was working to coincide with my work contract and apartment lease.
I am a native of Southern California and never could get the hang of the layers and layers of clothes necessary for a Chicago, New York, Charlotte et al. So going to the gym became a really big hassle.
So, this last moved I made (Frankfurt, Germany) instead of the commitment of going to the gym I made sure I found an apartment space to also serve as my home gym. European aren’t particularly conscience of gym attendance as Americans, and especially not as much as Southern Californians so finding a local gym isn’t very easy. (Most that do attend go for the co-ed sauna.)
So, short story long, I purchased my home gym equipment and paid about 20% more than a yearly membership at a gym. That was last May (2008). I got a quality spin bike, a bench and a full set of weights. And I set it up in my living room. I lift weights regularly, about 3x/wk. but spin much more, usually 5x/wk. (I’m training to mountain bike trans-Alps.) In 6 months I’ve done 100 hours and 3100 km’s on the bike.
What I’ve found that really helps manage my time on the bike is preparing dinner during a short break and letting it cook while I finish my workout. Then by the time dinner is done, I’m out of the shower and cleaning up the kitchen.
Another help to climbing on the bike is the distraction of TV. I have a large living room and put my equipment in half of it while the other have is very comfortable for relaxing. I do guilt myself over having the equipment ‘right there!’ while I’m lounging on my butt and that helps motivate. I also happen to live in a vineyard in a small village in the countryside, so city distractions aren’t much of a matter. And recalling that I’m a SoCal native, going outside when it’s so darn cold just isn’t fun for me, that really, really helps to making sure the workout is done that day.
Anyway, thanks for reading my post, that’s how I manage to workout consistantly in my home gym.
Tschuss!
Daniel
— Daniel K.On cold, rainy mornings I enjoy my exercise bicycle and have found that I use it more often now than I did when I got it two years ago. What I’ve learned is that keeping the machine close to my bedroom makes the bike easy to jump on first thing in the morning. It is not out of sight and therefore, as the saying goes, not out of mind. When the bike was first set up, it was in another room and easy to ignore. Other factors are having a book holder on the bike, a book to read, good light to read by, and a water bottle holder on the stem. At night I fill the water bottle, keep it by my bedside for night time sips, and have my book on the night table. In the morning everything is easily accessible for getting set up for a bit of early exercising. One other factor is that the book I’m reading actually hides the timer, so I’m always surprised when I hear the “congratulations-you-did-it” beep-beep-beep.
— Deborah MazzoliniI use my exercise bike several times a week — as long as I use it first thing in the morning. Doing it regularly at a specific time makes it easier to stick to.
— ReduceBreastCancerRisk.comI prefer jogging or biking outdoors or walking with a friend, but I use the exercise bike because I find it’s a quick and convenient way to fit exercise into my schedule. I use it for only a limited amount of time, and follow fifteen minutes or so on the bike with strength training with weights and resistance bands.
I try to make it as pleasant as possible. I have playlists on my ipod with music that’s just the right tempo for biking. The bike is near a window, so I have a view. And, luckily, I don’t have any problems like hitting my head on the ceiling.
It’s understandable that you’re not using that elliptical trainer, Tara. If you can adjust it in some way that it doesn’t put you at risk for a concussion, you might find it’s good for a quick work-out when the weather is bad or you’re short on time. This wouldn’t replace your preferred exercise, but provide an opportunity for extra physical activity.
My non existing machine doesn’t gather dust. I actually never put my foot on a machine, but I do enjoy the view (through a window) of people on machines in a gym - they, marching, marching, marching with extreme concentration on their faces …. nowhere, are a good source of joy (free by the way). In addition, I enjoy walking in the park (also free), when I enjoy it.
— annaHow funny is this? We are even too lazy to post a comment on this topic. I purchased a machine 3 years ago and feel very guilty when I look at it. I am also a member of the gym, and that gets even harder when it’s cold outside……so I stay inside and promise to use my home equipment…..bla….bla….bla….Well, I am getting motivated, guilt somehow seems to get to me because I know that I need that motivating boost to start excercising, and them I become a fanatic again….I’m getting there I promise.’…..
Not sleepless in Holland……….
C.
— cherBuying exercise machines is like buying anything else: the advertisement seduces, the fantasy takes hold, you shop, you buy, and then when you get the product home you are faced with the reality of “you”.
The truth is that you don’t need the machines; the body is already the perfect machine! With that in mind, I’ve been able to stick to a yoga routine that requires no elaborate machinery.
— LolaDoesn’t work for me. We had an exercise bike I never used. Unless you are the sort of very disciplined person who incorporates it into your strict daily routine, it doesn’t work. The very fact that you can exercise whenever means that you never will. It also says that you really don’t want to. Who would? Jogging outdoors is so much more pleasurable. And a yoga class is a set appointment, so you get it done. The personal trainer also is there to egg you on, so that makes it easier.
By buying an exercise machine people are buying a good conscience. Look, I have made an investment into fitness.
— SusannaInteresting topic. I have an early model BowFlex that gets used three times a week and a small collection of bicycles (two tandems and two singles) that my wife and I ride.
The issue of motivation, at least for me, comes down to liking the form of exercise. Our primary form is tandeming which, in good weather, we do six or seven days a week for 90-plus minutes. The BowFlex is part of the routine because it maintains the necessary upper body strength that make tandeming fun and adds to the endurance.
I don’t envision most of the “exercise equipment” as motivating, rather they are an engineering attempt at making normal human motion more efficient. The question becomes, do you really want the activity that you really like to be more efficient? Efficient often becomes boring and boring becomes avoided, and avoided equipment becomes an eyesore.
— George N. Wells, CPIMAlthough I go through periods when my elliptical gathers dust, I still prefer it to machines at my local gym. The reason is that I can choose my own TV programming. Action programs seem to work best. The commercials on live TV are demotivating so I tend to watch older series on DVD. Lately I’ve been working my way through the seasons of 24. Each episode provides a measured 42 minute workout.
— Ken DavisMy wife and I live up in a small New Hampshire town. There are no local gyms (less than 10 miles) and the winter isn’t kind to exercise. We have a treadmill but it gathers dust. There’s something about walking indoors that just seems…wrong.
So when we saw the P90X dvds on an infomercial we were intrigued - by the variety and cost. For $150 you get 12 separate discs. Now that’s value we could get behind! Reading the reviews suggested people really did enjoy the product.
Since receiving it, we haven’t been disappointed. We’re motivated by the workouts themselves and it’s like having a personal trainer at home. With the variety, we have yet to be bored by a workout after a few repetitions. I’m sure we’ll get to that point, but it hasn’t happened yet.
That leads to a question: How do these tape/dvd series compare to gym equipment. With the former it seems as if the variety can make it interesting longer whereas the equipment seems to rapidly lose the novelty. The increasing abundance of flat-screen televisions would seem to offer an ideal form of exercise delivery, unless for you going to a class - like yoga - involves the socializing as well as the other health benefits. And with video games like the Wii we could be seeing a future where the video trainer offers feedback as well as advice.
— RobI bought a NordicTrak ski machine in 1989 when my second child was born and dragging two children under the age of two to a not-terribly-nice creche at the gym became unworkable. Although the children in question are now away at college I still use the machine and in fact moved the entire bulky thing to London when we relocated 10 years ago.
I now also belong to a gym where I do some weight training but I continue to use the ski machine for aerobic work because it’s easier on my troubled knees than walking or (ouch) running and it keeps me out of the dreary London weather. I alternate between listening to the radio and to my iPod on which I’ve downloaded a lot of the NPR programmes I’ve missed since our move.
So I guess my secret is to live in a place where the weather is bad, the daylight hours for outdoor exercising are few, and there is access to either great local radio (BBC Radio 4) or NPR podcasts.
— S McFaddenWe have owned a few machines over the years…a stationary bike, now gone and a rowing machine. Our son wanted a weight bench which he never used. Sold, along with the house. The fancy rowing machine has retired to a back room in the basement. A smattering of hand weights, an exercise ball and some bands round out the collection.
I love the gym but my husband does not. He wanted the equipment, while I thrive in the gym atmosphere. I bike and skate outdoors and when the snow falls in the tundra, I take it inside, or as in recent years, I move my act south!
While not a fan of classes, I am rather well disciplined, will lift weights regularly and take a couple of simple yoga classes a week on top of 3 or 4 rounds of golf. Up North I walk each round but in Florida I cannot.
No, I no longer work.
I prefer the equipment at the gym to the handful of stuff I own, but will do a small workout at home, need be.
We decided to do this North/South thing to help me avoid respiratory infection, which is my nemesis. Less time spent indoors translates to fewer infections, especially if that time is spent in a gym. Gyms are petrie dishes on a larger scale, I think. Last year the theory failed miserably, but this year? So far, so good.
I also try very hard and remain successful in maintaining a healthy weight and muscle base. With my proclivity for pneumonia, I must keep all other systems operating well to stay well.
If I had a room to devote to a cardio machine, I might use one. It is too punishing to send myself to the basement to row or bike, but I will do it at the gym and I usually make the time. It’s part of my day.
— PatI have a mini home gym in the basement. Not usually an option for city-dwellers, but the cost was only about $1500, and I accumulated the equipment over 2 years.
In the morning after coffee, 20 min yoga for strength and flexibility, then 30 mins of elliptical, or treadmill (3 miles), or 45 mins of recumbent cycle five to seven times per week. I alternate between the three, in front of a TV.
This mix keeps it from getting too boring. I never PLAN a day off, but I’m not doing it if I have a 6 AM flight or tee time. At hotels, one can usually find such equipment, and do yoga in the room.
Works for me, and I’ve stuck with it for about 6 years
— jackthings that help:
Have an exercise buddy to walk or exercise with if you can’t afford a trainer.
Schedule your exercise on your calendar, digital or otherwise. Think of it like a doctor’s appt.
Listen to music while you exercise.
Join an online program like South Beach diet where you have to log-in your weight etc.
Having an exercise buddy is the biggest motivator on the list above for regualr exercise and for folks in therapy.
— G MorrisThe critical element is that you Do it, at the gym, at home, wherever. Working out at a club has several negatives, esp. when it gets crowded. Basically, I find that - like most things in life - it’s up to you.
— Charles AtlasI’m probably among the few Americans who has actually worn out a NordicTrack. Fortunately there are tens of thousands of them being used as clothes hangers and available for sale — cheap.
— Jeff SimekI despise the machine, it’s dull and I am simply operating on blind faith — without personal evidence or conviction — that it’s doing some good. I much prefer a long, brisk walk in the fresh air. But given the constraints of time and weather, you do what you feel you have to do.
I use my nice elliptical machine frequently compared to the people I bought it from off Craigslist. They had had it for 2 years and the total time used on it was 9 hours. Hence, how I ended up with a beautiful PreCor machine that’s next to new for less than half the price. I think the great deal is part of the fun of using it.
It is key for me because I am often dying to get some exercise but I work all the time and live in the wintry north, so if I want to use the elliptical at 11pm, hey, no problem. I think most people’s issue is that they are too tired in the morning, too tired when they come home from work, then they eat dinner and think “I can’t exercise now, I just ate”. You have to know when your exerciseable time is based on your habits and when you can make yourself do it. For me, it’s 1 hour before work (I work at all different hours of the day based on shifts, but it’s always 1 hour before). I know if I don’t do it then, I will not exercise that day, and that makes me want to get up and take action.
— quinsyI made fun of my girlfriend for wanting to buy a treadmill as a replacement for her mostly unused gym membership - “10 square feet of failure” I think I called it.
BUT: six months on, and she was right. Her approach was this: I have tried the gym and it simply presents too many obstacles to exercise. We live in a rural area - the nearest gym is 20 minutes away in the opposite direction from where we work.
I’ve actually quit my own gym membership in lieu of the treadmill, and we keep up with it. Like the article says, for me, it is about truly committing to exercise and figuring out where the obstacles exist.
— Matthew LatkiewiczAbout four years ago I bought a rowing machine to help me get exercise in winter (I ride my bike outdoors in the warmer months, but winter conditions where I live (Montreal) aren’t great for biking or even consistently good for cross-country skiing.
I use the rower almost every day in winter, and it’s fantastic exercise; I also use it during the summer when it’s pouring down rain or I feel like a break from cycling. I think the key to maintaining my motivation is that I joined an online rowing community, which is hosted by the manufacturer of the machine (Concept2). There’s an online logbook where you enter your time and number of meters rowed each day, and you can join an online team. In theory the teams compete against each other, but you can view your rank within each team and I find that I often set targets for myself to row past the team member immediately above me. It’s funny because I’m not a competitive person in real life, but this anonymous competition helps keep me motivated to row.
Rowing is hard work; after four years it hasn’t gotten any easier, although my times have gotten better. It’s a full-body workout, as you push off with your legs and finish the stroke with your arms and back. My only complaint is that it involves sitting down, and because I sit all day at work I sometimes find myself wishing I’d chosen a form of exercise that kept me on my feet. But I hate running and aerobics.
— bradWhen my exercise bike and treadmill broke, my husband bought me a new treadmill several years ago. Then I realized it hurt my foot, hip and ankle to jog regularly. So, I started zumba classes at a local gym. My foot still hurt but it was fun and I ventured into the eliptical. I could justify the expense of the gym by the savings of free classes that I already attended and equipment that I used. I try to jog about 4 miles a day, usually on an eliptical. I also try to do 40 minutes of resistance training. I’m pretty fit.
I have easy rules. If I don’t feel well I will walk into the gym and do some stretches. I am having surgery so I have bought some exercise books and will study exercise music and videos while I recover. It’s all about the routine, I don’t push myself intentionally.
My sister weighs over 300 pounds and is disabled. I tried to find some exercise videos for her on youtube. It was heart wrenching. There were a lot of ugly videos that taunted obese people if they even tried. I told her 10 minutes is the point where improvement from exercise can be measure. One video said it’s all about what you like and what you will do.
People who have a limitation such as a wheel chair or weight problem are not addressed by the industry. I want to become a fitness trainer and fix that.
— swpI hope more people will post on how they stay motivated to exercise at home - I appreciate all the above posts!
Two things that help me: Getting dressed in exercise clothes first thing in the morning, and always logging in a notebook what I accomplished as soon as I’m finished. There are downloadable exercise logs online, or you can design and print out your own.
I’ve also been surprised at how much of a workout I can get just with exercise bands, especially upper body/shoulder.
And doing core exercises on a ball will show results amazingly fast..
— DeeI have absolutely no space for any exercise equipment, but I love working out at home using exercise DVDs, weights, and the like. I save money on gas from not having to drive to the gym, it takes less time than going to the gym (which I still go to for cardio on the treadmill or elliptical), and I can squeeze it into my busy schedule pretty easily.
The only problem, though, is my cat likes to get underfoot while I’m working out! ;)
— Emily - LII also got an elliptical for Christmas a year ago, but I have used it regularly ever since, typically for an hour, four or five times a week. My husband and son also set up a new TV and DVD player right in front of the elliptical. So far I’ve been through “The Sopranos”, “Rome”, “Deadwood”, “Sex and the City” …..
— AnnetteBut I knew beforehand that I really liked the elliptical, having previously used it at the gym. Now, however, I can use it anytime, and surprisingly find that I most often step on in the evenings when I’m feeling tired. I find myself revived and an hour later, I’ve watched an enjoyable program and enjoyed a good workout. And, yes, my cholesterol has dropped back into the normal range without medication.