Gyms are awesome and yoga studios are calming, but they can be really expensive. Some gyms even charge another few dollars for classes on top of membership fees.Staying fit is a money saver, but it can cost a lot to keep it up. Below are some places to look in your town for free fitness classes.
Check out your local library. This surprised me, but libraries are home to community gatherings. These big spaces are perfect to host a yoga class, step class and even kick-boxing. Like all library services, these classes are free. A quick google search finds that libraries across the country are offering free fitness classes. If your immediate library doesn’t have classes, consider checking out a library in a town nearby.
Niketown, Lululemon, and other athletic stores often partner with a local athlete, trainer or brand ambassador. These people lead free fitness classes in the store or at a nearby public location. Check out your local Lululemon for free classes and special events.
Running stores often sponsor free run clubs that gather at the store, then go out for runs. This isn’t just for competitive runners; a lot of run clubs are simply people that enjoy the sport. You might not need a class to show you how to run, but it sure is fun to do it with someone else. A bonus is that you also are “in” at the store on new products, club member deals and discounts.
Check your local YMCA, your community pool, or community center. Community pools are often free and likely to offer water aerobics.
A lot of gyms offer free trials before you have to sign up for a membership. If you live in a large town, you could hop from one gym to another and try out classes before you purchase a membership.
Barter or volunteer. If you can’t afford to pay for fitness classes or yoga, trade or work at your favorite studio to attend classes for FREE. A yoga studio in my town offers a program in which you offer your time to man the front desk, clean the studio or do other necessary tasks to receive free unlimited yoga. If you don’t have a lot of time to commit, ask if you can simply clean and tidy up the studio before and after class to receive that class for free. If you have other skills like website design, offer these services to your favorite studio on the house (or on the cheap) in trade for free classes. Remember, it never hurts to ask, and the worst thing that can happen is they say no.
Online yoga: If you prefer to skip group fitness, try FREE yoga classes floating around in cyberspace. Yoga Yak offers more than 200 free yoga classes in a variety of styles and My Free Yoga allows yoga teachers to post free classes to share with its online community.
Run outside. Keep tabs on your progress, elevation, speed and more by downloading the Map My Run app for your smartphone. It uses your phone’s GPS to track every step for accurate results to keep you motivated. If you don’t like to run alone, check in your community for free local running clubs.
Do you have a favorite free fitness class? Share it with us below in the comments.
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Lost over 50 pounds doing this and have kept it off for years now. 🙂
That’s a great tip. I am going to look for some yoga for the inflexible (g).