I remember the days when I used to workout at a gym exclusively. Hell, I ran one of the best personal training departments in the country. Of course, I worked out in a gym.

I used to think it was absolutely necessary to be in a gym to lose weight and look great -that a good workout required you to be in a health club or weight lifting room of some sort.

But, that’s all changed. Thank God!

Today I find myself at the best point of my life, from both a business and fitness standpoint, and I haven’t worked out in a typical gym for 7 months now.

In fact, I workout exclusively at home or in the park, and the only equipment I need is my set of resistance training bands. Sure, I’ll mix it up from time to time with dumbbells, kettlebells, med balls, and a couple other user and budget friendly implements, but truth-be-told I primarily rely on my trusty bands.

It’s crazy when I think about it… the overall quality of my life dramatically began to improve as soon as I stopped going to the gym.

Here is a brief list of some of the things that have happened to me in the last 7 months since I stopped going to the gym:

• I wrote my very first book, launched this website and developed a one of a kind online personal training and video boot camp program – more on that later.
• I now maintain a low body fat percentage and have more energy than ever.
• I get in at least one high-quality, distraction-free workout per day.

Now, I don’t mean to imply that not attending the gym anymore was the only reason for the dramatic turn of events in my own life.

However, it is now clear to me the sheer act of breaking from the norm and NOT doing what everyone else seems to do has set me on a distinct path of success- the road less taken if you will.

After some thought, I put on paper what I feel to be the top 10 reasons NOT to go to the gym:

1. Needless Travel Time

Most of us live at least 5-10 minutes away from the closest gym (some people live 20-30 plus minutes away). This means that a daily gym workout will cost us at least 10-20 precious minutes in wasted travel time. Add that time up over the course of a week and you are looking at losing at least 1-2 hours going to and from the gym. And that’s not including any additional time changing clothes in the locker room or getting caught in conversation with people you know.

When you workout at home the commute is just a few seconds!

2. The Dreaded Locker Room

Ugh! Just the thought of dealing with dirty, smelly and crowded locker rooms is enough to turn me away from the gym. And the showers…enough said. Oh yeah, by the way, what’s with the ugly naked guy who insists on spreading all his stuff across the bench leaving no room for anyone else. Of course, Murphy’s Law always puts his locker right next to mine, or worse, below mine.

Nothing beats walking in to your very own clean and comfortable bathroom to take a shower right after a great home-gym workout.

3. The Sheep Mentality

It’s sickening to go to the gym. I truly believe the example that most people set will make you worse. Everybody is doing the same thing. Most men and women are just sheep- slaves to all of the misinformation provided in the form of sensational fitness magazines and infomercials. People just go to the gym and do whatever everybody else is doing.

Most women are cardio queens spending hours at a time on ellipticals, bikes, and treadmills- sadly getting nowhere fast. Ladies you need to start doing some resistance training and cut those cardio sessions down to 20 minutes of intense interval training to burn that stubborn hip, thigh, and belly fat that is holding your sexy back.

And then there are also those meathead guys who only work their mirror muscles (abs, chest, biceps) while taking extraordinary long rest periods between sets of upper body isolation exercises. These oversized morons often bench in excess of 300 lbs but probably couldn’t perform 10 perfect, full-range of motion push-ups with their body weight if their life depended on it.

When in doubt, DON’T do what everybody else in the gym is doing because it’s not working!

4. Needless Waiting Time for Equipment or Space

I remember when I used to workout at one gym that I would spend about an average of at least 15-20 minutes per workout waiting on a piece of equipment or a certain space of the gym to complete my daily routine. Not only does this waste a bunch of valuable time and create a detrimental roller coaster of warming-up and cooling-down, but this long stop and go format is completely counter productive to the appropriate alternating set format and work to rest ratio to burn fat and lose weight fast- the main goal of over 90% of fitness enthusiasts.

I have found the most effective strength training protocol for fat loss to be a High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) Strength Circuit that takes about 20 minutes to complete. Frankly, there is no way you can workout in this format at the typical overcrowded commercial gym when people are constantly getting in your way and hording your training space and equipment.

Workout at home so you and you only control your workout environment.

5. Sicknesses and Disease

Let’s just be honest about this- gyms are cesspools for sickness and disease. Most overworked, burnt out trainers working at the typical health club are forced to double dip and clean up the gym at the end of 8+ hour workdays. How much energy or care do you really think they have left to thoroughly clean and disinfect equipment that hundreds of people have sweat and dripped on all day long?

Beyond catching the common cold, there are some other real serious things that have been spreading at gyms like wildfire like the recent merca staph infection epidemic.

Stay healthy and get fit at home!

6. Expensive Memberships

What a sham! Paying money for a place to workout. Isn’t your current rent or mortgage enough of a monthly overhead! Plus, some of these scammers lock you in for long-term agreements that mean that you’ll probably still be training at the gym when your hair goes gray. Total BS.

The reality is you could invest just a few months worth of membership dues into some equipment at home and have it for life. It’s no wonder membership attrition is increasing like crazy in health clubs today. Members are dropping like flies.

Learn how to train at home and save a fortune! Just think of all the new clothes and vacations you can take with your new body and all that extra money!!

7. Useless Equipment

Machines suck- I haven’t used a machine in years. They don’t allow your body to train that way it was designed to move and function and they cause many overuse injuries.

If you want to be lean, tight, and toned, all you need is your body weight, some bands, and a few free weight options like dumbbells or kettlebells to get the job done at home or on the road. Trust me. Watch the best trainers in your gym (if there are any), and you’ll see they rarely, if ever, use any of the machines.

Why are they there then?

Because the general public is not up-to-speed on the latest fitness research which shows that total body movements and integrated functional training using HIIT formats are best for fat loss and endurance. They expect to walk into a gym and see lots of equipment, and that’s exactly what they get.

Pick up a set of high quality resistance bands like the ones I use and a good pair of sneakers and you’re all set. Every couple of months you can treat yourself to a new training tool to mix things up and keep your workouts fresh.

It’s pretty cool to slowly build your own budget-friendly personal gym by adding new implements every so often. I highly recommend it!

8. Lack of Open Training Space

This one’s pretty simple. Idiot club owners focus on all the frills with substance by filling the training floor up with overpriced, oversized machines that take up all of the prime real estate.

Ever try doing a shuffle drill in the typical health club?

Good luck not tripping over the mess of free weights on the floor or running into someone in the aisle between machines. The last time I did I winded up barreling into some jebroni who walked right in my way. We both went down pretty hard. No one got hurt, thank goodness, but it was pretty embarrassing.

All you need is space baby- space to move freely and explore your own body’s capabilities.

9. Crippling Dependence

I mentioned this earliest- gyms force you to create a dependence on them. If you are used to using machines, you feel lost when you travel and can’t access the same equipment. In most cases, people figure “what the hell, I’ll just take some time off until I get back home since I don’t have any gym access out here.”

I can personally guarantee you that I can break you with your body weight far before I can break you with any machine- and your body weight can go through customs too. So, take off the shackles and show yourself that you can get results without the gym. I promise you that the best workouts of your life are waiting for you at home or in new places like a park, beach, hotel room, etc. Step outside the box!

10. Bad Trainers

Sorry, most trainers SUCK! It’s sad, but true. I know first hand how hard it is to find quality trainers to hire. You would be AMAZED at the people who apply.

Most people look at training as something to do for now. They take some B***S*** weekend or home study course and call themselves a personal trainer. They get certified by these money-hungry certification agencies that provide no support with program design that’s more ancient than Larry King.

I’m sure you’ve seen one of the special reports on the various news channels that have exposed the truth about these clubs and trainers.

I won’t lie to you. I’ve hired a couple pretty bad trainers in my time because I needed a body or because they knew how to sell. Personal training in a gym is a business first, results second. It’s typically 100% commission so everyone’s paycheck from the top down is riding on sales.

And what about this need for the one-hour workout?

Where the hell did that come from?

I’ll tell you where- it’s just a default time to maintain an easy appointment schedule that most health clubs have borrowed from other businesses that have nothing to do with fitness. Oh yeah, and you can charge more for an hour than you can for 30 or 45 minutes.

If you need the motivation or guidance of a qualified personal trainer then make sure you know EXACTLY what you’re getting for your time and money.

Man, when you really think about it, why would anybody want to go the gym if they could easily set up their own dream gym at home (think basement, den, garage, living room or back yard)?

I mean if you are the type of person who is motivated, empowered, and dedicated enough to consistently workout on your own, it appears that going to the gym may very well be the dumbest thing you can do.

And if you need the support and motivation of a workout buddy or can’t or don’t want to workout on your own, the typical gym still falls short in providing a results-based, cost-effective solution. You’re much better off joining a local boot camp program like Look Great at the Lake Boot Camp or the one-of-a-kind Online Video Boot Camp.

I can honestly say that if you are serious about getting results, both inside and outside of your workouts your best move is to avoid the gym like the plague and either build your own portable home gym or join a local boot camp program.

Personally, I hate the gym.

It’s such a joke.

It’s such a waste.

Break outside of your comfort zone.

Step outside of the box.

Take the road less traveled and have the body and life-changing results to show for it!

Have Faith & Take Action!

Justin Yule

P.S. – Share your gym horror stories by commenting on this post. Let’s all have a laugh and then move on to some kick@$$ home-gym or boot camp workouts. Thanks!