Most wallet-friendly fitness activities to choose in 2015

WE ALL know exercise is important, but boy it can get expensive. Have you seen how much a paddleboard costs these days?

Whats On; generic image; Side profile of a young woman working out with a trainer; yoga pose. Pic: ThinkStock

WE ALL know exercise is important, but boy it can be an expensive habit.

If it’s not the monthly direct-debit fee to your gym, it’s a new pair of joggers or a FitBit to wear all day every day. And have you seen how expensive it is to buy a paddleboard these days?

Money saving website Mozo.com.au have crunched the numbers to find fitness activities that won’t break the bank — and could even help you save money. Here are their top four picks:

1. Join a running club

Although running on your own is absolutely free, if you need a bit of extra motivation and routine, you might want to join a running group. At less than $2 per week, this is without doubt the cheapest way to get fit this year.

Set up cost, Sydney Striders running club: $35 for a club singlet
Weekly cost: $1.35
Annual cost: $110

2. Do a team sport

Check out local clubs.

While playing a team sport in a registered competition means you will have to pay some kind of fee, remember that it will be split across the players, you’re saving money instantly. The cheapest team sport Mozo found was Dragonboating, at just $5 per week or $260 a year. But if you’d rather work out on land, social netball was the next best thing.

Set up cost, Netball 4 All: From $20 (registration)
Season fee: $100
Annual cost: $320 (playing 3 seasons)

3. Ditch big brand gyms

Many of us have fallen victim to the big gym membership which seems to suck money from your bank account before you can even say ‘intermediate bodycombat with Mandy’. Mozo found an annual membership with a smaller gym like Jetts was substantially less than that of a big brand gym, and you’re not locked in to a contract. It’s also be worth talking to your local gym, who are often cheaper and might offer special discounts or be more flexible than a mainstream gym.

Set up cost, Jetts: $148
Weekly cost: $13.95
Annual cost: $873.40

Leave the big commercial gyms behind.

4. Stay local

Other budget friendly fitness ideas you could implement into your life include a swim at your local pool (around $5 per entry) or a hit of tennis at your local courts (around $15 per hour).

In case you’re curious, Mozo also found that one on one personal training and Crossfit are the least wallet-friendly fitness activities you can choose.

Coming in at around $80 for a one hour session or $4000 annually, one on one personal training is certainly a sting on your pay packet. Although it means you’ll get a highly personalised service and perhaps more accountability to turn up, it’s still worth investigating smaller group sessions which could save you about $50 a session.

You need to be doing this twice a week to make it worthwhile.

And while Crossfit is sure to stay throughout 2015, at $30 per class or $55 per week on a membership, you’re up for an annual cost of $2,860. You really need to be going at least twice a week to enjoy the benefits, and cost benefits, of a membership.

You also need to be attending your yoga classes at least twice a week to get your money’s worth if you’re on a monthly pass, and be wary of choosing sports that cost a lot to set up in your New Year’s resolution excitement. Deciding to take up something like cycling could cost you nearly $1,500 in set up costs to buy a bike, jersey, shorts, shoes, gloves and helmet, and you’d need to be riding the bike at least once a week in the first year to equal the value of other fitness endeavours.

More tips: Mozo.com.au

Celebrity trainer Blake Worrall Thompson will be holding a 15 minute Q and A session on the news.com.au Facebook page on Friday January 16 from 12.30pm. Check back in then to ask him all your exercise and diet related questions!