So, you may have some experience in the gym (or maybe you don’t). One thing is certain, you want to take your fitness to the next level and you’re not sure how to do it. If it’s just taking that first step in to a gym, or you need a new level of structure and support you’ve never had before, you know you want a personal trainer to help. One problem, any PT you’re interested in working with is not going to be cheap and you fear you can’t afford their services.
However, a great PT is worth investing in. If you were going to build the London Shard and you had a part time, uninterested and underskilled architect design its blue prints, how far do you think the project would have gone?
What may surprise is you is if you make a few changes in your monthly outgoings, that next step in your fitness journey could be closer than you think. In some cases, you may even be healthier already before you even start.
1. Coffee.
The average cost of a takeaway coffee in the UK now is about £2.30. Let’s say
you’re indulging in this every day as part of your commute, then again at lunch to power through the afternoon shift, then one more hit before the gym. First of all, if it’s anything other than black coffee then you are drinking a lot of needless calories (so I actually just potentially already helped with your fitness there), but this will also lead to a massive saving each week.
Tip: Try taking a flask with you in the morning or taking a good quality instant coffee with you to use throughout your week (no one should have to suffer cheap bad coffee, that’s another topic altogether). You can even flavour these with flavour drops from Myprotein.com for a fraction of the calories a Starbucks coffee with cream and sugar would set your diet back by.
2. Commute.
Sat in your car or sat on a bus to go somewhere to sit down all day, madness, right? As I’m writing this we are in the middle of summer; longer and brighter days are here, yet so many people who can commute to work, don’t.
Tip: (if its within range) Get out and walk or cycle. Save some extra money on your commute and already start to be more active.
First thing I’m going to ask you to track as your personal trainer is how many steps are you doing? If you’re already smashing 10k a day I’ll be able to train you harder and we didn’t waste any sessions just getting your base fitness level up, win win.
3. Haircuts
Stay with me on this one according to a recent survey, the average charge for a cut and blow dry was £35.59 and a cut, colour and blow dry was £89.54. This is all to do what, make you feel and look better right? Guess what your friendly neighbourhood PT training results can do.
Tip: You can usually request a student hairdresser in a lot of big chains with massive savings sometimes even FREE. Starting to build a nice little PT fund now aren’t we?
4. Food shop.
Proactive not reactive. This can be a big one, looking at these stats
UK cost of Food & Drink Average weekly grocery bill (including food, basic laundry and toiletry items for 2 people) £80 - £100
Average restaurant meal £15 - £25
Pint of beer £3 - £3.50
Average bottle of wine £10
Weekly £80- £100 on food, how much of that food is contributing to your fitness goals?
A common supermarket store layout is everything fresh, meats and frozen are on the outside aisles. Everything else is in the belly of the beast on those dangerous inner aisles.
Tip1: Be Proactive and not reactive with your food shop. Make a list and stick to it. I don’t care how good those 3 for 2 offers are, if it's not on the plan, it's not on your bill and it's not on your waistline.
Tip2: Change from your big brand Supermarket to Lidl or Aldi let’s say, and you can really take a dent out of you weekly bill. Even switching to your current supermarkets own range will be a saving.
Tip3: Ok you’re heavily invested in your supermarkets points scheme and don’t want to change. Try checking the shelf labels on each item, they will usually have a price per kg or equivalent, you’ll often find that buying the slightly larger size will save you money per kg, and if you intend on using the whole thing, then buying in bulk can be a huge money saver.
Add this up over a month and you’re practically there.
5. Movies and entertainment.
It’s no secret that the cost of the cinema has gone up, a lot. Watching a film a few times a month is going to add up, include a £10 hotdog and drink combo and not only are you financially further away from your fitness quest but also your calories are taking a big hit.
May not be as fun and you’ll have to wait longer for films but a Netflix membership is £7.49 a month. Unlimited movies and TV shows all month long. Plan the time you want to watch and you can also provide some lower calorie snack alternatives instead of some overpriced empty calories (or even if you want the empty calories we can work these in to your Macro plan when we start your personal training sessions off in our consultation).
6. Cut your gym membership.
Whaaaaaat. Controversial, right? More specifically I mean a leisure club, you know the ones, they have a swimming pool (that you used twice this year ) they have tennis courts (you tried when Wimbledon was on) therapy treatments facilities (not included) and a weights room, which is always heaving when you go which due to how busy it is has been getting less and less.
Tip 1: Change this to a budget gym. It won’t have all the luxuries but it will all the essentialthings to get in shape and they are often a third of the cost of the big named gyms out there.
Tip 2: Drop the membership and hire that personal trainer at MYPT. Every appointment is booked and will be productive with sessions tailored to your goals, abilities and progression.
So, there you have it 6 tips to be able to afford a PT and even get a bit healthier with some of these options)
Let’s say you’re a take away coffee addict, commuting, get a monthly haircut, two cinema trips and paying for a leisure club you never use you could save as much as ………..£320 a month!!! If all these ideas are something that you could change up that’s enough to hire a trainer for 8 sessions a month with a good chunk of change to put towards some new gym gear to help motivate you.
Get in touch if these sound like they may work for you, or even if you would like further information.