Have you ever thought about the reason why so many of us have or at one point had a gym membership, or know someone with a gym membership? It is because it has been successfully marketed as the gateway to weight loss. This comes as no surprise, with the population of overweight people increasing faster than ever before. In fact, it is not unusual for doctors to recommend gym memberships for obese, depressed or high blood pressure patients. Don’t get me wrong going to the gym can have many great benefits especially if you want to build muscle, but it can also be an expensive, unfulfilling, and long-term commitment if you’re not careful.

Here’s why you need to cancel your gym membership

• You have to commute to and fro 10-20 minutes to the gym.
• Perhaps you only have time to go to the gym at peak hours so you have to wait a while for machines.
• Gym memberships are getting cheaper, I’ll admit, but come to think of it. The gas to get there and your opportunity costs may be costing more than you think.

For example, your time: $50/hr.

Gas to and from the gym: $10

Total: $60/gym trip, excluding your membership cost and time spent at the gym

 

Now you are probably thinking “I like working out, I can’t just stop going to the gym” I get it but if you think you can’t workout at home because you do not have the necessary equipment’s. Let me just say you are dead wrong. But here are a few ways you can cut off your gym membership

Have It Canceled: This is the most obvious way to cut loose any ties you have to that gym. The bad thing about this is that sometimes you are required to pay a cancellation fee as well as your monthly dues. Also, you may need to sign waivers. Aside from the financial hassle, this is the best way to go.

Another way is to wait it out. Many gym memberships have this clause where if you keep your account inactive, they will cancel your membership automatically. In this case, waiting it out will be the best way to go. You get to concentrate on other things while the gym admin does all the work for you. That said, There are many workout apps you can use to do your workouts from the comfort of your home. Moreover, it saves you a lot of time in the course of going to the gym and the best part is that your home has a free gym membership.