FREE Online Fitness Resources: Top Recommendations

Are you looking to get fit but feel nothing but obstacles blocking your path?  Not enough time in the day? No extra money for a gym membership or trainer?  No worries!  In this post we are going to share our favorite FREE online fitness resources.  No matter where you are or what your budget constraints we have easy real solutions for you.

Bianca (Julie’s daughter) is a model of fitness and health! She works out every day and inspires us with her dedication to her nutrition. Julie and I….well, let’s just say we’re still working on our diets and trying to put our workouts higher on our priority lists!

Free Online Fitness Resources for Your Best Ever

At-Home Workouts

I know what you’re thinking…free online fitness resources?  Really? It’s the holidays!  Who has time to work out?  Especially now!?  But hold on.  This is probably the most important time of year to make time for your workouts because stress is so high and because of those extra treats popping up everywhere you turn.

Let me explain exactly why I decided to post this now.  I was so busy the week of Thanksgiving that I missed my workouts for a whole week.  Guess what happened?  Two days after Thanksgiving was over and my house was finally put back together my back started hurting.  I had been working too hard, stressing too much, and then all I did to recover was SIT!!  Every body wants and needs to move,  de-stress and stretch.  My body was telling me loud and clear….”Don’t forget your workouts!”

I have put together this list of the my favorite free online fitness resources to help you make time to keep in shape during the holidays!  Who has time to workout??….and more precisely, who has time to get to the gym to work out? Even if your gym is just down the street (which mine is!!) getting ready for the gym, dressing and packing your bag, driving to the gym and putting your bag in a locker is going to add 30 minutes to an hour just coming and going. However, if you had a way to workout in your own home you could be done by now!!  You may want to check out my post “Jodie’s Favorite At-Home Workout” or, take a look at  these  on-line fitness resources.  I hand-selected them because they have these criteria in common:

1.  Anyone can do them.
2.  You don’t need any fancy workout equipment.
3.  They offer a quick and efficient use of time.
4.  They give you options so you can create the workout that is right for YOU.
5.  Very importantly:  They are all FREE.

My Top 5 Free Online Fitness Resources

#1.  Fitness Blender

If I had to recommend one source I would send you straight to FitnessBlender.com  And I have sent many friends there already!  I have been using their videos to work out for almost 2 years now, and I’m a huge FAN!

What I love:

• Excellent searchability:  It’s easy to search for exactly what you are looking for in a workout.  You select the criteria that is important to you.  You can instantly search through literally thousands of workouts with a click of a button.
• Offer a HUGE variety of workouts.
• Organized:  each workout tells exactly what will be included so you know what to expect and whether you are up for the challenge.
• They count the reps or show you the clock so you know how far you have to go!
• Each workout gives a little picture/window of the upcoming exercise so you can prepare ahead.  (Sometimes it’s hard to watch WHILE you are doing the exercise.)
• It’s a husband and wife team, and they are really cute to watch…no annoying habits or fake enthusiasm.  They provide just the right amount of detail to help you perform the exercises correctly while still being “real.”  (They get tired too!)  Julie’s favorite part is that they get tired…haha!

#2.  Tone It Up with Karena & Katrina

I have also been following these two beauties and referencing their website www.toneitup.com for over a year. Karena & Katrina are so cute, energetic and beautiful that they make the perfect role models.  You immediately want to look just like them so its easy to take their advice and believe they know what they are talking about….whatever they are doing, it’s working!!  They have great exercise ideas and also include motivational tips, recipes and nutrition advice.

Why I love them:

1.  Fun, interactive website with lots of ideas
2. They offer a variety of great exercise routines and free printables so that you can take their ideas and run with it! (They don’t do videos but show the exercises individually with pictures so you know how to do them.)
3. Lots of motivational tips and ways to get involved, ie. via social media.  Joining one of their challenges can be a great way to hold yourself accountable and feel connected, which can be one of the down sides to working out at home.
4. They also offer recipes, healthy eating tips and nutritional advice…and again, ways to hold yourself accountable.

#3.  Jessica Smith TV

I recently found Jessica Smith TV video series and really liked them.  She is very relatable and easy to follow.  What I love:

1.  Easy to follow exercises that don’t require equipment other than optional hand weights.
2.  Broken down into short videos so you don’t need a huge time commitment, and you can combine to create a personalized workout.
3.  Her website is organized into different categories so it is easy to find and select different types of workouts.
4.  As a mom and middle-aged woman (I hate that term but….) I really felt like I was her target audience.  She films her videos right in her own living room.  Like I said, very relatable!

I also wanted to mention a couple other Free Online Fitness Resources that you might want to check out:

#4.  Make Your body Work

These videos by Dave Smith at www.makeyourbodywork.com are awesome!  He’s got a great reputation for being an effective personal trainer and weight-loss coach.  In addition, there is a wealth of knowledge on this site. You can search the blog for specific topics of interest.  He has Blog Posts and Podcasts on anything and everything related to healthy eating, nutrition and exercise.

The only negative and why I am not recommending this more highly on my list is that I couldn’t find any organization to his catalog of videos or way to search through the videos to find what they focused on.  He has literally hundreds of videos (which is a good thing) but even the titles of the videos don’t offer much insight into what the workout is about.  On the positive side, if you don’t mind being surprised by what your workout is going to focus on each day, this would be a great resource for you.

#5.  Turbulence Training YouTube Videos

I love trainer Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training no-nonsense approach to workouts.  I really like the philosophy of this series because it fits right in line with what I believe to be important….that in order for a workout to really fit into my lifestyle I want to be able to do it anywhere, anytime, with little to no equipment.  Is that asking too much?  This YouTube channel is worth checking out because it focuses on workout routines that have been proven to be effective in producing results!

On the negative side, it doesn’t have the relatability factor that FitnessBlender, Karena & Katrina and Jessica Smith have going for them.  If you are motivated this probably isn’t your biggest concern. Go for it!

Wrap-Up

I hope you choose to put these free online fitness resources to the test this holiday season.  Now that you’ve read my reviews it’s your turn to give them a try.   No more excuses about not having time to work out.  Do you have 15 minutes?  Well, these trainers have a workout for you!  Try not to miss a day, even if it’s 5 minutes.  Once you get in the habit of doing something every day and some of these routines get in your head it will get easier and easier to remember….and easier to just get down on the floor when you are relaxing in front of the TV and do a few sit-ups, push-ups or stretches!  So many great options…I hope these resources help you make it through the holidays….even when your schedule seems to be working against you!

Cheers to staying happy, healthy and fit this Holiday Season and beyond!

With love and blessings,

Jodie