I know what you’re thinking, “Why RubberBanditz, why oh why do you want to give me more reasons not to exercise this morning?”. The answer is: We DO want you to exercise! We just don’t think the gym is the right place for everybody. There’s a world to explore out there and a slew of functional body weight exercises you can do with zero gym equipment. You don’t need an expensive membership, or even a personal trainer (although it helps!) to get in shape, stay in shape, or improve your athletic performance.  We’re not saying that there’s no benefit to going to the gym. But, we at Rubberbanditz genuinely believe that the best way to help as many people as possible improve their health and their physical condition is by removing any possible excuses for not exercising. Reason #1 often being, “I don’t have a gym membership”, or, “Gym memberships are too expensive”.

When I’m trying to enforce a new habit (or rid myself of a bad one), the first thing I do is take away all possible barriers I can foresee getting in my way. For example, if I were trying to stop drinking chocolate milk (God forbid), the first step would be to stop buying chocolate milk so I’m not tempted to drink it, right?  The same logic applies to exercising. If I am trying to exercise, then the first step is to get rid of the “gym” excuse by giving myself the tools to make that happen. That’s what Rubberbanditz is all about. We help you remove the mental barriers we erect when making excuses. The human mind is a powerful organism, we’ve mentioned in past blogs how keeping your eye on the prize increases your chances of achieving said prize - but the opposite can is also true If you make excuses about why you can’t exercise, then you’ll start genuinely believing those excuses.

So, without further ado: 4 Reasons to Not Go To The Gym This Morning

1. You pick your own music. 


Okay I know this isn’t THAT big of a deal, but isn’t it though? We all have different musical tastes. While Jimmy “The Mirror Poser” McFlexorcist may appreciate the 2009 Vegas Club Circuit soundtrack blaring through the stereo - we’re all different, and different music motivates us…differently. 



And I mean No disrespect to Jimmy! You keep doing you, Jim. 

2. You will be a happier person.

When I was just a young spud in the couch potato game I remember my mom telling me that for every hour I spent inside playing video games, I had to spend an hour outside.I won’t lie, at the time I complained—a lot. I wasn’t always the most active kid, but it ended up being one of my redeeming habits: for every potato-like hour, I spend an hour doing something active. While I’m on the subject: I’d also like to take this chance to put my mom on blast for telling me video games were a useless waste of time, when I now personally know Professional Video Gamers (Yes, you read that right, professional gamers) that make an extremely lucrative living off of their sport. So, yes mother, all those summers in the basement, I was building career skills. Now back to being happy! Thanks to Legally Blonde, I think a good amount of us know that working out releases endorphins, which in turn makes us happy (and happy people don’t kill their husbands). The sun’s rays help your body release endorphins too, so if you’re working out in the sunshine you get double the endorphins—sounds like a no brainer! Sunshine also triggers vitamin D development in the body, —which in turn helps keep our mood balanced—that’s triple the happiness (!), if you're still counting. 

3. Working out outdoors is more efficient 

I’m going to start this by telling you now that this is a mix of both fact and personal opinion (I’ll let you know which is which). Exercising outdoors is more efficient in several ways. First, it takes less time. You don’t have to drive to the gym, wait for people to finish with the machines you need, drive back, check yourself out in the mirror for 10 minutes, and then continue on with your day. Instead you can just step out your front door. Even if you live in an urban area there are still a lot of options for functional bodyweight training. Don’t believe me? Just watch.Rocky. He knew what he was doing. Bodyweight training often involves all of your muscle groups at the same time—a stark contrast from the gym where “isolation” exercises are encouraged. Even something as simple as a pull-up has huge benefits over using a Lat Pull-Down machine. When you’re dealing with your own bodyweight and balance comes into play (more on that later) you begin engaging the supporting muscles that are necessary to stop you from not eating it on the sidewalk. Last but not least, working out your whole body also helps your muscles reach hypertrophy faster (efficiency!). Quick tangent for my personal opinion on the matter: I used to be somewhat of gym rat. I was in there at least 3-5 times a week - basically, Jimmy “The Mirror Poser” and I were bros. I’ve only recently started making an effort to exercise outside and use bodyweight training, and I’m not looking back! I personally find that I can push myself to failure faster and more effectively when I’m practicing bodyweight training. Handstands for example: there’s something a lot more motivating about holding a handstand properly so you don’t slam your face into the ground than there is about pushing a barbell above your head for a shoulder press—but maybe that’s just me. 

4. Increased balance & flexibility.

Ever since I was kid, I’ve always wanted to be a ninja. As I’ve started to get more and more into Calisthenics I’ve started to realize that dream is achievable. Calisthenics, Yoga, and other forms of exercise that don’t require gym equipment do wonders for your balance and flexibility. Bodyweight training for strength and flexibility go hand in hand. Having a better range of motion and flexibility will help you build dynamic strength, improve posture, and even reduce your chances of exercise-related injuries. Balance is also extremely important, whether you’re an athlete or just an average Joe like mewith dreams of becoming a ninja.Balance has all kinds of benefits. Balance relies on your core; if you work on your balance, those abs will be more defined than ever. Working on your balance also increases your athletic performance. It gives you the ability to switch directions on a dime—and to recover faster when you fumble or fall.  That’s all she wrote folks, but I don’t want you to feel like I’ve left you hanging. I know I spent the last few paragraphs preaching the benefits of bodyweight training and didn’t give you any example workouts - so shoot me an email if you’re interested and I’ll help you come up with a custom bodyweight workout. Or click here to see our exercise library and make your own!