May
7
HEALTH AND WEALTH; save your money while improving your health
Filed Under Exercise, Money, Time Management, Work Out
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This week’s topic is ways to improve your health while also improving your finances.
Health and Wealth
Most people think of health as something only wealthy people are concerned with. After all, when you’re poor, do you really have time to worry about getting fit? Are you really concerned with a proper diet when you’re worried about where your next meal is coming from? Plus getting fit is so expensive. With gym memberships, personal trainers, exercise equipment, organic foods and vitamin supplements, folks don’t think they can afford to be healthy. That’s where this week’s topic comes in. We’re going to discuss ways to be healthy AND save money.
A Healthy Commute
The first and most important money saving and health oriented change you can make is your transportation. With the price of gas rising, we spend quite a bit of money on our commute. Why not save this money while getting a good workout by changing to walking or biking?
My commute to my old office was around four miles. Driving there in my car meant about .4 gallons a day. Doesn’t sound like much, but let’s do a little bit of math. .4 gallons a day at California prices of $3.40 a gallon works out to around $1.36 a day. That’s a $1.36 I’m paying to be less healthy.
Does that make sense? I was actually paying money to be less healthy. And that doesn’t even include the price of maintenance on the car. Instead, I could have bought a cheap mountain bike. They cost around $200 new and you can buy them used for around $50 to $100. So my payback period would have been 2 to 4 months. Plus I would have been getting a good workout every morning of those months. Commute time would have gone from 10 minutes in a car, to 20 minutes on a bike and I’d have saved a bit of time by not having to look for a parking spot.
Walking, Oldest and Best Exercise
That’s just one example of how alternative transportation methods can save you money and improve your fitness. Here’s another, walking. The simplest and best exercise ever created. Walking isn’t just for fitness. Thousands of years of history consist of little more than people walking to get from place to place. Guess what, your feet are just as good for transportation now as they were then.
This weekend I had a few errands to run. I needed to go to the bank and then pick up some duct tape at the local hardware store. Driving would have taken about 5 to 10 minutes each way. Walking took about 20 minutes each way. Again, I did lose a bit of time, but I saved money. I didn’t spend on gas, I didn’t put any more miles on my car and I got a decent workout.
Walking for about 40 minutes total at an easy pace meant an expenditure of about 200 calories. It’s not much but it makes a difference. Plus the constant motion and movement of walking is a great way to boost your metabolism. I try to walk to my errands as much as I can, but I also try to walk to lunches or dinners when possible. A brisk walk after a meal is perfect to avoid that food coma, plus knowing you have to walk home will help you prevent overeating.
Bonus Effect!
And here’s another little way in which this can help you save money. When I walk or bike, I make it impossible for me to make those bad purchase decisions that always end up costing me money. On the way to the hardware store I stopped by a local electronics store. I’m usually tempted to buy a few things while I’m there but that day I didn’t because I knew I would have to carry them back. Same for the hardware store. Rather than buy that new tool box I didn’t really need, I stuck to the duct tape I did need because my carrying capacity is limited.
Longer Commutes
Walking and biking are two excellent exercises that can be used as a means of transportation. For short errands or short commutes, they’re great ways of saving money. If you have a longer commute, you may want to consider walking or biking down to your local public transportation. Most public transportation systems allow bikes and you’ll find that your commute is a lot less hectic and a lot more productive when you’re not in your car. You have time to read, work or just get a bit of extra sleep. All that while getting some good exercise AND saving money.
Summary
This week, try some alternative transportation. Besides walking and biking, there’s skateboarding, roller blades and even those little razor scooters you see everywhere. Don’t think of them as a slower commute that wastes you time. Think of them as a time saver that lets you get to work while you exercise and saves you money as a bonus.
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