If you’re in the middle of a set and talking to the person next to you, you are not working out. If you are looking across the room and checking out some girl stretching, you’re not working out. And if you feel exactly the same at the end of a set as you did at the beginning, you damn sure are not working out.

Working out means training hard all the time. Not slacking off on leg days or walking on the treadmill while reading a book without a bead of sweat on your forehead. It’s pushing yourself like your life depends on it. Imagine if you knew today was the last time you’d ever be able to workout for the rest of your life – would you be taking it easy? Hell no, you’d make sure you felt like you were about to die by the time you were finished. And that’s how you should train every day.

So if you have been taking it easy, now is the time to stop being a baby and start pushing yourself. I am not saying that if you are not working out like a top athlete then you are not working out, I am saying if you are not pushing your own personal limits then you are not working out…

Push yourself towards what I like to call implosion. Ever heard the saying give it your all? Regardless of how long you are planning on being in the gym be it 5, 30 or 60 minutes, give it your all the entire time, please. Then true fitness will come.

So what exactly do we do at a gym? Well, we either push something, which would be weights, pull something, or breathe hard which would be cardio. Now, unless you live in a box, I think it is impossible for anyone to say that they cannot do those three things in and around their house or place of work.

All you have to do is find 30 to 45 minutes in your day to get a good workout in. First and foremost you want to make sure that the time you do devote to exercising is quality time and so you want to try and keep your heart rate up and beating the entire workout. Ideally you want your heart rate to be  75-85 percent of its max to maximize cardiovascular and fat burning benefits. To find out how to calculate your heart rate go here.

So if you are doing multiple sets of something, instead of waiting in between sets do some jump rope, or sprint up and down your drive way. Anything to keep your heart rate up. Use youtube to find various plyometric workouts that involve nothing but your body so no other equipment is needed. I have provided a good playlist of various plyometric workouts below. Pick a couple to try and string them together, add some cardio and you will never complain about not having a gym again.

For others that just want to do cardio, you do not need a treadmill! Get outside and if you want to run, then run! Can we all just agree that gyms are not necessary they just add to a workout by providing equipment. People are innovative though, you can find alternatives to just about everything that a gym provides. Also, finding new ways to workout so that you do not get bored keeps you interested and more willing to workout, so search around! There are thousands of workouts that you can do all without weights.