Working out on your own can be tough for some because no one is there to hold you accountable. It can be even tougher without something to workout for. We have a saying in the endurance industry that goes, "stop working out and start training." Wanting to 'tone out your body and stay fit' are okay goals, but you can do better. Refine your goals to be more specific. How much do you want to weight? What size waistline do you want? What do you want to be able to do that is active that you are not able to do now? With a specific goal in mind constantly, like your wedding perhaps, you have something more tangible to work towards. Does any of this make sense? What about the 100 Push up challenge? or running in a half marathon (13.1 miles)? Do you have a bike? Start a running club with friends from church? A good pair of running shoes may be the best investment you ever make... What are you thoughts on what I've suggested?

You can get thin by watching what you eat; fit and strong by working out, but you have to combine the two if you want to see the six-pack.

There are some killer body-weight strength routines; there's yoga and pilates; there's some marine-corp type workouts that only use a bag of sand. Look around a bit and you'll find some very challenging workout routines that do not require expensive equipment.

I agree it's very important to have a specific goal. In my own case, I found the problem with a goal like "being in good shape" is that it might not get me out the door for an early morning run because I may decide, at 5, that I am in good shape and could use another hour of sleep. If my goal is to lose ten pounds, I don't give myself the same sort of wiggle room - either I weigh less or I don't.

After my last knee surgery, my first goal was simply to show up. I forgot all about times and weight and everything else and just made a committment that I would change clothes and head out for my walk, or try a little yoga, or get the push-ups and sit-ups done like I had planned. Consistency is very important and the first thing I had to do was re-establish the habit of exercising. It didn't matter to me if I exercised for ten minutes or an hour, I just wanted to show up for each session.

One of the amazing things about exercising, at least to me, is that the more consistently I exercise the more energy I have. It's a hard rock to start rolling, but once it gets going, everything changes.

Goals come and go - keep track of what you've done and know where you're going. My goals get me out of bed early in the morning. But it's the chance to see the sun rising over the mountains, or catch a deer grazing by the side of the road - or today, a long trek to pick some wild berries for pancakes tomorrow morning - that keeps me going year after year.

Thanks Toby, now I'm thinking about the 100 push-up challenge. As if I needed another goal to meet! I'm a pathological over-achiever!

OMG, are you serious? You were just having a debate over adding another swim workout to your already-insane-schedule and now you plan to take on this!!! You crack me up Love it!