I need to do something for exercise, so I’m thinking about trying some kind of sport. However, the one thing that 12 years of gym class taught me is that I have neither the interest nor the ability to play any of the major sports (baseball, football, etc.). So, go ahead and recommend a sport or athletic endeavor that might be less despicable than stationary bicycling, which is what I’m stuck with currently. Solo, team, ridiculously expensive equipment, frowned upon in America, it doesn’t matter, I just want to know what’s out there.
Tennis, handball, raquetball?
How about mountain or road bike riding? Better yet, do you live within bike commuting distance of work? Bike to work, get exercise, earn the respect of coworkers and help the environment!
Stuff that I enjoy doing which also happens to be good exercise:
Running (outside…treadmill is a last resort).
Hiking.
Snowshoeing.
Biking - both on and offroad.
Climbing (plastic or real).
Martial arts (I enjoyed grappling styles like judo and BJJ, myself, but whatever floats your boat).
Juggling (heavy objects - get a couple of 2lb exerballs and work with those for a while).
Heavy bag (hang it in the garage and whale on it, also great stress reliever).
Home workout, no weights - pushups, chinups, dips, crunches, etc.
Things I’d like to do:
Rope skipping
Swimming (considering triathlon, swimming is my big hurdle). My tiny little mom with a bad ankle has been swimming for decades and her shoulders are as big as mine.
The only two of those that have any real cost associated with them are biking (need a bicycle, but a good one will last you forever) and martial arts (just have to check the fees at your local schools, many are very inexpensive, some cost more).
Fencing or Paintball!
How about disc golf? Pretty cheap to get started (~$20 for a couple of decent disks, like an Innova Shark mid-range disc and an Innova Aviar putter, which is all you’ll need until you develop the strength and distance on drives to justify a driver disc), you can play for free at nearly any course in the country, you can play by yourself or with others, gives you something to do while walking around through parks (a typical course will play at something close to a mile of cumulative hole distance, plus whatever walking is required between holes), and even a very mediocre player like me can play 18 holes in an hour and half or so, so it’s less time-consuming than ball golf. I’ve also found that people who tend to be inept at other sports often take to it readily. There are thousands of courses around the country, and there’s almost no place in the U.S. that’s more than a short drive from a course.
I’ve just started playing again regularly after nearly 20 years in which I played only once or twice every few years (I played regularly, and semi-competitively, in my college days). I’ve enjoyed it, and my 10-year-old son who’s pretty hopeless at other sports seems to have a certain natural ability when it comes to accuracy. I’m lucky in that my front door is less than 800 feet from the fourth tee at the course in the park across the street, so I can get the kids onto the school bus, hit the course, and easily play 9 holes and still have time to grab a shower before starting work at 9 am.