The gym isn't always the best place to do workouts. Sure, they've got all the equipment and the trainers to guide you every step of the way. But most of the time, it's a challenge being a member in the first place. Monthly membership fees can be costly and are far better allocated to the more important stuff in life, like food! Even if you become a member, getting there after a stressful day at work can be such a challenge. It's much easier to get the remote, watch your favorite TV show and sleep rather than change into your workout gear and drive to the gym.

How would you like to workout without the hassle of paying for membership or traveling to and from the gym? That's possible. All you need is a home workout routine and you'll still stay fit, get toned and still have energy enough to spend with your wife and kids even after a long and exhausting day at work.

If you're serious about your working out in the comfort of your own home, you've got to stay motivated all throughout. Set a goal for yourself and stick with it. If space and finances permit, set aside a room as your home gym. By delegating a room for this purpose (it could be an unused guest room or a stock room), you know you mean business when you step inside its hallowed halls.

Having a home gym with all the fitness equipment in it is no doubt ideal. However, even if you can't afford these, there are still a lot of home workout routines you can do even in its absence. However, you would do well to have a solid bench and a set of dumbbells or at least homemade weights to get you started on your routines.

As in any exercise, make sure you warm up first before going into the real deal. Walk or march for a few minutes to prepare your muscles and get the blood running. If you want to exercise you abs, you can begin by doing trunk twists, leg raises and abdominal crunches (these are best done at the end of your workout routine, though). For chest exercises, you can do bench presses or dumbbell flies. Dumbbell flies are done by lying on the bench with dumbbells held in front of shoulders. Extend arms to either side until they become level with your body. Still with elbows locked, extend your arms to the same position as when you first started.

Still one of the most complete upper body exercises are push-ups. They exercise not only the chest, but the triceps, back and shoulder muscles as well. When doing push-ups, make sure that you keep your back straight. For a great leg workout, you can do lunges, squats, and front leg raises. If you have a stationary bike, then adding this to your repertoire of leg strengthening exercises would certainly be helpful. Of course, a treadmill would be good for your leg as well as cardiovascular fitness as well.

When you're doing your home workout routines, make sure you turn on volume of your favorite music to keep you pumped up until the end of your half-hour or two-hour routine. When you've got the place, the determination and the planned exercises in mind, nothing beats exercising at home. You can still break out the sweat and keep fit even without going to the gym.