Got a spare 20 minutes to exercise but not sure what to do? A workout app will guide you through your exercise.
PT In My Pocket ($5) provides high-intensity interval training that can be done in 10 to 22 minutes per routine, with no equipment required.
Each exercise is demonstrated in a video. Other popular workout apps include 7 Minute Workout (free), which alternates 30 seconds of high-energy exercise with 10 seconds of rest, and Fitstar (free), a personalised training coach that adapts routines to match your ability, based on how you rate each workout once you've finished.
Cost: Up to $5.
Yoga apps
Get stretching wherever you are with a yoga app on your phone or tablet. Daily Yoga (free or $17 for a three-month subscription with advanced features) contains short yoga classes to music as well as a library of poses and routines. Another option is Yoga Studio ($5), which enables you to put together your own classes from the library of poses.
Cost: Up to $17 for an advanced subscription.
Nutrition apps
Watch what you're eating with MyFitnessPal. Keep a food diary to monitor calories and protein, carbohydrate and fat intake. Add friends so you can share your diaries.
Cost: Free.
Running apps
If 2015 is your year to take up running, you can't go past free app MapMyFitness. It uses the GPS in your smartphone to track where you've run and how quickly, and it shows the calories you've burned. It keeps a log so you can chart your progress, and you can compare this with other users if you're feeling competitive.
If you're getting started, the Couch to 5K program (free) is a good one to build up your running ability.
Zombies, Run! ($5) is also worth checking out. It is a game and story mixed with your own music. Set up your playlist before you start and it will interrupt with radio bursts about zombies and progress updates.
Cost: Up to $6.50.
Fitness trackers
If you don't fancy carrying your phone everywhere to track your exercise, a fitness tracker could be ideal.
Fitbit is one of the most popular and tracks movement, calories burned and even how well you're sleeping. It connects to your smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth. Or wait a few more months and buy an Apple Watch.
Cost: $147 for Fitbit Flex at Harvey Norman, or $3 a week if you divide the cost by the remaining weeks of this year.
Online programmes
If you want a personal trainer but can't afford one, an online version could be the answer. Trainers such as Tumehe Rongonui offer workouts with tips and videos. Rongonui sends daily workouts with nutrition advice. Fitocracy is another option.
Cost: $9.99 a month for Tumehe Rongonui's Fat Burning Ninja programme. $77 a month for Fitocracy's Bikini Bootcamp Express.
Facebook group
Fit M In is a New Zealand Facebook group with more than 1,200 members. Trainer Corinne Austin posts challenges, workouts and answers questions. Members share recipes and get together for workouts.
Cost: Free.
YouTube
There are more exercise videos on YouTube than you could ever hope to get through. FitnessBlender's range of workouts are some of the most popular and include cardio workouts of up to an hour, as well as short-blast workouts to target particular areas.
Cost: Free.
Gym subsidies
If you haven't been a member of a gym for at least 12 months, you may be eligible for an Exercise Association subsidised membership.
Its Get NZ Active promotion gives discounts of 40-70 per cent at gyms around the country. See exercisenz.org.nz/subsidised-gym-memberships for more information.
Cost: Auckland memberships start at $116 for three months, or about $8 a week.
Daily deals
Check out the daily deal sites for fitness and exercise specials. GrabOne is running a promotion until the end of this month with deals for gyms including eight weeks at Configure Express for $39 and four weeks of unlimited pilates at Suna Pilates for $59.
Three weeks of unlimited boxing training at Boxing Central costs $45.
And if all else fails in your battle of the bulge, get outside and go for a walk. It's free.
Fitness and friendship ... it's the Facebook answer
Michelle Morpeth takes son Nate and the family dog along on a budget exercise run. Photo / Doug Sherring
Michelle Morpeth decided it was time to get fit when her son, Nate, was four months old.
But an expensive gym membership wasn't an option for the budget-conscious young mum.
So she started walking regularly, went to a low-cost local fitness group for mothers, and now is a member of Facebook group Fit M In.
"There are regular fitness challenges, easy workouts anyone can do at home, recipes, tips organised trips," she said of the social media-based group.
"You can ask advice about anything and get lots of helpful replies within minutes."
Sixteen months after starting her own fitness crusade, she also uses the "PT in my Pocket" app.
"It's like the trainer is there with you. The exercises are really well demonstrated, so you can be sure you are using the right form and you're not going to get injured."
