Web2Go

Need to tone up for Spring but can’t afford that gym membership? Go online!

I used to go to the gym at least once a week but I haven’t been in ages. The thought of basking in the (probably radioactive) glow of my fab new 22 inch monitor far outweighs the prospect of being slowly but gleefully tortured by my personal trainer.

The advent of computers and the Web have taken the human potential for laziness to a whole new level. Why walk or wheel around the shops when we can give the mouse a workout and buy our shopping online? Why go outside (shudder) for a game of backyard cricket when World of Warcraft is on offer?

Web2Goers now wishing to assuage their pent up ‘keyboard-potato’ guilt can breathe a sigh of relief. Just like all those people who went out and bought a Nintendo Wii in the hope of improving their fitness, PC owners everywhere can stay put and get their fitness fix electronically.

The About.com website has a very comprehensive Fitness for Beginners section which gives you online and offline options to keep yourself in shape.

If yoga is your thing check out this Google Desktop gadget which reminds you do a yoga stretch every few minutes. Also take a look at the GetFitFast Google gadget which promises to help you stay motivated and let you in on the secrets of top personal trainers and fitness experts.

Those of you lucky enough to have an iPhone should take a look at this article which shares the ’50 coolest fitness and health apps for the iPhone’.

‘Poddercising’ is another option for those with iPods, MP3 players (or even mobile phones with MP3 storage capabilities).

Learn Out Loud has lots of free health and fitness podcasts to choose from and if you’re willing to pay for your pain (it’s still about half the cost of a yearly gym membership) visit itrainer.com.au.

To record all of your health and fitness progress online (which can later be printed out for bragging purposes) you can sign up for free at istats.

Of course, if this all sounds dangerously healthy to you, you always have the option of simply downloading a few healthy-sounding podcasts and having them on your iPod just for show

(I do this with Italian language podcasts and believe me, it works like a dream…)

I’d like to think that at Web2Go we encourage a wholistic approach to both the real and virtual worlds so, if you feel you need to tone up your mind as well as your body, check out the Australian National University’s free MoodGym website.

And remember, before you get too fired up and strenuous (even at your desktop), to get the OK from your doctor first.

Get those computer mice/mouses (?)/touchpads moving! If you’ve come across a great health and fitness website, podcast or app that’s not mentioned here, step it up and leave us a comment below! Now get down and give me twenty!