10 Free or Ridiculously Cheap Ways to Get Fit for Summer in Denver
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Coloradans are ridiculously interested in staying fit, fitness in general, and random physical feats that many people would prefer to leave to the pros. If you have friends who live here you will hear about a race that they plan on running, a hike they just did or are about to do, or tales of their friend who just did an ultra-marathon. Oh, wait, this sounds like my life LOL! But seriously folks-we love to get fit and fortunately for folks in Denver, there are a ridiculous number of ways to get fit for free or ridiculously cheap. Let’s talk.
The Obvious
Work out at Red Rocks Amphitheater. I try to go every other week and go up and down the stairs. You also get to see the regulars like the guy who we’re convinced was on American Ninja Warrior work out. He’s a beast. People also do exercises up and down the stairs, run from one level to the other, and the list goes on. Cost: gas money.
Community Minded
Check out The November Project’s Denver crew. They are the nicest, fittest people that I’ve ever worked out with…at 6:15 am. Once you’re done you get encouragement and sweaty hugs from hot people. Literally and figuratively. The November Project was created in Boston and has expanded throughout the United States. If you work out with a different chapter you’re always welcome to join in the fun every Wednesday and Friday at either 5:30 am or 6:15 am. If you’re not used to high altitude workouts be prepared-they are intense. Cost: Free
I also love Meetup.com’s ridiculous assortment of fitness based meetups. There are bootcamp meetups, running, yoga, hiking, and more. I typically participate in the hiking meetups and if you don’t have access to a car, you will be able to carpool. Cost: Free
The Outdoor Afros outdoor community. As the name is alluding to, it’s an outdoor enthusiast community for people of color. I love this community because it fills a need for under-served communities that may want to experience the outdoors but would like to go outdoors in as non-intimidating a setting as possible.
Classpass
For the non-committal fitness enthusiast. I love working out but I really get bored if I’m doing the same thing over and over again (unless it’s hiking and dance). Because of this I’ve fallen in love with Classpass which gives users various levels of access to studios across the city of Denver (and other locales). You can opt to attend 3, 5, or 10 classes a month. New users click here to get $30 off your first month’s access. I also like that you can switch off your membership if your schedule changes. I travel often so I tweak my membership from time to time to reflect that. Cost: $30-$89
Civic Center Moves
Is one of my favorite ways to workout in Denver. Basically the Civic Center Conservancy partners with: The November Project, Fold Yoga, The River, Fitness in the City, and Pearl Street Fitness to provide FREE fitness classes the end of April until the middle of October. Those classes are legit and you WILL get fit attending them regularly. Click here for more information. Cost: Free
Get Outdoors
There are a number of great bike paths for cycling enthusiasts but the following two are exceptional.
- The Cherry Creek Bike Path-Ride from downtown to Cherry Creek Reservoir.
- The US 36 Bike Path Between Westminster and Boulder. I watched this path being built waiting for the day that I could ride it. I’ve finally replaced my Cruiser and have a much lighter bike so that I can do this ride.
I love yoga. And, doing yoga outside is awesome. I’m so excited to Namaste outdoors with Yoga Rocks the Park this summer. Finally, one of my absolute favorite ways to workout is to go hiking in Chautauqua park in Boulder.There a number of different hikes that you choose from in varying levels of intensity.
Bonus:
Hip Hop Yoga!
I took a one-off hip hop yoga class at Shine Boutique on Pearl street for $5 dollars. It was awesome. We all begged for this to be a regular thing. Best line of the class “Biggie would tree the sh$t out of this song.” And, he would have.
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I am obsessed with The Lonely Planet book series for travel. I’ve used these books for years and love that the books are now available digitally. Click on the image below to check them out.
