Getting Active On a Budget

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Even if your family has a limited income, you can still be physically active. Many activities are low cost or free. What’s more, many community agencies can help outfit your family members for their favourite sports, e.g., the Bell Community Sport Fund, Jump Start, or Everybody Gets to Play.

Read this article for information about free activities for you and your family, low-cost ways to outfit yourself and your kids, and programs that can help your family participate in the sports they like to play.

Free Activities

Active living simply means including physical activity in your day. You don’t have to play sports in league, be a fitness club member, or train to run a marathon. There are many things you can do and places you can go (alone, with friends, your children, your parents or grandparents) that will allow you to be active enough to gain health benefits. Being active enough is as simple as doing 30 to 60 minutes (in at least 10 minute bouts) of some form of moderate physical activity on most days of the week.

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The kind of activity you choose might be free or cost very little. Public parks are for everyone. Many parks have playgrounds, trails, wading pools, exercise trails, and picnic areas you can use for free.

Recreation departments, churches, or community leagues in many communities offer free summer playground programs for children. In the winter, sledding, skating, and walking are cost free. You just need some warm clothes and skates, a sled, or a sheet of cardboard.

It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to be active, just time and a bit of planning and imagination.

Low-Cost Ways to Outfit Yourself and Your Family

Scout the sales. You can find sports clothing and equipment (e.g., running shoes, workout gear) on sale at certain times of the year. Good times for sales are at the start or end of seasons, Boxing Day and the month of January, or before the beginning of a new school year.

Second-hand bargains. If you can’t find what you need on sale, used sports equipment is a good choice. Young children grow so fast. There’s no point in buying brand-new equipment that they will grow out of before it wears out. Many sports stores have sections of used equipment for children and adults.

Some stores will take your used equipment on consignment. With consignment, you get the money when the store sells your equipment. Other stores offer you a trade in (in exchange for your old gear, you get a deal on your new purchase).

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Agencies such as the Salvation Army and Goodwill have discount stores with very inexpensive fitness gear for families. Check out the weekend garage sales in your community for another great source of equipment. Just be careful that any second-hand safety equipment (e.g., helmets) isn’t damaged.

Many community leagues offer equipment swaps in the spring and fall. Groups like KidSport also give equipment to children who need it.

Programs for You and Your Family

Are budget problems making it hard for you to be as active as you would like? Fee-reduction programs can make it easier for you to take part in recreational activities.

For example, Calgary reduces the cost of admission to facilities and Edmonton reduces the cost of registration fees. An example is the Canadian Government’s Children’s Fitness Tax Credit (starting in January 2007). This program will allow parents to deduct $500 per year per child (under the age of 16) to help with the cost of their kids’ activities.

Check with your city or town to see if they offer any other fee-reduction programs in your area.

Getting Active Doesn’t Have to Break the Bank

We all face barriers to being physically active, but cost should not be one of them. There are many ways to reduce the cost of sports. If you find that your budget is still a bit tight, you can also access programs to help you cut some of your costs.

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Learn More

Bell Community Sport Fund
This $1 million fund allows communities to access support for soccer and hockey programs.

Boy's & Girl's Clubs
Boy's & Girl's Clubs across the province offer recreational programs for youth.

Everybody Gets to Play
This program from the Canadian Parks & Recreation Association helps make recreation more accessible to children in low-income families.

Jump Start
Canadian Tire’s program helps children participate in sports programs.

KidSport
KidSport works to overcome the obstacles that prevent some young people from playing sports. This group raises funds to pay sports registration fees for children. It also gathers used sport equipment and promotes the value of kids playing sports in terms of their lifelong health.