Cheap & Easy Exercise Spots in Daegu

 

We all see the banners everywhere; ‘Join our gym! Lose that weight! 1 month – 3 months – 6 months – 1 year payments! It only costs 1/4th of your paycheck every month!’ But the reality always hits us in the face after we tour the fancy, clean gym halls and sign up for bettering our health; we don’t go for (enter excuse here). Don’t worry! I took some time to look around my community here in Daegu at alternatives to hefty gym payments for the same levels of working out that you would achieve inside. Here are a few of my recommendations to cheap and easy exercise spots:

  1.     Fight Club SK.

“It’s a safe place to explore violence.” – Nick Heroux

I know what you’re thinking: you DON’T talk about fight club! On the contrary, Nick Heroux, who runs Fight Club SK begs to differ. He’d rather talk to you about fight club and invite you to join for a session. He aims to host an inviting environment where you are not pushed to do anything you don’t want to do. They rotate between teaching muy thai, MMA, boxing, jiu jitsu, wrestling, etc. stances to promote self-defense. Any experience or weight level is welcome to join. Fight Club is held on Saturdays at 죽전역 on Line 2 from 13:00 to 15:00+ and each session is only 10,000원. If you have any additional questions, be sure to look Nick up at, “Fight Club SK” on Facebook and send him a PM for more questions.

[Picture taken by Sydney Tanko]
  1.     Mount Apsan

Hiking is one of the top Korean pastimes; you can find hiking trails everywhere. If you’re looking to get into hiking, you can start with Mount Apsan. It has several different trails with varying lengths, all around 3km. If you’re nervous about hiking up, you can always ride the cable cars to the top and hike down. Cable car rides one way are 7,500원. You can get to Mount Apsan from 안지랑역 on Line 1 if you catch the 410 bus to 앞산공원. In my opinion, it’s best to go to Mount Apsan with enough time to get to the top and see the sun set over the city.

[Picture taken by Sydney Tanko]

  1.     Daegu Arboretum

Completely free except your bus fare to arrive here, the Daegu Arboretum is the perfect place to go for a walk any time of year. They also rotate through seasonal flowers to keep you coming back. I suggest going in the morning because you will end up spending a lot of time viewing hundreds of flowers and plants the Daegu Arboretum has. The closest bus stops to the Daegu Arboretum are stops along the bus routes for달서3 and 달서5.

[Pictures taken by Sydney Tanko]

  1.     General Walking Trails

There are walking trails everywhere near residential areas. Along these trails, they have free exercise equipment for you to use at your own discretion. You’ll tend to see the elderly using these machines, but don’t let that deter you from your own health goals! Most trails, also, have lighting so you can go during the daytime or at night. The picture below is the closest one to my house and it features a river that you can walk along and enjoy the sound of nature.

[Picture taken  by Sydney Tanko]

Writer: Sydney Tanko

Editor: Jane Castillo

Lead Contributor: Rachel Casseline Pinnock