Working out with other people is one of the most effective ways to stick with your plan. Keeping each other accountable helps you both get fit faster. Finding a jogging partner or a tennis opponent makes it easier to schedule your workouts—and harder to skip them.

Even better, sign up for a group race or join a larger team to play soccer, softball, volleyball or any other sport you love. As a bonus, the team will likely have a lot of the equipment already, so you can skip buying your own or share.