Walter S

No interest in paying gym fees, no interest in buying expensive equipment. What are the options?

The answer that works best so far for me?

Jump rope! That works your legs. And man, is that aerobic. I often do that before a cold ride to get myself good and warm before leaving the house. And helps to keep my coordination tuned. I bought that for less than $10 at walmart. You could DIY for cheaper still.

I integrate it with a regimen of other less aerobic exercise so I periodically go do a set of 100 reps on the jump rope while making my circuit among other stuff like push ups, sit ups, squats, etc.

staehpj1

I actually don't ride much these days when not on tour. What I do instead is trail running. I do still ride on the road a bit and on the trails a bit too, but the large majority of days I go for a trail run. It seems to keep me in pretty good general condition as well as riding shape.

RPK79

I tried jump roping when I was at the gym one day. Wow, that is quite the work out!

mcallaghan

I was going to recommend both Downhill Skiing and XC Skiing, but since you live in GA, those don't seem to be good options for you.

Machka 

How cold is GA? Buy tights and a jacket and go ride!

But if you want to mix it up a bit ... try hiking. Got any mountains/hills you can scale? Climbing uphill will get your heart beating.

Cyclebum

The desk cycle is a viable alternative. Pedal with whatever resistance while watching TV or reading. There's a cheaper version that works ok but doesn't let you set the resistance very high and isn't as smooth.

Keep moving.

Walter S

Hiking is good. I go for long walks when it's cold. I can stay warm like that at much lower temps than on the bike.

I keep riding all year round. But once in goes below 40F I find it less and less pleasant. Below mid 20s I won't do it all unless it's a short ride to the grocery store. So in the winter I might ride 80 miles/week if there's much of that. My summer time riding is more like 250/week or more.

Last year it was a breeze. Maybe after this cold snap...

Atlanta is not cold at all compared to lots of places. But that doesn't mean it's not cold to me personally. I'm more sensitive to the cold than average. I can see that when I go out and compare my dress to others, whether we're talking about bicycle clothes or street clothes.

My dream is to retire from my job, live on the road, and when it starts getting chili, ride to where it is warmer.

staehpj1

Another thing to consider is that it is easier to stay warm while mountain biking than road biking so you might consider trying that if you haven't already.

BWF

A rowing machine is a great indoor alternative to winter riding. It puts you into the same body position as cycling with torso bent forward at waste, arms extended forward, and legs pressing. It is known as one of the best full body workouts you can do on a machine and is just about ideal to prepare you for spring riding. I have a WaterRower, but they are expensive. On the other hand, I also have a fat tire bike in addition to my touring bike and like riding in snow all winter long. I suppose you could find a cheap set of used rollers, but I have always felt they are akward and really don't provide much of a benefit other than getting warmed up.