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If you're considerably overweight and want to lift weights at New York's Phoenix Fitness, the club offers exercise machines with extra-large seats, as well as extra-slow treadmills with specially designed cushioning on the tread.

Phoenix welcomes obese, sedentary and disabled clients. "We do have a couple of professional models," says founder Jim Eatroff of his $80-a-month-club. "They are probably tired of other clubs that are more of a pickup joint than a place to exercise."

Weaklings are welcome, too. Phoenix is equipped with exercise machines that have extra-low weight settings, so that members can feel they're making progress.

5. Bet on Losing: Gamblers who play slot machines have never had a problem shedding excess weight from their wallets. Slimming down the rest of the body, however, is a long shot.

But the odds might be slightly better in Atlantic City. The Tropicana Casino now offers high and hefty rollers a new sort of action — Pedal 'n Play slot machines, a one-armed bandit with a bicycle seat.

You mount this slot machine just like a stationary exercise bike. Handlebar buttons control the amount of the bet and the spin of the wheel. A cup holder stores quarters.

If you lose $100, don't sweat it. And if you do, that's the whole point. Maybe you don't have the heart of a gambler.

6. The Virtue of Imaginary Exercising: A lot of people think of working out and never get off their butts. Maybe that's not completely a bad thing.

Psychologists at Manchester Metropolitan University in England have issued a study that could fulfill every couch potato's deepest wish: They say just thinking about exercise stimulates your muscles.

The simple act of visualizing exercise makes a difference, according to researcher David Smith.