You’ve probably already been bombarded with offers from your run-of-the-mill fitness gyms trying to get you to buy a membership for the coming year. As you figure out how to attain your goals for getting in shape and working out more in 2012, make sure you aren’t choosing one solely based on the price. The most important thing is to find a good fit for your needs, and that isn’t always at your typical, low-cost gym.

In Austin, one of the things drawing people to alternative forms of workouts and gyms is the communal aspect of the smaller training studios. Instead of just showing up at a normal gym and trying to figure out on your own what to do with all the machines, treadmills and free weights, these smaller studio workouts are session-based or class-based, and led by a trainer. This enables you to get many of the benefits of a personal training session, while also forming relationships with fellow trainees. Not only does the camaraderie make working out more fun, but it also encourages accountability and consistency that is hard to attain on your own.

The other key advantage to these different workouts is that you aren’t limited to mostly-static exercises. Workout methods, like the ones you’ll participate in at these training studios, are much more explosive in nature. You’ll have more freedom to do movement-based exercises that incorporate multiple muscle groups, rather than just sitting at a machine, training a single muscle. And instead of ending up simply looking in shape, the result is an aesthetically and functionally fit body.

There are many choices for smaller, alternative-style gyms and studios in Austin, including two that were recently recognized in Austin Fit Magazine as the “Best of 2012”: Dane’s Body Shop and CrossFit Central. Both of these gyms are locally owned, operated by Austin residents, and provide a fun, challenging, group-based alternative to larger corporate gyms.

There are a few experts a man should rely on in his life: a reputable doctor to keep you healthy, a talented tailor to make sure your clothes fit properly and a skilled barber to supply a haircut that completes your overall look. We’ve all been there – taking a risk on a strip mall “salon” only to leave with a butchered mane. To ensure this doesn’t happen, it’s important to take the time to find the right barber that will deliver a cut with style and consistency. We found ours at Red’s Classic Barber Shop.

Red’s is a proper barbershop complete with classic chairs and men hard at work on their customers with clippers or scissors in hand. It’s as if the shop never left an era gone by, when men could feel at home and amongst friends during a trim. Although there are several services offered, we usually opt for the Classic Cut with a Razor Finish. Having a straight edge clean the back of your neck is a nice addition to an otherwise routine maintenance.

Red’s also offers shaves with a straight edge razor. It’s quite a rewarding experience, considering there is hot, sharp steel passing over your face. Starting with a hot towel to open pores and soften whiskers, the barber carefully goes with the grain for a smooth, clean finish.

While a man should visit his barber once in a while for a shave, he obviously has to do it at home himself as well. So we asked the barbers at Red’s for some tips on a close shave. They say the two key factors are to make sure to always go with the grain of the beard and also don’t press down. Let the razor do the work.

Red’s Classic Barber Shop is located at 221 4th Avenue North. 615.742.1799

It’s a rare man who never hits his snooze button and can bounce out of bed, invigorated and ready to take on the challenges of the day. For the rest of us, a little extra kick is usually needed to rouse our senses and face the world.

As a freelance IT guy working late and getting up early, this was the problem Atlantan Will Evans faced. “I really needed a way to wake up quickly and wanted to do it without coffee,” Will told us. “After trying all kinds of things I started using different face washes but there didn’t seem to be much out there geared toward the masculine guy. So I set out to launch my own and called it Chiefs.”

An entrepreneur at heart, but not initially a cosmetics expert, Will had a few rounds of experiments that weren’t so successful. “With the original formula I had no idea what I was doing. At the time, I began messing around with essential oils and other materials and eventually came up with an okay prototype. However, I found a partner in Dallas that would not only help me perfect the formula, but also handle the product filling and bottle screen printing.”

The final product, launched in September, distinguishes itself from other energizing face washes on the market by leaving out caffeine, dyes, fragrances, exfoliants or paraben. “We use natural ginsing, menthol, peppermint and eucalyptus that packs an aromatic punch and will make you feel fresh and alert.”

Chiefs energizing face wash is available online for $16.99.

In 1755, doctor Julian Botot invented the world’s first mouthwash for King Louis XV of France. The potent herbal rinse pleased the royal family so much that it would eventually receive an official endorsement, just days before the storming of the Bastille. The French Revolution made a casualty of the monarchy, but Dr. Botot’s concoction survived.

Still made in its original formula, Botot is an all-natural mouthwash containing natural extracts of anise, cinnamon, ginger and gillyflower (similar to cloves). The antibacterial elixir not only cleans and refreshes, but also produces a warm sensation thanks to the ginger, which increases circulation.

At the equivalent of 160 proof, the concentrated rinse is incredibly strong so keep away from children and an open flame. Unlike most factory mixed mouthwashes that taste like part mint and part battery acid, Botot contains no synthetic chemicals or coloring agents. Simply add a few drops to a small glass of water, adjusting the quantity to your preferred potency.

The Latin inscription on the bottle peculiarly reads cui fidas vide meaning watch whom you trust, but you can take our word for it that over all these years no one has yet to develop a better mouthwash than the original. Botot is available online at Kaufmann Mercantile for $16.90 a bottle, but since it’s concentrated it will last a long time.

Now that we are officially into Movember, you may not be shaving your upper lip, but you’ll still want to keep the rest of your face looking smooth and clean. A handcrafted soap-maker out of Lubbock, Texas has a few tools that could come in handy.

A family owned operation, Dirty Deeds Soaps, can equip you with all-natural shaving soaps like Bay Rum & Lime Beer, Pumpkin Ale Beer, Black Leather, Tobacco Beer and a Green Tweed version created to evoke the scent of a gentlemen in an Irish pub wearing a tweed jacket.

In addition to their fine soaps, they also offer several shaving kits ranging from a $35 Vintage Mug Shave Set that includes the mug, beer soap and a brush, to a $240 four-piece Groomsmen Set complete with round wooden soap holders, beer soaps, boar bristle brushes and Weishi gunmetal safety razors all packaged in up-cycled cigar boxes. Each set includes helpful tips for achieving the ultimate classic shave.

If you don’t see a set on their website that fits your needs, Dirty Deeds will be glad to create a customized box by request.