Archer

ShadowLion nailed it- there are probably free groups that meet at a park near you

I like "bulletproof coffee" a lot- adding a glob of healthy fat like coconut oil, and even a little protein powder is a great morning drink.

I like to make a smoothie with Muscle Milk, a glob of coconut cream, and frozen fruit. Keeps me full for a long time.

I like all kinds of music, but if I plan on working out a long time, I like some aggressive electronic music. Nero's "Satisfy Mix" is an hour of intense music the flows really well from song to song. https://soundcloud.com/nero/the-satisfy-mix

My local university has a rock climbing gym open to the public that's a lot cheaper than a private gym or retail store.

I would take a course at a local community college. You can choose from both group classes and private lessons.

"Deeds, Not Words" my unit motto in the Army. Has always stuck with me.

my local crossfit gyms are $140/mo and don't even have a locker room. The "regular" gym has showers, food, just as many squat racks, bumper weights, rope climbs, etc. for $45/mo. So it's more about the atmosphere, the instructors trying to motivate you, the group classes, etc. Honestly, the people at the cheaper traditional gym are overall bigger and stronger. The trainers have college educations and years of competitive experience. The crossfit coaches have just their Level 1 cert and not much else. Your town may vary.

20 bags of concrete and some rebar, and I have a slab that hasn't cracked after dropping 400lb deadlifts on it. I have some horse stall rubber on it too. The rack, as I mentioned earlier, was found on craigslist for cheap. It's not as wide as I would like it, but works well.

I have 3 kids: 10, 6, and 3. Time is very important, and not having to drive to a gym all the time is even more important to me. There are a lot of really good body weight workouts that don't take very long, and require little/no equipment. The goal is to rotate through exercises so you don't burn out on one of them. Some examples: 1. Do 30 squats, 20 situps, and 10 pushups. Do 4 rounds of that as fast as you can. Keep a stopwatch and measure progress each week. Work towards adding more reps like 40-30-20 2. Do each for 1 minute: burpees, jump-rope, situps, box/stair jumps, shadow boxing. Then rest a minute, and repeat all 5. Now you have a good 11 minute workout that's intense and uses your entire body.

My kids get bored just walking a trail, so I bring stuff like binos and books on local plants and birds to make it more of an adventure. If you go an hour after sunrise, or an hour before sunset, you'll see a lot more critters.

I'd be curious to know how strict "paleo" your meals are, and in what ratios. Not trying to be mean, but many beginner exercisers are so out of shape, they are simply not able to give the kind of effort needed to truly make noticeable changes quickly. Definitely stay off the scale for a long time. Use measurable fitness improvements, like how many pushups can you do, how fast can you run 400 yards, etc. Then use how your clothes are fitting. The scale can be discouraging when you are losing fat but also building muscle. the fat burning will come later when you get your metabolism up due to your fitness gains.

Stay away from programs like ATA Karate / TKD that exist to make a profit. The big martial arts chains basically sell you your belt. Everyone passes the tests, and they test you often to make more $$$. That's why you'll see 12 year old "black belts" that are not even remotely a master at anything other than memorizing a routine. There's practically a MMA gym in every city now. Many are affiliated with well known competition teams or individuals. Practically every place offers a free trial, and will have a beginner program where you don't have to worry about sparring or getting hurt. Wrists / joints get better through good warm-ups and strength training, not by avoiding using them- unless there's a real injury that needs to heal first.

Videos are good to a point, but you're not getting feedback on how well you're performing. It's worth it to have someone with experience watch you, or hire a personal trainer to get started. You don't want to injure yourself! A good warm-up will really help with joint pain. 10+ minutes on the treadmill, jump-rope, and exercises with light weight are good. Don't just walk in a gym and start lifting heavy things.

I poured a small concrete slab in my backyard for a squat rack and lifting area. It took about 30 bags of concrete. I put 2 pressure treated 4x4 posts into the ground for a pull-up bar. Then made plyo boxes for box jumps. Most of the gear I bought used on craigslist. the rest from rogue. Don't go cheap on your oly bar or bumpers, because I've had the cheap one bend or get dented within days of hard use.