Skip the commute and do your workout in your home gym
If the local gym is your home away from home, you might want to consider skipping the commute and setting up a home gym. With the right home gym equipment and workout machines you’ll enjoy a full fitness center without having to leave the house.
What are home gyms?
A home gym is a space in your home with workout machines and gym equipment. People typically set up home gyms in garages, spare rooms, or empty basements. The equipment you choose will depend on how you like to work out, but you can choose weight systems, cable machines, power towers, and squat racks.
Personalize your workout space with home gym accessories
Beyond machines you can also add home gym accessories to complete your exercise space.
Accessorize your home gym with free weights
Free weights are weights that aren’t attached to an apparatus. These weights consist of barbells, dumbbells, medicine balls, and kettle bells. You can use this type of weight for circuit training, core workouts, or to add a layer of difficulty to your cardio workouts.
You can also choose customizable weights, switching out weight plates as you build strength.
Benches give versatility to your at-home workouts
When you want to mix up your workouts, a workout bench will be a great addition to your home gym. You can use it with your squat rack or with weights. If you choose an adjustable bench press seat, you can easily pair it with your existing home gym equipment or cable machines that don’t have a bench.
Push up bars and chin up bars
Add a push up bar or a chin up bar to your home gym and you’ll be able to increase your upper body strength and core strength. You can find pull up bars or chin up bars that will attach to the inner frame of a door or choose one that mounts to a wall in your home gym. You can also find push up bars and chin up bars that come as an addition to a squat rack or dip station, giving you even more options for workouts in your home gym.
Ab machines
How do you know the ab exercises you do are effective? An ab machine ensures you’re hitting those target muscles, helping you work your way up to a firm stomach in no time.
Resistance bands & skipping ropes
If you do regular circuit training and you want to make it more effective, all you need is a resistance band. Resistance bands of varying tension can make a simple workout feel very difficult.
A skipping rope is a another great home gym accessory, and you can use your skipping rope to kick start a cardio workout or get in a quick fat-blasting session.
Are home gym workouts more effective than going to a gym?
Your home gym equipment can bring you the same results as your local fitness facility. Your progress will depend on what kind of workouts you choose to do. If you’re interested in strength or muscle building, you’ll want to set up your home gym with machines that can handle higher weight loads.
If you’d like to build strength and tone up, cable machines will help define muscles and build a strong core.
Don’t forget about music and fans
There’s a few other important factors to achieving success in your home gym. For motivation, be sure to add your favourite playlist to the mix by adding portable Bluetooth speakers or a sound bar system. You’ll also want to make sure your home gym is cool and comfortable when you’re working out, so adding a fan or two to keeps things chilly when you start to sweat.
Want to choose home gym equipment for your own home gym? Check out our resources.