Helping you to Stay Fit - Anywhere
The past few posts have covered how to decide whether a studio or gym is right for; you’ve learned what to look for when shopping for a health club and you understand a lot more about how to hire a personal trainer.
There are some of you out there thinking, “Thanks for the club info Pete, but I have no interest in exercising around other people.’ Or, you live in an area where a health club or studio may not be that accessible. Or, you want the option to have a good workout from home when your schedule is tight.
No worries, because I got you covered; it is not that difficult or expensive to set up a home gym, all you need is a little space and some creativity. Whether you are looking for a little space for some stretching or core exercises, or you want to build out a full home gym now that your kids are off in the world and you have your house completely to yourself. This post will offer home gym solutions for three budgets: less than $100 (the approximate price of 3 studio workouts, or 4 months of a HPLV gym membership), $300 (the estimated cost of 6 months of a HPLV-gym membership with the recovery center upgrade - highly recommended) or 2 months of unlimited classes at a boutique studio) and unlimited budget (in case Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg are reading). (affiliate links noted, a fella’s gotta get his protein).
Less than $100
Mini-band - this piece of rubber resistance is very affordable, easy to store and provides a number of great options for both the lower and upper body.
1 set of dumbbells - many of the large big box retailers that sell groceries also sell fitness equipment, select a pair that makes 10-12 reps challenging. As you become stronger, you can increase intensity by doing reps for time to increase metabolic fatigue or do circuit training with no rest intervals between sets to increase overall metabolic fatigue, essential for muscle growth.
2-arm resistance band - this band can easily be attached to a door frame and allows you to replicate a number of cable machine exercises while at home.
Jump rope - budget friendly, easy to store and can make you sweat = win, win and win.
Stretch mat
A friend’s home gym; little secret… it was funded by US. He was stationed in Afghanistan and had the authority to ship home half a container of equipment (as opposed to leaving it in the high desert).
Less than $300, all of the above AND
Stability ball - you can do a number of bodyweight exercises to strengthen all of your muscles, especially those in the core region. These can be bought at many big box retailers like Target and Walmart.
A Sandbell by Hyperwear (affiliate link) - the unique design is great for grip strength and are easier to store in a small space when compared to medicine balls.
A kettlebell - again, many big box retailers now sell kettlebells which can be used for strength, power or metabolic conditioning exercises. Pick up one at least 20 lbs - it can be used for carries, deadlifts and swings - all important exercises for longevity.
IF your budget allows, a rowing machine is the ULTIMATE piece of home equipment - you can do both endurance and HIIT, plus it is super friendly on the back and knees. IYKYK.
Jeff Bezos (Unlimited budget), all of the above AND
TRX Suspension Trainer (affiliate link) - the original, pick up the commercial version for a piece of long-lasting equipment.
Another pair of heavier dumbbells and a 2nd, heavier kettlebell. Heck, if you can afford it, get a whole rack of dumbbells and three or four kettlebells to have the widest variety of training options. Also, it would be smart to invest in a proper weight-lifting rack for safety. A squat cage offers a lot of variety for also attaching a TRX and resistance tubing, making it a great choice, if space and budget allow.
A HIIT Bike or Indoor rower - using both the upper and lower body at the same time can increase the number of calories you burn, do a search for companies that sell used commercial gym equipment; yes, this could be more expensive but it’s much better quality than what is sold via normal retail channels like sporting goods stores.
Where to buy:
NOT AMAZON - with the exception of buying straight from the manufacturer; for example, both TRX and Hyperwear have moved all sales on to the Amazon to help with fulfillment - BTW, they have an AMAZING new vest, watch for a product review coming soon. Otherwise, the stuff on Amazon is relatively low quality. You’re much better off spending a little more and buying from the same suppliers as the fitness industry. Perform Better makes and sells all sorts of equipment from bands to barbell racks, health clubs, colleges and pro teams buy from them - you want the same level of quality, invest in it.
American Barbell makes top notch equipment used by a variety of health clubs, gyms, teams and universities. Plus, these are the folks who funded the recent video shoot providing, if you’re going to buy steel from anywhere - go here; they make killer stuff at reasonable prices.
In general, look for used health club quality equipment. Most major urban areas have companies that refurbish and sell used fitness equipment, it’s a large market. You can also scour craigslist or facebook marketplace for studios going out of business selling equipment.
I used to work for Core Health & Fitness, the makers of Nautilus and StairMaster. Commercial equipment is engineered and manufactured to a high level of quality, it is designed to be used 20 hours per day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. You’ll pay more, but consider it an investment because you’ll keep it for years. Plus, you can have commercial quality equipment repaired. The same is not true for that treadmill you bought at Dick’s.
When it comes to investing in equipment for home use, you get what you pay for. Go cheap, get junk. It’s worth the time and expense to search for an invest in a good, used commercial quality piece. My kid’s mom has a Spinning cycling bike in her garage that we bought from Core in 2013 (the last year they co-branded with Spinning, it was a close-out, we got a great deal on a top-of-the-line commercial unit, $1100). We need to keep the belt lubricated otherwise there has been minimal maintenance in the 13 years we’ve owned it. Go commercial, it’s worth it.
Smarter Workouts - 2nd Edition
Oh yeah, this is how I’m going to announce the upcoming release of the 2nd edition of Smarter Workouts - now with a chapter on the health benefits of strength training along with a barbell strength training program you could do in your home gym.
Smarter Workouts teaches you how to design your own workout programs using only 1 piece of equipment at a time (it started as a series of blogs I wrote called, 1 weight workouts); if you’re buying equipment for home, Smarter Workouts will teach you how to use it.
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