5 HOME GYM ESSENTIALS
It’s that time of year: it’s super chilly outside, even darker, and the motivation to get up and out to the gym is, well, minimal. I love in-home workouts, always have. And even when I didn’t have the set-up that I do now, I had a few select pieces that were just enough to get the workout in that I needed: small pieces that stored well, and pieces that I would actually use.
This Wellness Wednesday I am sharing some home-gym essentials, for any size space! Whether you’ve got an entire room, or a spare corner in your living room, you can still get your workout. All we had in our place in Michigan was a living room that had enough space that I was able to do some lunges in the corner and we fit our spin bike in the guest room that wasn’t used all that much. I loved those workouts! Loved being able to have the flexibility just to get up and moving in my own home if, oh I don’t know, there was a blizzard? You know it happens!
Or maybe you’ve got a spare room that you’re looking to build out a home gym and just don’t know where to start? I’ll share our go-to’s and what we currently have in our gym that for me, is perfect!! I don’t have a membership at a big box gym anymore and it is so nice!
PRACTICALLY NO SPACE AT ALL
This is for those apartments that have practically no room to spare, but want a few items that you might be able to store in a basket in a closet or something. Nothing super fancy, but good for a 30 minute sweat here and there.
AN EMPTY CORNER
So it’s not a whole room, but it’s a nice spacious corner that you could dedicate to a few things. And why not? You have to maximize your space right?
spin bike, foldable treadmill, bands, reebok bench, plyo ball, bands
THE WHOLE SHEBANG!
This is for those folks that have an empty guest room, or maybe an office that isn’t functional that you want to dedicate to getting or staying fit! I personally love our rec room. It’s actually the biggest room in the house over the garage and we fit a ton in there, including me desk set up. Sure there are a few things here and there that I would love to have in our home gym, but there are very few moves/workouts that I cannot do with the equipment we have. It’s also important to make sure that you are able to organize the stuff in a way that doesn’t completely fill the room. Otherwise you won’t have any room to move!
A FEW TIPS
What I hated most about the box box gym was the membership cost, on top of the payments I was making to my boutique studio classes. It’s just too much!! If you are trying to pair down the cost of your workouts but don’t want to forgo your workouts completely, figure out which ones you get the most out of! For example, you will never find a harder and more efficient workout than Solidcore, so I dedicate almost all of my studio expenses to those classes. For a while I was attending classes there as well as a spin class, which is actually a great combo. So I’m going to let you in on a little secret…
DO NOT feel obligated to spend thousands of dollars on a Peloton. I know, I know, they are all the hype, they look sexy, you want to look like the trainers they have on the screen, etc. but the cost is insane (in my opinion). There are some great spin bikes out there that are hundreds, if not thousands of dollars less expensive than the Peloton, and what most people don’t know? Is that you can get the Peloton App for $12/month and there is EVERYTHING on it: treadmill runs (which I do 3x a week), outdoor runs, strength classes, yoga, spin classes, etc. In my opinion you’re getting way more bang for your buck. And if I’m not mistaken, after you spend the almost $2,500 on the bike, you still have to pay for the class membership? No bueno.
Other favorites we have in our home gym:
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short olympic bar and individual olympic bar racks
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we also have a plyo box (that can be used at the three different heights) but if you don’t use those a ton in the gym, I would start with using your bench instead.
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this is a great piece to store your yoga mats and foam rollers if you have them.
