I want to commit to fitness but I cannot spare my life savings on a gym membership. Excuses can come in the way, and I don’t want to regret paying for something I cannot redeem. If I set up a home gym, hopefully for less than $200, I can atleast sell them back on craigslist and recover maybe 50 – 75% of the value I spent on these equipment.
Benefits of a Home Gym
- No excuses such as traffic
- Don’t have to dress up or wear according to gym rules
- No rules – like wipe with towel after use
- Can shower in private afterwards
- Ability to resell the equipment and upgrade when needed
- My house, my rules
- No waiting for equipment to be done using by others
- No sharing others sweat, only my seat.
Drawbacks of a Home Gym
- Requires man power and support for installation
- You will not have ALL the equipment unless you want to
- Requires more space out of your home
- No spotters, supporters or company unless invited
- No professional coaching or advise unless hired
In my opinion, there is not really much of a disadvantage in having a home gym. I really prefer to workout at my own time of convenience without any disturbance. I enjoy working out alone. It’s like meditation in a way. I get a lot of thinking done during this time.
Here’s what I have in my home gym
Wall Mounted Chin Up Bar – $30 (see reviews at suspensionrev.com)
Suspension Trainers – $30
Stability Ball – $20
Total cost $80. That’s it.
My workouts mostly comprise of suspension trainers and body-weight. That’s all I basically require to get optimal results. I focus mostly on developing my lats.
I would like to own a squat rack and a barbell with weights upto 300lbs. This would be the dream, but I lack the space to keep the rack and my neighbors might complain if I decided to workout at 10pm and I start dropping some weights.
I would have to spend more on padding and noise proofing the place just so I could drop some weights. Naah… Simple equipment & consistency can bring outstanding results if done with discipline.
My Cardio Equipment
No treadmill, stair climber or stationary bike can tempt me to replace my favourite cardio of all time – the Tabata protocol. I really love doing 8 minutes of Tabata circuits to get my cardio workout done.
It’s more enjoyable, and practical for a person who gets bored fast like myself.
I mostly do 4 minutes of jumping jacks and 4 minutes of lateral lunges.
I can do 26 jumping jacks in 20 seconds and 9 lateral lunges (total both sides) in 20 seconds. What’s your best?
I’m trying to be as fast as 30 jumping jacks and 12 lateral lunges in 20 sec set.
This progressive training target is the best of both worlds. You get your cardio AND your resistance training done in a way.
What does your home gym consist of and what would your prefer to add if you could?
Feel free to comment away.
A Mom, a Blog 