Creating a Home Gym

Anyone who goes to their local gym knows about the many inconveniences that can come with it. Between waiting in lines for equipment, unclean machines and awkward moments in the locker room, sometimes getting your workout done can be frustrating. Creating a home gym is a great way to get a pump in without having to deal with the extra hassles and discomfort. Read on to find out everything you need to make a home gym!

Space

The ideal starting point for setting up a home gym is finding a workout space. Some good places to set up shop would be in your garage, basement, or even in a spare bedroom if you have one. As long as you have enough room for a few exercise machines and some weights, you'll be good to go. If you're working with a living space that's on the smaller side, you still have options! Plenty of home gym equipment is available with fold-away storage, and you can get lots of mileage out of smaller equipment like free weights, resistance bands, or doorway pull-up bars that can easily be stashed away under a bed or in a closet.

Gym Equipment

The next thing you'll need is gym gear. Start with a piece of cardio equipment like an elliptical, an exercise bike, or a treadmill to get your heart pumping. For strength training, you're going to need versatile equipment to target different muscle groups. Rowers, chin-up bars, benches, a dumbbell rack, or kettlebells will all make great additions to your home gym. If you have the space, it might also be helpful to get yourself a barbell set. A comfortable mat will also be nice to use for stretching or doing yoga before and after you exercise. It's also a good idea to have some fitness recovery devices on hand. A percussion massager or foam roller can help relax your muscles after a hard workout, and compression devices help promote healthy circulation.

Hydration

Staying hydrated is an extremely important part of every workout. Make sure you always have a water bottle on hand. You can store some in a mini fridge or a cooler, and keep the whole thing in your home gym. An insulated water bottle is a great way to keep your beverage within easy reach while ensuring it stays at a refreshingly cold temperature.

Climate Control

Of course you're going to want to stay comfortable as you work out. Depending on where you end up setting up your home gym, you may need extra cooling power or heating power. A fan or air conditioner can help keep you cool during an intense workout, while a space heaters can help heat your gym up in wintertime if you set it up in your basement or garage.

Audio Equipment

No workout is complete without a pump-up playlist! Since you're in your home gym, you probably won't need to use headphones to avoid disturbing others. Why not go all out? You can set up Bluetooth Speakers around the gym so you can control them remotely with your smartphone, or you could even install some in-wall and in-ceiling speakers as permanent fixtures to make sure your tunes blast out across the whole area.

Fitness Tracker

Though they're not necessarily essential to your home gym, an activity tracker can help you keep track of your workouts. These helpful little devices can display important info like how many calories you've burned, or how many steps you've taken during a run. Some models even allow you to adjust your music or accept a phone call right from your watch.

Building a home gym allows you to skip the traffic and the lines at the gym. As long as you get the right equipment, you can set up your very own home gym in no time. Go and get your pump on!