It’s been a couple crazy months to begin the year 2020, but we have made it to Summer! The sun is shining, the air is warm, and the gyms are beginning to open? Hooray! Being at home all this time is kind of crazy and now as your gym opens back up, you may be thinking to yourself, “How about I build my own gym at home?” Well, here’s your guide to beginning your at home gym!
Yoga mat:
This isn’t something that is outrageous, but it will make all the difference in your home gym. The moment you go to perform some ab exercises or kneeling exercises, you will be happy you invested in a decent yoga mat. They won’t break the bank, and your body will greatly appreciate being off the concrete of your garage.
Resistance Bands:
You can find decent resistance bands anywhere online between $15-$30. This is another great investment that will go a long way and doesn’t take up much space. You can add resistance bands to just about any exercise to target and build muscle. They can also be a great way to strengthen your joints so that you can avoid injury as your transition back to other workouts.
Dumbbells:
When looking to invest in dumbbells, I would suggest buying actual dumbbells for each weight that you would like. Power blocks are a great way to save space, but they do have their disadvantages. Such as, if you would like to change your weight in a 2.5lb increment you have to take out a weight which throws the balance off and just feels weird. For this reason, decide which pound weights you would like and buy those. A general rule of thumb is that you will spend $1 per pound for each dumbbell. You won’t go wrong with dumbbells being that you can perform any exercise you would like with them. Think about getting different weights so that you have a heavier and a lighter option for different muscle groups.
Kettlebells:
Kettlebells are another investment to consider when beginning your home gym. They are a great way to perform strength based exercises while simultaneously getting your heart rate elevated. Personally, I think that every home gym should have a set or two of kettlebells to complete your workouts.
Everything mentioned above is a great way to get your at home gym started while being able to have a wide variety of possibilities available to you for your workouts. These will also keep you on budget and save space in your house. As you continue to build, then you could add barbells and platforms as you desire, but here’s a great place to start!
Written by GUADS staff member Patrick with contributions from www.bodybuilding.com