Make Your Own Home Fitness Gym

Building your home fitness gym can be an investment. So many people I talked to ended up not doing enough research and ending up with inferior products or with equipment that wasn’t versatile enough. If you look hard and do enough research, you can find a multi gym that is absolutely perfect for you and does just enough.  If you aren’t going to use the extra features that your multi gym equipment offers, why pay for it?

Weider X-Factor Plus Gym

Here are some amazing multi gym options that perform a variety of workouts.  I have placed them starting with the simpler and more cost effective and moving into the more elaborate and pricey.

One of the most compact, yet highly effective home multi gyms you can get is the Weider X-Factor Plus Gym. Besides being extremely efficient, it looks pretty cool as well.  I could definitely see Batman or one of the X-Men training on a device like this.  The X-Factor smartly doesn’t use weights, but instead relies of resistance technology and your own weight vs. gravity to help you get in shape. It features upper and lower pulleys to work a variety of muscle groups as well as a pull up bar and a fold away dip station.  An item like this is perfect for somebody either just starting out or who doesn’t want to bulk up as much as just get toned and fit.  Efficient, stylish and affordable!

Best Fitness Sportsmans Gym

The Best Fitness Sportsmans Gym is quite affordable and performs a lot of different exercises that target dozens of muscles. It is extremely compact and very easy to use. The fiberglass pulleys that lift the weights use aircraft quality cables, so you can trust that it will not break easily. The additional wide grip lat bar and low row bar make the price that much more awesome.

The chest press attachment on the Best Fitness Sportsmans Gym also turns into a pec fly exercise, serving the dual purpose of providing two fantastic exercises.  The leg piece can enable you to perform seated leg extensions and standing leg curls.  The overhead bar allows you to replicate cable exercises that you would normally have to perform at the gym.  The versatility of this machine for its price is really impressive.

Powerline BSG10X Home Gym

The Powerline BSG10X Home Gym is a bit more expensive, but it is even better quality. Of all the home multi gyms, this one is the most like a gym machine you would find at the gym, but is built to be an extremely compact 6 feet tall and only 4 feet wide.

Powerline Home Gym

The maker also offers a whopping ten year warranty to insure that you get your moneys worth from this gym equipment. It is quite easy to assemble and performs over 30 different exercises. Of all the multi gyms, this is a great one to start anybody’s home fitness gyms.

Depending on your needs, any of these multi gyms will work extremely well to get you closer to your fitness goals. All three are versatile, compact and well designed. While they are very helpful, don’t forget things like adjustable dumbbells, resistance bands or a dumbbell rack. Before you know it, you will have everything you need for a complete home fitness gym.

I know we all wish we had a huge room dedicated to our own personal home fitness gym, but not all of us can afford such an extravagance.  Most people have smaller areas that don’t allow for bulkier equipment, which is perfectly fine.  There are still tons of workout options available to you.

When I was in a similar situation in my first apartment, I discovered a product that helped me immensely.  The Iron Gym Total Upper Body Bar was an ideal and compact multi gym that kept me in shape when I was broke and right out of college.  It latches on to your doorway, taking advantage of that empty space.  Chin ups and pull ups can be performed in several different grips to allow you exercise your muscles more thoroughly.

At the bottom of the archway, it can assist in a variety of other workouts.  It can hold your feet in place while you are doing sit ups and crunches.  With your arms behind you, balancing on the bar, you can do dips to work your triceps and other muscles in your arms and shoulder.

Treadmill jogging is one the most popular home gym exercises people do.  Finding room for a treadmill in your home can be tricky, as they are one of the bulkiest pieces of gym equipment.  But many companies have begun to make more folding treadmills to free up more room in your gym.

It is important to keep in mind that not all space savers are the best and most long lasting products.  You get what you pay for, so if you buy a cheap folding treadmill, it may not be the best product out there.

You will have to weigh concerns of how much room you can allot against how much money you want to spend and then do some research about products in that range.  You may find that buckling down and getting a slightly more expensive and bulkier product will save you money and hassle down the line.

For creating a home fitness gym on a very limited budget, there is one inexpensive item that is essential: a resistance band.  While you could get a few of resistance bands of varying elasticity that replicate more weight in the resistance, one can do the trick to start.

There is a plethora of exercises that you can replicate using the resistance band.  For starters, stand with each end of the band in your hands and place the middle under your feet.  This starting position can lead to dozens of exercises.

Resistance Band

For an ab/core workout, simply lean back and forth isolating the muscles in your abdomen.  The band’s resistance helps to get rid of your love handles.

With your elbows at your side, you can replicate the bicep curls you would normally do with an adjustable dumbbell.  I like to connect the bicep curl with a shoulder press to combine workouts and save time.  With a door attachment, you can also use your resistance band to replicate any cable pulley exercises and chest presses.

To perform one of my favorite exercises, sit down and extend your legs.  Place the resistance band around your feet and pull back to perform a row exercise which is great for your upper back and shoulders.  From there, lay on your back while keeping the band on your feet.  While holding the resistance band firmly, press your legs up to do a great leg press exercise.

Another wonderful thing about the resistance band is its compact size.  You can literally bring it anywhere you want with ease.  Bring it to work for a quick exercise on your lunch break. If you are going on vacation or taking a trip for work you should definitely bring it with you to make sure you can get a workout into your schedule no matter what happens.

All in all, this piece of equipment is essential.  It is a great start to a home fitness gym and something that you will be able to use down the line no matter what.  As you become stronger and need something like an adjustable dumbbell, you can always use your resistance band to aid in stretching.

Some home gyms are built because people are tired of spending money on a gym, while other people decide to construct home fitness gyms because they have a lot of money and want to build one.  For a person with money to burn, there are some extremely awesome options.

BodyCraft X4 Home Gym

One of the most impressive models out there is the BodyCraft X4 Home Gym.  Its four sided design allows several people to work out together.  If you have a family or group of friends that you want to get in shape with, the X4 is great.  Each side has a massive 200 pounds of weight plates and combined together you can perform literally any exercise that you would normally use a gym machine or free weight to perform.  It is, of course, pricey.  But it is top of the line and a great investment in years of healthy living.  It does take up a considerable amount of space though.  If space is an issue for you, you may want to consider the next option.

Body Solid EXM4000S Triple Stack Home Gym

The Body Solid EXM4000S Triple Stack Home Gym is a three sided home gym machine.  This helps to be able to set it up against a wall instead of having it be away from a wall on all four sides.  However, the fourth side is available as an add on.  The missing side is a leg press/calf press station.  A great thing about Body Solid is that they offer a lifetime warranty, so you know that your financial investment will be safe.

Multisports MS-3200

If you want a three sided station but still want the ability to perform the leg press exercise there is the Multisports MS-3200 Home Gym.  This model is also better for one person as the three sides share the same stack of weights, thus preventing simultaneous use of all three sides.  If you are looking for a great deluxe machine for fitness home gyms that you would mostly use on your own, this is a fantastic choice.

All three of these models are in the higher echelon of home gym equipment.  Having one of them would do wonderful things for your home fitness regime.

The great thing about have a gym at home is that you can personalize it to whatever your specifications are.  When you belong to a gym, you end up paying for so many services that you don’t even use.  Your home gym can be catered to exactly what you need.

The important thing is to really assess what you are looking to focus on.  If you just want to tone and keep in shape, some simple lighter items such as resistance bands, balance balls, and light dumbbells may be all you need.

But, on the other hand, if you are looking to lose a lot of weight, a cardio machine is what you need most.  There are several options ranging from a treadmill to a stair climber to an elliptical machine to name a few.  Or if you already have a bicycle, you could just get a bike trainer, which locks your bike in place and allows you to use it indoors.

If bulk is what you are after, you need to invest in bigger weights and a large barbell to go with your dumbbells.  Along with the exercise bar, you should also make sure your bench has an attachment to hold the barbell, allowing you to perform bench presses.

Now, if you are thinking of going even bigger than that, you have to worry about working out at home, alone and without a spotter.  Heavier weights become extremely dangerous, so if you the room you should buy some helpful workout equipment like a power rack or something like a smith machine to make sure you are being as safe as you possibly can.

There are also fantastic multi gyms out there if you have the money and room for one.  But it is more important to start small.   I have had so many friends feel momentarily inspired and spend thousands of dollars on home fitness gyms but then not use it at all.  By starting small and seeing how you feel when you work out home, you can judge better when you may want to expand down the line.  And if worse comes to worse, you can always sell our used home fitness gym equipment in the newspaper or on craigslist.com.

Before you jump in and start purchasing a ton of equipment to make your home fitness gym, it is important to consider where you are building it.  An ideal location is in a garage or basement to keep it tucked away, but anywhere will do really.

Something important to consider is not damaging the floor of your workout room and in return also not damage your equipment.  If you are working out with a concrete floor and you accidentally drop a weight, it might chip or damage the floor, never mind if you are working out in a room with hardwood floors.  The damage may be irreversible.

Before any sorts of damage can occur, it is important to protect your flooring.  The best solution is to get rubber mats to cover the area of your home fitness gym.  They are typically sold in large black square mats which can be cut to fit or smaller multicolored pieces that resemble a jigsaw puzzle.  Their interlocking edges make for an even floor that protects what is underneath.

Another solution is to buy some plywood and layer two or three sheets on your floor and then cover with a nonslip carpet.  Both methods are effective for protecting the floor and for muffling the sound of weights hitting the ground.

This is so important to take care of before you get larger pieces of equipment and have to go through the hassle of moving them.  If your exercise area is in an easily visible area, I would definitely recommend going for the colored interweaving rubber mats.  They are the most aesthetically pleasing choice from the lot.  The floors are also great for aerobic exercises like jumping rope because it reduces the shock and pressure imparted on your knees.

With the basics taken care of and the floor protected, let’s start moving in some bigger multi gym equipment.

Depending on your goals, there are hundreds of options for creating a home fitness gym.  Variables such as how much you want to spend and how much room you have can reduce your options, but it can still be confusing to decide what is important and what is not.  No matter what kind of home gym you are looking to build, there are still certain items that everyone should have.

A mat is an essential item for several uses.  First, many people neglect to stretch before and after their workout, but it is such crucial component of a healthy lifestyle.  Yoga is a fantastic way to stretch your body and improve your flexibility and also requires a mat.

Balance balls, also known as exercise balls, are also a wonderful way to stretch, particularly your back.  They are also fantastic for several other home gym exercises.  Working your abdominal muscles is more effective when done on a balance ball.  Even exercises like shoulder presses and chest presses are more effective if you incorporate the balance ball as the item you are sitting on or laying on.

To do those kinds of exercises, there are a few other important items required so you aren’t just lifting air: weights.  To start, though, you may want to consider getting a few sets of resistance bands of different elasticities.  They are one of the most versatile gym exercise equipment you can get because there are so many different uses for them.  Attach to your door and you have a mini multi gym.  In addition, since they are so lightweight and compact, they make a great travel item to make sure you are keeping healthy on vacation and business trips.

The last absolutely required item are dumbbells.  Resistance bands are great for toning, but to build muscle you need to bring out the big guns.  The two schools of thought on this topic are set weight dumbbells or adjustable free weight dumbbells.  The former is a bit more costly and takes up more space, while the other is slightly cheaper but requires you to take the time to change the weights between exercises depending on your intended weight.

There are also incidentals that you will need to get to be prepared for your workout.  First, you must be dressed for success.  Few people take into account how important is is to wear proper workout clothes.  You want comfortable clothing that can absorb well.  Be sure to have plenty of towels around as well to keep yourself as sweat-free as possible.

Keep your fitness home gym smelling nice by placing an air freshener somewhere in the room.  Don’t forget the water bottle (not plastic if possible) and be sure to keep hydrated.

Once you have all of these items, you are ready to tackle some bigger items such as home exercise gyms and home gym machines.