Guest Blog. Build your own gym.

Dear Reader

My mission is to encourage everyone (except the small minority who need no such encouragement) to take more exercise. I avoid giving advice about what form of exercise to take because it is important that to choose something that you enjoy to decrease the chance that you give it up! All exercise is good and the benefits are only related to its frequency, duration and intensity. If you want a sustainable exercise programme choose something you enjoy.

Some people like a gym workout and for you here is a guest blog on creating your own home gymnasium. It is written in association with OnBuy which is an online store supplying an enormous range of goods, including refurbished treadmills – see below with a link to their site.

This week’s illustration is the “multigym” which we used at Alton Cardiac Rehab when we started out in 1976!

Top mistakes to avoid when designing your home gym

Building a home gym is an important decision in terms of choosing to change a part of your own home, but also it can be a large financial commitment. There’s little room for error when trying to make something that not only works for you but is also cost effective and space efficient.

From planning to purchasing, there are plenty of hurdles and potential mistakes to be made when designing a home gym. Here we’ve highlighted some key mistakes to avoid when creating yours:

Not leaving room to exercise

A home gym is an exciting development for your home and lifestyle. Whether it’s going to be a cardio space in your garage or a full weights room in your house, a home gym marks the next step in your fitness journey. However, it is easy to get carried away in your designing and forget about the important part – exercising in your home gym.

Between a workout bench, squat rack, weights rack and cardio equipment, there’s a lot of square footage that’s taken up by gear. Remembering to leave room to use said gear is a key mistake often made by first-time home gym designers. Not only do you need a safe amount of space to perform the exercises, but overstuffing your space can leave it stuffy, warm, and uninviting! Luckily, eliminating the next mistake goes hand-in-hand in ensuring that you don’t create a jam-packed workout zone.

Overspending

One of the key factors in deciding to create a home gym is the eventual financial benefits. Having a gym on your doorstep removes any requirement to take public transport or drive to a gym. Also, over time, the money saved on a public gym membership will cover the cost of any equipment you’ve purchased. However, overspending on your home gym will take longer for these benefits to be realised.

Overspending may also mean that you’re buying equipment you’re not going to get the most out of. For example, when building a gym to work on building muscle, a £200 refurbished treadmill is going to be a much more sensible purchase than a £1,000 treadmill as you’ll reap the same health and wellbeing rewards and reduce the time needed to recoup your investment.

Buying hyper specific equipment

A key benefit of a home gym is that it can fit around your lifestyle and your needs. It can be there whenever you need it to be and couldn’t be easier to get to. Ideally, it will also suit your gym regime and goals, whatever they may be. However, you should refrain from limiting what you can do in your gym as a result of buying hyper specific equipment.

Whilst a home gym provides a host of benefits, public gyms often best them in the amount they can offer. From studios and yoga classes to free weights and deadlift platforms, public gyms are better suited for if [and when] you want to tweak your workout regime. However, when designing your home gym, it’s easy to only consider your immediate goals. Planning ahead for any future exercises you’ll want to take on will allow you to create a gym that suits your current and eventual needs without having to spend more in future.

For example, an adjustable squat rack is a great investment as it allows you to perform a range of key exercises for building muscle. On the other hand, filling your home gym with a punching bag and boxing equipment just for the few occasions you fancy adding it in isn’t a great use of space or budget and doesn’t support your primary goals.

Remember a home gym is potentially a great investment and a huge step in making the gym more accessible and better suited to your own lifestyle. However, there are mistakes that are easy to make that you should avoid if you want to truly benefit from your gym both in terms of fitness and finances. Avoiding these key mistakes will ensure that you are better equipped to reach your goals and financially benefit sooner rather than later.

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