Skip The Gym-Build Your Own

Skip The Gym-Build Your Own!

Hacks and tips for creating your own fitness space.

Obviously gyms are a fantastic way to get fit. You have access to high tech machinery and equipment, not to mention personal trainers. If you like the gym, by all means don't skip it! This series is for people like myself who aren't "gym people". Maybe you aren't very social. Maybe you don't want to be looked at or spoken to during your workout. Maybe you live in a rural area without close access to a facility. Whatever your reasons for not being a "gym person", this series will help to give you ideas on how to maintain a healthy, effective alternative exercise regimen...no gym required!

Personally, I have a home gym I have built over the years. I love it. I can get in a great daily workout with the only hassle being climbing to my 3rd floor art studio/fitness cave. You might be wondering 'How much does that cost?' 'How much space do I need?' 'Where would I start?' I'm hoping to help to answer these questions for you. I'm also going to give you tips to save you money and time!

This segment is based on my own home gym. You may have different forms of exercise you like doing, different fitness goals, and may need to build your own home gym differently than I have. Use this as a guide, and tweak it to suit your personal fitness needs.

How much space do I need?
The total area of my home gym equipment and "free" floor space area is 80 square feet (an 8'x10' space). This gives me plenty of space to move around, lift heavy, bust out cardio and flex. :) There is also plenty of space for my kitty Joy Faery to take a bath, as you can see here. 

In this space I have the following items:

• 1.5 lb. Ankle Weights
• 3 lb. Dumbbells
• 8 lb. Dumbbells
• 20 lb. Dumbbells
• Adjustable Dumbbells (5-50 lbs.)
• 8 kg. Kettlebells
• Yoga Mat
• Exercise Mat
• Elliptical
• Fitness Band
• Balance Ball
• Other options: Printables and iPhone Apps

How much does it cost?
Probably not as much as you think! I have acquired these items over a period of 6 years or so. I just add to my home gym when my fitness needs evolve or change. You will notice on the graphic, I'm showing you my out-of-pocket costs thus far. Because many of these items have been gifts or acquired for free (which is why most items have no price), I'm also estimating costs of purchasing all of these items brand new. Of course, this will vary depending on brand, condition and quality.

Money-saving tips
There are many ways to save lots of money when building your home gym. Some items you could even acquire for FREE:

• Ask for gym equipment as gifts for birthdays and holidays. I've gotten a lot of my equipment this way.

• Check sales and specials.

• Online auctions, such as EBay

• Websites like Freecycle, Craigslist. If you're interested in a mechanical piece of equipment such as a treadmill or Bowflex gym, it is always a good idea to bring along someone who is handy (if you are not) to give the equipment a quick once-over.

• Garage sales and online garage sales. Many towns have at least 1 local "garage sale" facebook page. Post in these, and check them for updated items being offered.

• Shout it out-once your inner circle of people knows you're interested in building a home gym, you'd be surprised how many of them have equipment at home, collecting dust, that they'd be willing to give to you or sell for cheap.

• Fitness instructional videos-youtube has a vast number of full-length videos in just about every genre you can think of. Some of them require basic equipment, such as a set of weights, while others require no equipment at all. I strongly recommend you check out fitnessblender.com's channel for hundreds of free videos of all types.

• Printables-Pinterest (you may follow my Fitness board here), POPSUGAR and WorkoutLabs are just a few of the resources where you can download and print free workouts. I have some hanging on my wall.

• Phone apps-there are many FREE and CHEAP fitness apps for smartphones. My favorite iPhone apps include: C25K, Sworkit, Interval Timer (this works great with the above mentioned printables), Fitness Buddy. 

Note: Although some people love them, I'm not a huge fan of the step tracker apps and devices. Measuring steps is not an accurate way to gauge your activity level. For example, if you walk for a half an hour, you're taking more steps than you would be if you engaged in plyometrics or kickboxing for example. However, the latter two workouts will have you burning far more calories and building much more muscle. Not to mention the calorie counters and step trackers on these devices are not always very accurate.

I hope I've answers some of your questions! Have you already started to put together your own home gym? If so, please share yours in the comments below!