Having your own gym has a number of advantages. The biggest advantage is the convenience, because instead of having to go to a gym, fitness enthusiasts are right at home. The training can also be quickly inserted into a busy day: it doesn’t matter if it’s 10 p.m. – the room is always available. The workout before work? No problem, because the shower at home is the best anyway. When furnishing the room, fitness fans should still be careful and consider what they actually want.
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Coordinate space requirements with available space
Only a few fitness enthusiasts have the opportunity to convert their own attic space into a fitness studio. For most of them, the training opportunity is either in a basement room – or in the children’s room that is not yet used. So the available space is limited. Creating an equivalent to a gym in just under 15 – 20 square meters is practically impossible. Especially since the following factors must be taken into account:
- Freedom of movement – nothing is more demotivating than when equipment has to be put aside for simple things like push-ups. Or if athletes can hardly move.
- Risk of injury – if everything is crowded, the risk of injury increases. Careful attention must also be paid to this.
The fitness equipment must therefore match the space requirements. It is good to make a sketch in advance. This works partly online, by the way, because there are special programs that help with setting up rooms. If something doesn’t fit, alternatives must be sought.
Devices for endurance training are not a must
A lot of space is usually lost through devices for endurance training: bicycles, treadmills, but also steppers. These are devices that take up a lot of space, which is not available in small fitness rooms. If you don’t want to do without it, you can set up one of the devices somewhere else. A stepper is ideal on a well-covered and dry balcony, and a bicycle fits into the bedroom if necessary. While endurance training can be done with jogging , swimming or cycling outdoors, the corresponding muscle training should take place at home:
- Weight bench – this is ideal for building muscles in the upper body. If there is not enough space, the bench press can also be replaced with individual dumbbells.
- Zugturm – this device also strengthens the back muscles, which is very important for people who work in the office.
- All-in-One – there are strength machines that combine several functions in one device. So they are space-saving. The devices usually have a leg press and integrate the weight bench. Often they can also be converted for ordinary sit-ups. It is always important never just to pay attention to the price, but to the quality. As soon as weights come into play, it is even necessary. A poor quality bar is a huge safety hazard, as are hangers that don’t support the weight consistently.
If you want it very easy, you can also use a pull-up bar. It is optionally attached to the wall, alternatively there are clamping solutions for the door frame. This training equipment works heavily with the athlete’s own weight, so it is also suitable for beginners.
But apart from the actual equipment, other elements are also important in the fitness room:
- Floor – especially if the room is not in the basement, you have to think about the sound insulation of the floor. In your own home this is not a big issue, but if the neighbors think that the athlete is sitting on the couch next to you when you jump or do burpees, you are very likely to get into trouble.
- Fridge – Especially in summer it is advisable to put a small camping fridge in the room.
- Air conditioning – the structural requirements are a deciding factor here, but air conditioning in your home gym makes sense. Apartments in particular heat up a lot in the summer months, so if you don’t want to do without training in the hot summer, you need an appropriate system.
Keep an eye on the finances
Honestly, how your own fitness room is set up later also has a lot to do with your financial assets. If you have money at your disposal, you can set it up completely differently than someone who has to buy devices and equipment bit by bit. The fitness room certainly saves the membership fee in the fitness studio, but this method of calculation does not help immediately. So it has to be invested. In general, you should consider:
- What is needed? – it doesn’t matter at all to set up the room little by little. At the beginning there are the devices that are absolutely necessary.
- What is my goal? – the goal determines the path, and this now describes the individual devices. If you are looking for general fitness, you can often work with simple elements and use body weight. If you want to build muscle, you usually need additional equipment.
- How do I finance? – the easiest way is to buy little by little and use the gym’s saved contribution. In reality, however, this means a loss of training. An installment loan for the initial equipment could therefore also be worthwhile. However, this has to be recalculated. Portals such as Bon-kredit help to adapt your own financing to your own situation. Whether free special repayments, possible installment breaks or a particularly quick application – all this is possible on request.
It is also important that even experienced athletes should plan for an additional expense in between: a trainer. Too often it happens that athletes become careless in everyday life , so that mistakes or postural problems occur. Everyone is advised to invest in a training session once every few months. Personal trainers are of course ideal at home and they also help to eradicate mistakes. In addition, the training plan has to be reconsidered and redesigned again and again at home. If you just train like it was always the case in the studio, you will tread water – or completely overdo it.
Conclusion – convenient, but not easy
Having your own gym is convenient as it saves a lot of time. However, it is not that easy to set up, especially since good devices incur a number of costs. However, what many home athletes forget is the need for correction. In between, a trainer should always assess your own training and, if necessary, take corrective action. Otherwise, overloading and poor posture are inevitable, especially in weight training.
