Our home gym is open for business and my new trainer is eagerly awaiting to torture me.
Yay! We’ve expanded the gear for our tiny home gym. Now we can work out with actual free weights. The space is still too small for barbells, my husband’s preferred equipment. Thankfully a little creativity was all we needed.
Our New Home Equipment
I already had the resistance bands and yoga mat. We didn’t want to spend too much, and when you are dealing with free weights, that is a challenge. So we added 3 things that collectively cost us less than $440. Not too shabby.
1. Adjustable Weights
Unfortunately we don’t have the space to use barbells. While my resistance bands are a great tool, my husband was a bit leery about using them. If he can’t use barbells, his fall back is dumbbells. But again, space is the issue. Thankfully we saw a solution at our local sporting goods store — adjustable weights.
Perfect!
Rather than having multiple dumbbells taking up lots of room, we have a set that is adjustable to the weight we want. Each dumbbell adjusts from 5 to 52.5 pounds.
As for cost, it was a little cheaper than buying individual dumbbells. We ended up buying them off Amazon, which saved us $70.
2. Flooring
Our basement floor is tiled so it’s not ideal for working out. Luckily we found a solution that protects our knees and floor — soft foam flooring for home gyms. The interlocking puzzle design is awesome and lets you expand the space as you need. We found the flooring at your local sporting goods store (it was $10 cheaper per pack in store than on Amazon).
3. Workout Bench
My husband had to find the “perfect” flat bench. Mainly it had to hold him and heavy weights without breaking the bank. The one he got has a max capacity of 600 pounds and cost less than $70 on Amazon. Awesome.
New Gear Coming Soon
I’ve ordered a stability ball (my old one finally died) and loop resistance bands. My core is super weak thanks to the surgery. My physical therapist recommends the ball and loop bands to start slowly building my ab and hip strength. The good news is they don’t cost much and still keep our little home gym under $500. Woo hoo!
Can I Push Myself?
Initially I was doubtful that I would push myself like a trainer could. Those doubts were expelled the day after my first workout. I haven’t felt that sore for a long time. So far so good. I’m using a notebook to track my progress. And if I need an extra push, that’s where the hubby helps.
For now everything is awesome. Besides the soreness I’ve noticed a big change in my mood. I’m more upbeat and have a ton of energy on the days I workout. Beginning tomorrow I add yoga and running back into my morning routine. The plan is to alternate between strength training and yoga with one day off. Weather permitting, yoga days designated as 10k training days.