Your Home Gym Vs. Going to a Gym

When you have decided to start weight lifting, I will now say good going! Benefits of weight lifting are many. Lose fat, gain muscle, attract the opposite sex, live longer, and feel better are all things weight lifting can give you. Stating out can be a tall mountain to climb, but once you get to the summit it’s an easy way down. After you have chosen your programs to follow, you may want to choose between going to a gym and making your own home gym. Home gyms are becoming more and more popular today for their convenience and price, but going to a gym still has many benefits. Here are the most important advantages to home gyms and commercial gyms.

Benefits of Home Gym:

Customize: You can customize a home gym to your specific needs. No temptation to go onto an easier machine when you only have the one you need. I recommend Bowflex Home Gym for a great workout.

Privacy: Beginners, including me when I started out, may not want to go into a gym with other muscle-bound guys around. It’s a good idea to get to a respectable strength before going to a regular gym to avoid taunts, pitying looks, and the sense that there is always someone bigger and better than you here.

Convenience: You can use your home gym at anytime you want. The regular gym my not be open at times to fit your needs and is probably closed on holidays. With a home gym you will have no excuse not to work out and save money on gasoline.

Save Money: A home gym can be a big cost at first, but over time, especially years, the cost for a membership at a gym can add up to be a lot more than a home gym. I would say to get a nice home gym you would need a set of dumbbells and barbell weights, and you would be spending between $300-600 on a home gym, even more if you were having the equipment shipped to your house. The Bowflex and Total Gyms can be shipped directly to your front door with free shipping.

Benefits of Going to a Gym:

Meet All Your Needs: A great gym is stocked with everything you need to start working out. There is usually thousands of dollars worth of equipment in a gym. All of these gym machines, dip stations, and squat racks can cost hundreds of dollars.

Get Needed Help: If you’re not sure where to start or need a spotter, a gym will offer both. There will be fitness experts there willing to answer any questions you have and others will gladly spot for you.

Pushing Yourself: With the opposite effect of privacy with a home gym, you might actually like the competition. If you are the strongest guy there, it can give you a big confidence boost. If someone challenges your max bench strength, it will be your motivation to do better.

Save On Space: A home gym can take up a good portion of your room. A gym, like I said before, has everything you need there and will save you space at home. The Bowflex and Total Gyms do not take up much space.

Programs and Goals: Gyms often have different programs that are designed for people’s differing goals. If you don’t want to plan out your own program, a gym professional will do it for you.

Picking between a home gym and going to a gym should come down to your goals and time available. If you have a tight schedule a home gym can be the perfect answer. I recommend that you get either a Bowflex Home Gym or Total Gym and start working out to feel great fast.

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Ideas for Making Your Own Home Gym

How to Make Your Own Home Gym

How does this sound to you: you wake up at 6AM, take a shower, drive fifteen minutes to the gym, spend an hour waiting to get the equipment you want, listening to oldies music you hate, hearing muscle heads grunt and yell while doing ten thousand bicep curls, and watching some gym bunny do curls in the smith machine. Does this seem appealing to you? If you’re anything like me, the answer is a resounding ‘no!’

The solution? A home gym. Note that when I say home gym, I mean ‘a complete gym setup in ones home, not a machine in the corner that does everything. So how do you go about making a home gym, and where do you start?

Location

Before ever considering the equipment you will fill your gym with, you need to decide where your gym will reside. Do you have a spare room? If not, is the basement or garage an option? A barn or other outbuilding? How about a large room that can be divided in half, half for whatever and half for your gym?

The best home gym is placed in a room of its own, but that may not be possible. I am going to write this article under the assumption that your gym will be placed in a spare room or basement.

Your Personal Needs

Evaluate your needs. What kind of workouts do you do? Kickboxing, Mixed Martial Arts, Bodybuilding, lifting, or straight conditioning?

If you’re doing MMA types of training, you will need at least 6′ x 6′ open area to place a punching bag or two that allows you to move around and practice kicks, punches, and forms without tripping over barbells and knocking your head on pull-up bars.

Bodybuilding will need enough space between equipment for a barbell or Olympic bar to be used without hitting walls and other equipment. In my opinion, the ideal gym is a minimum of ten by ten feet. The more cramped it is, the less likely you are to use it.

Fitness Equipment

Now its time to look at equipment; will your gym have a mixture of weights, machines, stations, etc, or will it consist of one or two types of things? What I mean is, will the gym consist mainly of a sparring area with some speed and punching bags along the wall, or will it have many things?

My best advice on this would be to measure your room and draw it on paper. Then count the number of objects that will go into your gym and measure each of them. Finally, on the paper, draw to scale the objects within your gym until you have it laid out the way you want and in a way they can all fit. After you have done this, you can safely start moving in equipment without having to worry about making it all fit.

Comfortable Surroundings

What type flooring do you have? Plush carpet is not recommended, and neither is concrete. Both can be harsh on the body, especially when lifting heavy weights. The solution for this would be to lay rubber mats on the floor where you plan on lifting. This will help firm up the carpeted floor, and soften the concrete one.

A television and radio will probably both be a necessity, unless you plan on working out in complete silence, and don’t use any videos. The radio can be as simple as a boom box on the floor, or as complicated as mounted speakers in each corner of the room. The TV is a little more difficult. You will need to place it somewhere you will be able to see it, but where it is out of the way. The best way to do this is with a wall mount, allowing you to place the TV on a swivel wall mount.

Customize Your Home Gym

What good is a home gym if it’s not your own? Its time to make your gym unique to YOU. What kinds of objects offer you inspiration? What gets you through the last grueling set, or the last murderous machine gun kicks? What pushes you when you can’t push yourself? These are unique to each person, and can range from posters to photo’s to objects. Place these objects in places where you will see them, in places where you are likely to NEED to see them. Cover the walls in posters, or artwork, or whatever works for you. This step is crucial, so take your time. If you make the gym somewhere you want to be, you will be more likely to workout. If, on the other hand, it is as sterilized as a hospital, you will most likely find reasons to avoid it.

By now you should have a good idea of what your gym will be like. Be creative! Take your time and plan it out. Making a gym of your own is a humbling experience. This will be the room in which you reshape your body, push yourself to the limit, and find out what you are really made of. We highly recommend Bowflex and Total Gym Home Gyms. Bowflex Home Gyms Official Store Website, Free Shipping, Click Here Now

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Setting Up Your Own Home Gym

The Necessities of a Starter Home Gym

Are your workout goals being hampered by lack of time?
Are expensive gym dues getting you down?
Perhaps its time to consider setting up a home gym!

Home gyms have their advantages – and disadvantages – just like those high-priced public gyms. But for some, investing in a few basic pieces just may mean the difference between getting in that workout to get – or stay – in shape and allowing your overall health and well being fall by the wayside!

Home gym setups don’t need to cost a bundle or take up an exorbitant amount of space. Just a few basics and a game plan, and your fitness goals can get back on track!

Be Realistic

A practical approach to investing in a home gym is a necessity. First you need to assess your fitness goals – want to lose some weight? Tone up? Increase your endurance? Enjoy better cardiovascular health? Improve strength?

The best fitness goals are well rounded. To get – and keep your body in the best possible shape its best to stick with the three basics – stretching, strengthening and cardiovascular training. By blending these three concepts, you can strengthen your heart and lungs, endurance, metabolism and strength while increasing the amount of calories and fat you burn.

Budgeting
Gym memberships can be expensive. Though many offer “no obligation” month-to-month memberships, fees for this arrangement can start at around $25.00 per month or more. Better monthly fees can be obtained when signing a contract for a certain period of time, usually between 12 and 36 months, or taking advantage of special discounts occasionally offered. But many gyms prefer a certain amount of month up front, including a one-time “enrollment fee” which can cost anywhere from $50.00 to $150.00 or more.

So considering the cheapest month-to-month membership plus enrollment fees you will be paying a minimum of $350 per year. An investment of $350 can get you started on a modest home gym set-up, which in the long run can save you time and money (travel and gas especially).
When considering a home gym think about the types of exercises you enjoy – why purchase a stair climber for a couple hundred bucks if you avoid it at the gym? Or buy a row machine if you don’t want to increase the muscle mass of your arms, chest and back?

After considering your goals and exercise preferences, you must develop a realistic budget. Home gyms can be expensive, but you don’t need every piece of equipment you can find at the local gym – there are ways to set up a home gym without breaking the bank!

Treadmills for example can run anywhere from $350 to $7500, whereas walking around your neighborhood is free (except for the purchase of some good walking shoes!). And stationary bikes can cost between $200 and $3000. But a good old-fashioned workout tape will cost you between $10 and $20.
Multi-station gym setups can run anywhere from $1500 to several thousand dollars, whereas an adjustable bench and some free-weights may cost you a few hundred dollars. Dumbbells can cost around $150 and ankle weights or exercise bands $5 to $30. And exercise balls cost between $15 and $30.
Do not purchase “cheap” equipment. You want durable sturdy pieces and a warranty in writing – don’t settle for a poor design or less safety to save a few bucks. Purchasing a reconditioned piece from a reputable distributor may be a way to get professional quality equipment at a discounted price.

Space and Safety
Once you’ve considered your options you must consider the space necessary for each piece of equipment. Treadmills take up around 30 square feet of space; multi-station gym set-ups around 50 to 200 square feet; stationary bikes about 10 square feet and a free weight set-up around 20 to 50.
Safety and traffic flow must also be considered. It is not optimal to place your treadmill in the middle of the family room floor where your family spends most of their time or your free weights in the hallway!

Other necessities for a home gym are lighting, ventilation and electrical outlets.

The Necessities
In order for a home gym to be advantageous you need to focus on the three basics – stretching, strengthening and cardiovascular. You need adequate space, motivation and a few key pieces of equipment.

A starter home gym should consist of a few weights or resistance bands, floor space, an exercise ball and some type of aerobic tapes or aerobic equipment (treadmill, stair climber or stationary bike).

If space – and funds are limited, taking a brisk walk, jogging or jumping rope can perform aerobic exercise. Even strengthening exercises can be done with these limitations by purchasing an inexpensive set of ankle weights or resistance bands.

The Workout
One of the downfalls to having a home gym is the isolation. Some people thrive by the companionship they experience by working out at the local gym. If loneliness is hampering your workout, find a workout buddy to keep you motivated.

Write out your goals and a plan. If you need help invest in a session or two with a personal trainer.

Don’t skimp on the basics. Stretching, for example, helps the body prepare for more vigorous workouts plus it helps increase the amount of motion in your joints, thus decreasing the risk of injury.

Strengthening is important for every workout, not just when you want to “bulk up”. Strengthening increases not only your strength but your metabolism (which helps you burn fat) and bone density as well. To tone without building muscle mass, use smaller weights and increase the repetitions.

Doing calisthenics or remedial exercises such as bicep and triceps curls, abdominal curls, leg lifts and squats can perform strengthening. Performing any exercise on an exercise ball will not only help you increase your strength but help with stretching and balance as well.

Cardiovascular workouts are essential for strengthening the heart and lungs, increasing endurance and burning calories. Cardiovascular routines are those that increase the heart rate for at least fifteen to thirty minutes. Brisk walking, jogging, swimming, stair climbing, elliptical training and jumping rope are all excellent ways to increase your overall cardiovascular health.

Keeping to a schedule can also help maintain your fitness goals – perhaps you can get up thirty minutes early and do a cardio workout or squeeze in some strengthening right before dinner. The beauty of a home gym is scheduling. No longer do you have to consider the “busy times” where equipment may not be available.

Putting It All Together
1.Decide on a budget and stick to it
2.Decide on location or room in your house to set up your home gym and take measurements
3.Research types of equipment for purchase and start with essentials
4.Devise a workout plan and schedule
5.Have a great workout in the comfort of your own home!

For the best Home Gyms, we recommend Bowflex and Total Gym, two of the best names in the fitness business. Bowflex Official Store Website, Click Here Now for free shipping

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Total Gym Review

The infomercial sounds convincing. Buy a Total Gym, exercise for only 20 minutes a day and you, too, will have a body like Chuck Norris or his wife or Christy Brinkley – or so they insinuate. According to the commercial, It’s easy to use, store, move around, and it’s even fun. If you want to know more about the Total Gym before buying one, read on.

The Total Gym: Benefits
Yes, if you use it daily you should see the results of getting that extra exercise. The same thing would happen if you went to the local gym and worked out there every day, swam a few miles ever day, or began running every day.

The Total Gym: Drawbacks
According to the commercial, this is a great product if you don’t have much space and will store it when you’re not using it. If you don’t have much space and need to store it, you can put the Total Gym in a closet or under most beds.

What they haven’t said is that you need quite a bit of room to set up and use the Total Gym. You have to have room to set the Total Gym up, room to navigate around it (to change settings), and room to move many of your body parts to get that all-around workout they talk about. You really need about 8 feet by 8 feet to get the most use out of the Total Gym exercise equipment.

If you’re cramped for space to begin with, you’ll be cramped for space to use it, unless you don’t mind moving furniture around twice a day.

Is it easy to store? Yes – and no. If you ask me, it’s really a pain to store the Total Gym. OK, so you fold the Total Gym in half and roll it to your closet. Yes, that’s the easy part. But then you have to go back and pick up all of the assorted pieces that go with the Total Gym, find something to put them in so you don’t lose them, and store those, too.

If you lose any of those pieces, your ability to use this piece of exercise equipment will be hampered, potentially even lost. For instance, if you lose a hand pulley, you’re basically screwed. No more pulley type of exercises for you.

The Total Gym is also heavy, so it’s not nearly as easy to “pick up” and move around as the commercial shows. Think about it. It supports your body. It’s got to be heavy to support you lying, sitting, and moving on it.

The Total Gym: Cost
Starting at $300, the price is nothing to sneeze at. For $300, you’ll get the base model plus a DVD and an exercise book that shows you how to use it.

The Total Gym: Who it’s good for
The Total Gym exercise equipment will benefit many people. But they have to have an area of their home that’s dedicated to exercise, have the extra money to buy it, and use it on a regular basis for it to be worth it’s cost.

If you live in an apartment or are cramped for space, I don’t think you’ll be happy with the Total Gym when you’ll be setting it up and taking it down all the time.

The Total Gym: Overall Rating
Ads for the Total Gym make it sound like the best thing since low-calorie sugar substitutes for those who want to get in shape, tone up, and lose weight. I think it’s a great product at a decent price.

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Bowflex Home Gyms

How Does Bowflex Compare To Other Home Gyms?

Bowflex is often compared to other home gyms, such as the weider crossbow. The bowflex, however, offers many superior features not offered by any other home gym. Its SpiraFlex and Power Rod Technology is unique and the bowflex home gyms offer more exercises than most other comparable home gyms. It costs more because it does more. We believe its well worth the cost. Bowflex offers reasonable financing terms, so its affordable for everyone.

Follow this link to buy Bowflex at best prices and free shipping.

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