Do you want to work on your pre-pandemic weight? Or do you want to become a stronger individual that can handle all her jars on her own? Or do you just want to improve your cardiovascular and mental health with some exercise? Having a home gym at your disposal is a great benefit. However, how do you create a workout space that’s both practical and beautiful? Here are a few tips for designing a perfect home gym:
Designate a space
Before you start your first yoga session or drop down and give us 20, you need to find a proper spot for your home gym. You probably don’t have too much space at your disposal, but at the very least, you should free up enough room for a yoga mat and separate it with a room divider. If you have some more space and need a variety of exercises to reach your goals, open up some more space for HIIT workouts. If you’re planning to introduce some heavy lifting to your regimen, you will most likely need to designate a whole room to your home gym or at least join your home office and your gym.
Set up the floors
Before you start taking in the gear, it’s important to protect your floors and provide yourself with a comfortable and safe surface for working out. The best thing you can do is get a few gym-flooring square coverings that provide you with a little bit of cushioning while doing cardio. These are also slip-resistant, even when covered in sweat drips, and protect your floor from dropped weights and shoe marks. And don’t worry, you don’t have to splurge on gym flooring—these floor coverings can be found in places like Home Depot for less than $20, and you can install them yourself since they interlock like puzzle pieces.
Introduce equipment
As stated above, if you’re an avid yoga practitioner or love those body-weight HIIT workouts, you won’t need much gear. In those cases, a yoga mat and some elbow space are all you need. But if you love to lift or want to work on your cardio more seriously, you will have to look into gym and fitness equipment such as weights, benches, racks, treadmills, stationary bikes and similar—depending on what kind of workout you’re planning to do the most. It’s best to invest in commercial-grade equipment because such pieces are durable, ergonomic and don’t lose value that easy (in case you need to dismantle and sell your gym).
Add storage
Storage is a lifesaver in gyms. Firstly, you don’t want to look at ugly clutter all the time. Secondly, you don’t want to waste time searching for your jump rope or resistance bands. And thirdly, you don’t want to trip over dumbbells and end up in a cast. If your workout routines are minimalistic, all you need is a container that can hold all your equipment from a yoga mat to bands, sliders and tiny weights. But if you love to have all the gadgets at hand at all times, convert an empty wall into a storage station with shelves, hooks and hanging organizers—these will hold workout necessities and a few decorations like candles, potted plants and inspirational photos.
Don’t forget a mirror
Every workouts space needs a mirror for following form, focusing on certain muscles and taking cute selfies. But that’s not all—mirrors open up a space, making your tiny home gym look like a nice workout studio. And when you combine it with proper lighting, you will look and feel so good about your body.
As you can see, home gyms can be both small and big, depending on your needs and availability. But what they can’t be is ugly, depressing and cluttered. With quality equipment, good storage, a few accessories and a good mirror, the results will come on their own!
