Creating Your Gym on a Budget

Page Description: Not everyone is comfortable working out in public gyms because of the crowd. Hence, they choose to do indoor workouts. Buoyant people in this category set up home gyms for their workouts. They buy all the sophisticated equipment available in the gym for their home use. However, other people don’t like to work out in public places but don’t have all the funds to build sophisticated gyms. If you are among the latter group, then this article is for you. It highlights the essential equipment needed in a gym, and how you can set up a standard gym while on a budget.

How to create a gym on a budget

A gym is simply an indoor space, building, or room with workout equipment where people go to exercise. That means, if you can set up a room where you can exercise, it automatically becomes a gym. You don’t have to break the bank to set up a home gym. With a space such as a garage or a spare room and a budget that can buy basic exercise equipment, you can own a standard right in your home.

Home gym essentials

Working with a budget means that your spending is limited; you have to buy only what you need at the moment. Here’s a list of ten basic pieces of equipment you need to start your gym:

1. A mat

A mat is one of the most essential pieces of equipment needed in a gym. Experts recommend two different mats: a jump mat and a yoga mat. A jumping mat is light, while a Yoga mat is thick. For someone on a budget, it’s advisable to buy a yoga mat since it can double as a jump mat. Yoga mats are used for intense workouts like core exercise and plyometrics. 

2. Cardio

Whether your fitness goal is to build your body, improve endurance, lose weight, burn fats, or do any other thing, cardio is a must-exercise for you. Hence, having cardio equipment is a must. For someone working on a budget, a treadmill, stepper machine, or stationary bike is recommended. Cardio equipment helps to improve heart rate, burn fat, burn calories, speed up metabolic processes, prevent the development of diseases, manage chronic diseases, and enhance mood.

3. Resistance bands

Resistance bands are elastic bands used for exercising different parts of the body. It strengthens the muscles and helps to build endurance. Resistance bands are multi-tasking tools you can use for stretching, deadlifts, squats, weight lifts, and bicep curls, amongst others. They provide low-impact training for your muscles and help you save money and space. Hence you can use it on days that you are not strong for full-body exercise.

4. Dumbbells

Dumbbells are body-building tools that also serve as cardio exercises. They are portable, cost-effective, and versatile. With dumbbells, you can improve your heart health, strengthen your bones and muscles, and burn fats. If you are on a very low budget, then dumbbells are a must-have as it allows you to do several types of exercise.

5. Kettlebells

Kettlebells are used for cardio exercise. You can use it in place of a treadmill or spin bike. They also help to improve mobility, flexibility, balance, and coordination.  Since they are versatile, a person on a budget can consider getting them as an alternative for exercise tools that focus on just improving heart health and conditioning.

6. Pull up bar

Pull-up bars are majorly for building upper body strength such as arms, back muscles, and shoulders. However, they can be used for whole-body workouts. They don’t occupy space. You can hang them on the door, allowing you to exercise your body several times a day.

7. Jump ropes

A jump rope is another essential exercising tool you should have as it is versatile and cost-effective. With Jumping ropes, you can improve your cardio health, build endurance, strengthen your muscles and bones, and improve balance, coordination, and agility. They are also portable, which saves you space.

8. Flat bench

A flat bench is a must-have for any person with bodybuilding goals. Besides bodybuilding, they are used to build endurance and strengthen the pectoral muscles, deltoids, triceps, and ribs.

 Benches are affordable; you can buy a bench or construct one yourself.  

9. Bumper plates

Bumper plates are rubber weight lifters. They are used for bodybuilding, enhancing endurance, and building strength.  Bumper plates are pricier than iron plates, but they are recommended because they protect you, your floor, and your walls from scratches.

10. Rack

Racks are used in strength-building exercises to ensure safety. There are two types of racks: power racks and squat racks. Squat racks are recommended for people working with a budget because they are versatile. Racks are generally versatile, they can be used to weight lifts, deadlifts, front squats, back squats, heavy rows, bench presses, and shoulder presses.

Racks are great for weight lifting because they help you carry weights that you would not normally carry. Exercising with racks helps to work on the whole body, especially muscles such as the lats, hamstrings, glutes, posterior chain, traps, and other muscles of the upper body.

Tips on creating a home gym

• Write out your fitness goals: People have different fitness goals such as bodybuilding, weight loss, burning fat, improving endurance, and cardio, amongst others. Setting goals will give you direction on the type of exercise to do, and the equipment to buy.
• Do a market survey on the prices of equipment: Carry out online and physical surveys to know the market price of what you want. You can go to marts or browse online stores for prices. This survey will enable you to know the tools you can afford at the moment.
• Set a budget:  After you must have surveyed the prices of the equipment you need, you can set aside a budget for buying the equipment. The budget will enable you to buy the basic tools you need first.
• Buy equipment that is tailored to your goals: Don’t just buy everything on the list of equipment. That they are essentials doesn’t mean that you need them. You have your fitness goals, buy equipment that serves those purposes. For example, if your goal is bodybuilding, you can buy tools like thread mills instead of dumbbells, barbells, and weights.

How to create a gym on a budget

1. Turn a spare room or garage into a gym

You don’t have to build or construct a new structure, your garage or a spare room is enough. You can clear a room or make space in your garage where you can place your equipment, and carry out your exercise freely. If you don’t have a free room to convert, you can make space for exercising in your parlor. Some experts recommend using your parlor instead of your room. The room is a place to rest. So, let a room remain a room.

2. Buy multi-tasking equipment

When buying equipment, buy tools that can be used for a variety of exercises such as a dumbbell. Dumbbells can serve for building strength and cardio exercises. Buying multi-tasking equipment saves you money and space until you are balanced or buoyant enough to buy more equipment.

3. Buy used equipment

Most times, used equipment is cheaper than brand-new equipment. Used equipment is not bad or spoiled. When gyms or people are moving, they usually sell off their equipment. So, you are sure of getting something good at a fair price. You can buy used equipment from stores

4. Build your gym equipment

Constructing your exercise tools is another great way to go. You can create them by watching Do It Yourself (DIY) videos on how to improvise materials and create your gym tools. Making your equipment saves you money, and allows you to tailor the equipment to your needs. Examples of gym tools you can make yourself include plate holders, power racks, and reverse hypers.

5. Buy new equipment from low-price providers

Not everyone is comfortable buying used products. If you are one of them you can opt to buy new equipment from stores or companies that sell new tools at very affordable rates.

Conclusion

Setting up a home gym is also a form of investment. Creating your own gym space would save you the cost of a standard gym membership as most standard gyms can be costly. When you set up your home gym, you’d be able to recover the money invested into the gym in a year if you save the membership money for a year. After the first year, you can continue to save and budget the membership money for other things.

If you have been wanting to set up your home gym but have been holding back because of funds, nothing is holding you back any longer. Now that you know the basic equipment you need and how to go about setting up your home gym, you can set up your gym and embark on your fitness journey from the comfort of your home.

References

How to Build a Home Gym on the Cheap

Set Up A Small Home Gym On A Budget 

How To Create A Home Gym On A Budget 

How to build a home gym for every type of budget 

The Ultimate Guide to Building a Budget Home Gym

The Ultimate Guide To Building A Home Gym (For Every Budget) 

The 9 Budget-Friendly Essentials You’ll Need to Create a Great Home Gym