Building a home gym, advice needed please.

leeince

I have already posted this in the health section but thought I might get the answer I need from here too, I hope its ok to do this?

In the next two months I will be have a gym built at the end of my garden.

After loads of thought I have decided to go with a log cabin like the one in the link below:

BillyOh Dorset Log Cabin - Log Cabin Summerhouses - Garden Buildings Direct

The size I have gone for is 2.5m x 5m, I like the idea of the longer building but might still change this for 4.0 x 3.5, it all depends on equipment which I will get to in a bit!

This comes to £2611 (5m) and I will need to get a chippie and a sparks in to do bits.

I've gone for the 19mm Floor and roof and also the 34mm wall thickness with the double glazing option on the doors and windows.

I've gone for the upgraded roof covering as well, I wont this to last!!

I have the whole project coming in at around £3150.

I will have a heater up there but do you think that with the thicker floors, walls, roof and the double glazed option this will be warm enough in the winter?

Do you think I'm going about this right way? I was considering have a frame built, cladding the outside, insulating the walls, plaster boarding and plastering.

This was looking at coming in at around  £4500 and to be honest is a bit to much of a squeeze, I'm getting married in July and that's eating into the gym budget unfortunately

The equipment I'm planning on putting in is:

Power rack with high and low pulleys, chins etc...
Bench
7ft Olympic bar and weights

Bodymax CF475 Premium Strength Package at Powerhouse Fitness

Dumbell set 5kg - 30kg 6 pairs and rack
Bodymax Pro Rubber Dumbbells - Set 7 - WTFD0134 at Powerhouse Fitness

A treadmill, not sure what one yet, I might pick this up second hand, I would imagine there's a few January purchases going cheap!!

I will also add a couple of Olympic dumbbell bars and collars, a preacher attachment for the bench and couple of Olympic z bars.

I did train for a couple of years about 5 years ago but I've been out the game for a while now (Job took over) and I'm a little rusty!

I think the kit I'm planning on putting in is all I need but am I missing anything?

I've done a quick plan based on the 2.5m by 5m and using the sizes of the equipment listed. (See Photo)


Running machine is on the left and might be a foldable unit yet I'm undecided.

The bench is in the middle and the power rack is on the right.

I will add the rack for the dumbbells and also a frame for the Olympic bars

Can anyone give me any advice for what I might be missing, doing wrong or anything I haven't considered?

Thank you.

Lee

SteveCritten

Only my opinion as a PT advisor for the fire service. I would ditch the running machine, go outside if you want to run its cheaper to buy the right wet weather gear. Replace with a Concept type rowing machine, learn how to stroke properly and get all round muscle group work whilst doing your cardio.

leeince

Cheers Steve,

Ive got some sort of mental block when it comes to street running!!

I can run on a treadmill at a decent pace for 45 minutes no problems and actually enjoy it for the most part.

The thought of street running puts me straight off and I know I wont end up doing it!

I could maybe add a rower at some point, what do you think of the other equipment?

Do you think the space is big enough? Will I need to add a lot more equipment in your opinion?

SteveCritten

To be honest mate I am a bit old school and believe a be have a press stand and some free weights, bars and dumb bells you can do everything any machine can do. Get a balance/wobble board and do your curls and shoulder press on it this will do wonders for body core.
As for the running find a club or a friend to run with it makes all the difference.

Member 55145

Well for starters you haven't said what you are trying to achieve.

Lose 10st, gain 2st, look like an Olympic runner or like Mr Olympia?

Do you normally exercise at a gym and want to bring it home? Or is it new to you?

Cardio can be very detrimental to bulking up.

Also you may find running on a treadmill very painful if you are new to exercise and end up walking like you had a weeks holiday at her majesty's pleasure.

Don't get me wrong, I love treadmills and you lose weight rapidly, but if you stop for a couple of days or accidentally push it too far you can be in agony which will put you off for a while/permanently.

An elliptical burns twice as many calories and avoids shock to your knees.

If you want to bulk up then free weights exercise all muscles giving you stability, the machines will only work one set of muscles like biceps.

As for running outside, totally get where you are coming from, especially if you lack confidence or just hate bad weather.

leeince

I want to lose a little weight and bulk up.

I trained for about 3 years solid before I got promoted and my career took over my life.

I went to a gym called Muscle limit in brimsdown that was 24hr. A proper spit and sawdust gym that I used to go to 5:00am in the morning, it's was a great place to train and not very busy at that time, a perfect situation

My promotion meant I couldnt train in the morning anymore so that put pay to that!

I tried to join a local gym a few months ago and get back in it but after working all day and then picking the kids up and going home then going back out to the gym only to be standing around waiting for a piece of equipment to become avaliable or someone to finish with dumbells I need I just can't be bothered.

I know what I'm doing in terms of diet, weight loss and muscle gain.

When I first started training I lost 2 stone in 2 months and then made some pretty goods gains over the 3 year period.

All that was about 4 years ago now so I've got some work to do!!

I really just want some advice about equipment, I think I can train everything with what I've listed, I just want to make sure I'm not forgetting something simple or I'm missing something.

The treadmill is just to shift the excess weight in the first few months and then the misses will use that more than me.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Member 55145

When you say lose weight and bulk up, you mean you wanna turn flab into muscles yea?

It can be very confusing trying to do both at once as the scales and mirror will fool you. Remember muscle weighs more than fat, and sits behind the fat too.

Doing cardio will help you lose the fat but can hinder bulking up.

If you wanna look like an athlete then do cardio. If you wanna look like Mr Olympia do weights. Weight training will burn fat but it just won't look like it for a while as you will be building muscle.

leeince

You don't turn flab into muscle. Flab is fat. You lifts weights to build the existing muscle, you burn fat so that you can see the muscle you are building and add definition.

You can't lose weight and bulk up at the same time, you can find a balance of sorts but it's not very effective.

In the first instance I'm going to hit the cardo hard and get my diet on point in a weight loss way, while at the same time getting my body used to lifting again.

After 2 to 3 months of doing this I will limit the cardio to warming up and down and hit the weights hard, probably 5x5 to try and get my strength up quick.

I will also at this point adjust my diet  to excess calories but the right types of food, Complex carbs, good fats, protein ect...

I'm really after some ideas from people who already have home gyms and what equipment they have and what they would suggest.

I would also like to know if anyone else has built a gym in the garden and how it's working out for them.

Member 55145

Lol I wasn't saying you physically turn fat into muscle. just figuratively

I have a 2002 York Multigym. But it was packed away during a house move and TBH it was very wobbly and wouldn't recommend it and would say avoid multi gyms.

I had a Reebok TR2 Treadmill which was fantastic but it broke and as it took up a lot of space I didn't replace it. I would highly recommend similar.

I currently have maxi muscle adjustable bench with Olympic bar and 4 Dumbbells that use the same weights as the Olympic bar. I have a heavy set for low rep biceps, delts and pecs, and a lighter set for high rep biceps and triceps.

As for elliptical I used one at work and loved it, wasn't so keep on rower or stepper.

Hope that helps

reiteration

buy a kettlebell too...