Top Things to Consider When Building a Home Gym

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Having your own gym space at home has a lot of perks, including convenience and the potential for saving a significant amount of money over paying for a gym membership over a long period of time. When creating a gym in your home, however, there are three main factors that you need to keep in mind in order to achieve the greatest results. These factors include considering budget, space and cleaning while also taking a minimalist approach and considering the type of space that you are working with, especially if you are planning to put a home gym in an apartment.

Determining Your Home Gym Budget

Unless you have an unlimited source of income, budget is probably going to be the number one factor you have to consider before building a home gym. When you first start to consider your budget for a home gym, the process may seem a bit overwhelming. You may also not be sure what is a reasonable amount of money to set aside for a home gym.

To help you with determining a reasonable budget, PRX Performance offers a handy calculator that allows you to get a good idea of what you can expect to pay to go to the gym over a period of time. Armed with this information, you can better compare the cost of a gym membership versus a home gym while also easily seeing how much you would otherwise pay to go to the gym. Instead of spending this money toward a gym membership, the funds can be applied toward your home gym budget.

When determining the cost of going to a commercial gym, the PRX calculator considers a number of factors. These include:

• Monthly gym membership cost

• Miles to the gym and the average cost of gas

• Personal time spent traveling back and forth to the gym

• Number of days you travel back and forth to the gym

After gathering all of this information, the calculator can tell you how much it costs you per year to use the gym as well as how many hours you spend each year with travel. It can be a true eye opener that will also help you to see how long it will likely take for you to recoup the investment that you make in creating a home gym.

Considering the Availability of Space

There is no doubt that home gym equipment can take up a lot of space. While there are many models that are designed to minimalize the footprint of the equipment, you will still need to carefully consider the amount of space that you have available in your home. When taking measurements to determine if you have enough room for a piece of equipment, you should keep all of the following in mind:

• The actual size of the workout equipment

• The space that is needed for any extensions or attachments that are used with the equipment

• Space above the equipment to allow for your head, arms and any movements that you may need to make while using the equipment

• The clearance that is needed for you to walk around the equipment as you use it or make any necessary adjustments

The bottom line is that failing to have enough space to properly use your equipment is going to be a nightmare, so you should measure and then measure again before placing an order. After all, when they deliver that big pallet of equipment, it is not the time to realize that the machine is not going to fit.

When considering the space needed for your equipment, you should also consider whether or not you are likely to add more equipment to your home gym in the future. Some machines can be difficult if not impossible to move once they have been assembled, so you want to be sure to place the machine in the best possible spot to meet both your current and future needs.

Cleaning Your Home Gym

When considering creating a home gym space, some people fail to think about cleaning and maintaining the equipment. Even with a mat down beneath the machine, you will need to clean the surrounding floor as well as the floor beneath the mat. This process is not always easy. You will also need to wipe down the equipment on a regular basis, not only to help keep your gym looking great, but also to prevent gym odors from permeating your living space.

Remember, commercial gyms have a regular routine for cleaning and disinfecting their workout equipment. You will need to do the same with your home gym if you don’t want your whole house to smell like a gym. The time it takes to clean your equipment as well as the products you need to purchase to clean the equipment and floor on a regular basis should also be considered when calculating your budget.

Taking a Minimalist Approach

The saying of “Buy once, cry once,” is certainly applicable when it comes to creating a home gym. In other words, while all-in-one machines do require paying a high upfront cost, buying these machines rather than several individual machines will save money in the long run while also reducing the amount of space that you have to dedicate to your home gym.

Unless you are creating a workout center that will be used by multiple users at the same time, there is no reason to purchase multiple machines when those machines can be combined into one machine with a smaller overall footprint.

You should also resist the temptation to purchase many different machines all at the same time. Instead, start with a power rack or some other item to serve as the main hub of your home gym. Use this machine for at least a month before adding more items to your gym. This will allow you to truly see what else you need to make your home gym complete. Besides, gradually adding on to your home gym over a period of time is part of the fun of building it!

Special Considerations for Apartments

If you have an apartment in which you want to create a home gym, there are a few special factors that you should take into consideration. For example, having a home gym in an apartment that is on any floor other than the ground floor can be a problem. Many apartment floors are not constructed to withstand the weight of some pieces of equipment, especially bulky all-in-one machines that can weigh up to nearly 1,000 pounds once all of the weights and attachments are taken into consideration.

Even if the weight of your equipment is not a problem in your apartment, you also have to consider the thickness of your walls and floors in terms of the noise that your equipment makes. After all, you want to be sure to be courteous to your neighbors, especially if you are someone who likes to get in an early morning or late-night workout when most people are trying to sleep.

Having your equipment delivered can also be an issue if you live in an apartment. Even ground floor apartments can run into obstacles with deliveries, but this is particularly true of apartments that are located on higher floors. Maneuvering equipment up multiple flights of stairs can be a difficult task, if not an impossible one.

Ultimately, the decision to create a gym in your home is a personal one that will require you to take many things into consideration. In addition, you may want to consider installing your home gym in your garage, but there are a number of other factors that need to be taken into consideration when going this route. Through careful planning and consideration of both your short- and long-term home gym goals, you will be able to make the choice that is right for you, your home and your fitness journey.

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