fitness What Are The Essential Home Gym Equipment?

[Unvarnished]

I want freedom and convenience with my exercises. I don't want to get bothered with noises here and there like we are used to in gym centers. So, in respect of this, I have the plan to set up a gym in my home. I have seen some equipment online, but I'm not convinced enough. Of course, I know that dumbbells, resistance bands, and a yoga mat are must haves.

What are the other essentials you would recommend?

 

[Aufscherin]

I have what is essential for me. I have an exercise bike and a rowing machine.

 

[ActionAce]

That's a great thread! It's good to have fun and freedom when exercising. This is why so many people prefer to do it at home. Add an adjustable kettlebell and jump rope to the list you have there. Not only do they save space, they are one of a kind and versatile gym equipment. Oh! I almost forgot a mirror. It's a perfect choice for checking my form.

 

[Harsh World]

Everything that I need to do to stay in shape at home can be done with a couch, dumbbells, towels, and a backpack, which nearly everyone has.

You can mimic the bench press for the chest, shoulders, triceps, and core with traditional push-ups. Then, you can mimic both incline and decline variations by either having your feet placed on the couch and pushing from the floor or your feet placed on the floor and pushing from the couch. Attack different angles — also increasing or decreasing difficulty depending on if you're mimicking incline or decline — by placing or pushing from the cushions where you sit, from the arms of the couch, or the back of the couch. For extra difficulty and as you increase in strength, grab the dumbbells, wrap them in towels, place that in the backpack, and put it on, tightening it up so it doesn't slide around.

Body weight squats to technical failure (where the next attempt would have you fall over) 5 times with a rest period of 1 minute 45 seconds to 2 minutes between sets will have your legs hurting the next day no matter what (especially if you are squatting with a dumbbell in hands or with the backpack setup). The Murph challenge includes 300 body squats for a reason. If you can get to 300 bodyweight squats in 5 sets or fewer, you're in good shape. I can't imagine him having done that with a "weighted" vest (flak with gear) on.

Then you can do deadlifts with the dumbbells. You might not have enough weight with dumbbells for this, so I would pre-fatigue first by doing some body-weight squats, then move on to deadlifting the dumbbells and you might feel it.

And then you have isolation exercises, which you can do with the dumbbells.

The only real thing that you'd need at home would be a treadmill or rowing machine for cardio. That's the one piece of equipment that you really can't mimic anything with, except for knee highs/running in place. And let me tell you, knee highs (raising your knees up, rotating left and right), sound easy, but after doing them for 45 minutes to 2 hours, with other things worked in like pushups, etc., they will get very difficult, very quickly, and could be your cardio.

 

[Reelz]

Those items of equipment are essential. But don't forget a pull-up bar and medicine ball. These are necessary for working multiple muscle groups, and they will also improve your overall fitness in a great way. The best part is that they do not take much space and are easy to store as well. If you want to achieve great strength, this equipment is a game changer.

 

[Harsh World]

Those items of equipment are essential. But don't forget a pull-up bar

Ah, yes, a pullup bar would be nice. I just wouldn't trust the doorway-mounted ones or even one that screwed into the studs of the wall. Eventually, they always give.

medicine ball

These are great too as they can help you work your core even more by doing curls or shoulder presses on them too. You could also replace the couch with now to mimic the bench press for more core stability as well. The only issue with them is space, but if you have a dedicated room for a gym, then it would be a great addition to a home gym.