Self Help

Whenever you make the gym a destination you can enjoy a lot of different equipment located within a nice facility with staff that are able to give you good advice and other members who can give you the incentive that you need in order to work out. However, if you purchase your own gym equipment for your home you can enjoy the ease of access without a commute but you may be wondering what you should purchase.

If you are just starting a fitness routine you should not purchase anything right away. You can form a good basis for comparison-shopping by having a knowledgeable instructor guide you as you use professional equipment.

For those who are interested in weight training, a good set of weights is essential. You can purchase inexpensive free weights for less than $50. A mixture of small, 10 pound and 20 pound hand-held dumbbells and a bar with larger, exchangeable weights is what you will want to purchase. All bars are as good as each other but you will have the choice between metal and plastic weights. While you may like the noise that metal weights make, you should know that plastic weights are much safer.

There will come a time when you will eventually want to get a weight machine because they allow you to concentrate upon specific groups of muscles in a way that is a lot safer than using free weights. Another good reason for purchasing a weight machine is that it is harder to work some muscle groups whenever you are using free weights.

You should not take the decision to purchase a weight machine lightly since they are expensive. There are different configurations that you will also need to choose from. For a good, simple resistance machine you are going to pay a few hundred dollars. These are just composite rubber stretching straps that allow for some adjustment to the tension. For multi-station, adjustable weight stacks you will bay anywhere from $1,800 to $5,000 or more.

Another popular item is stair steppers. A simple model will cost you between $80 and $150. You can get a good cardiovascular workout with these in a small space. While there will not be a lot of impact upon your joints, you can definitely build your thighs and calves. Make sure that what you do purchase is reliable or else it will break only a few months after you have purchased it. There are some stair steppers that cost $1,700 or more. These will give you a lot more than simply the simulation of walking up stairs. They should be more reliable and come with handrails that are very solid. It should also be adjustable for resistance, speed, angle and distance between pedals. A heart rate monitor and other digital readouts such as speed, distance climbed and calories burned should also be included.

Treadmills are also a common part of the home gym. They cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to $2,000 or more. These should work very smoothly and be very stable and reliable. A good treadmill will have a non-slip surface and be able to go faster and offer more resistance as you build yourself up. Any treadmill that costs over $1,000 should include controls and digital gauges to help you measure speed, distance “walked,” calories burned and your heart rate.

If you are going to spend several thousand dollars to create a nice home gym, you really should be willing to commit yourself to a consistent, regular workout. Of course, no manufacturer is going to be able to guarantee you this though.