Suppose I do the P90X workout or online yoga classes at home; would I be exaggerating if I went around telling people “I have a home gym?” I don’t mind you, I’m stating it as an example.
In other words, do I need an elaborate full body weight lifting system such as the Powertec Workbench Multi-System Home Gym in order to say “I’m off to my home gym for a workout?” Or is a home gym as simple as a dedicated floor space where you do any type of workout?
The term “home gym” is not very clear. Bowflex and Protec sell “home gyms” which are resistance training systems. Yet, it’s not my view that you need weight lifting equipment in your home to say you have a home gym. I prefer a broader view of the term “home gym” to mean any dedicated workout space in your home. That means if you run on a treadmill, or do aerobics, yoga, or Pilates, using no weights, for instance, in a dedicated space, then call your workout space a “home gym.”
So far, all I’ve written is pretty straightforward and maybe you’re wondering “so what?” The point is I want to set the context for the various types of home gyms you can set up – all very different, yet home gyms nevertheless.
Now to the heart of the matter.
What are the various home gyms you can set up?
Broadly speaking, there are 4 types of home gyms.
1. Studio Home Gym
A studio home gym is basically a bare space where you do workouts that don’t require any significant apparatus such as a treadmill or resistance training system. Types of workouts you would do in a studio home gym would be yoga, aerobics, and the weightless workouts you follow along in a book or DVD such as P90X or the Insanity workout – to name a couple of many great workouts that use only your body.
2. Cardio Home Gym
If you have a space where you use a treadmill, exercise bike, elliptical trainer, stepper, vibration machine, and/or a rower, this would be a cardio home gym. Some people have several cardio machines while other people have one.
3. Weight Lifting Gym
This is the type of home gym most people conjure up in their minds when using the term “home gym.” There are 3 types of weight lifting home gyms, generally speaking:
- Lever-based home gym: is a single or multi-station weight training system that uses levers and weight plates for resistance. An example is the Powertec Workbench Multi-System Home Gym.
- Machine-based home gym: is a single or multi-station weight training system that uses cables, rods, and/or pulleys. An example is the Bowflex Revolution Home Gym.
- Free weight home gym: is a free-weight gym – whether a set of dumbbells and a bench, or a fully decked out free weight gym with squat racks, bench press, rack of dumbbells and barbells, benches – much like a commercial free weight gym.
4. Hybrid Home Gym
If you’re into cross training like me, then you may have a home gym in which you have a combination of the above. For example, you may have a lever-based weight training system, an elliptical machine, and floor space for yoga.
What type of home gym is best for you?
Home gyms are a work in progress. You might start with a studio home gym and then buy a cardio machine. In time as you get into different types of workouts, your gym may change. Or, maybe you do only yoga and won’t ever buy any gym equipment. Obviously there is not one-size-fits all home gym. I can tell you from my experience that I’m always looking for more cool fitness equipment and workout programs to add to my home gym. I guess that’s the nature of a cross trainer – always mixing it up and keeping it interesting.
Related posts:
