Garage Gym types
sunnybeaches105
Posts: 2,831 Member
Anyone else out there who have built their own gyms? I'm expecting crickets here, but I thought I'd ask. The most entertaining/challenging part was being forced in the beginning to do the most with the least, and I'm convinced that it helped focus my training. I wasn't certain in the beginning that I'd really use it and thought that I might just fall back into my regular gym. As it turned out, I switched to my garage full time almost immediately, which surprised me. Anyone else taken the plunge?
I started a bit over a year ago with a 1/2 rack with cable, a bar, adjustable dumbbells, a commercial FID bench, and a good amount of weight plates, all which was used. I also made my own lifting platform out of plywood and rubber matting. I recently added a 3x3 power rack, mens' and women' power bars, a trap bar, training plates, full rubber flooring, an atlas stone and a few other goodies. The best part is that I've spent about the same amount that I would have spent over the last couple of years for a good quality gym. I've been able to maximise it by buying a combination of used and carefully selected new equipment. The next step is a good quality GHD, but I'm seeing that my wants could go on for a while.
I'll add that I don't have air conditioning or heating but I've found it better for training. I also don't have any mirrors or any other distractions. I did add some good blue tooth compatible speakers. It's just a very simple space to train. For me it's perfect.
I started a bit over a year ago with a 1/2 rack with cable, a bar, adjustable dumbbells, a commercial FID bench, and a good amount of weight plates, all which was used. I also made my own lifting platform out of plywood and rubber matting. I recently added a 3x3 power rack, mens' and women' power bars, a trap bar, training plates, full rubber flooring, an atlas stone and a few other goodies. The best part is that I've spent about the same amount that I would have spent over the last couple of years for a good quality gym. I've been able to maximise it by buying a combination of used and carefully selected new equipment. The next step is a good quality GHD, but I'm seeing that my wants could go on for a while.
I'll add that I don't have air conditioning or heating but I've found it better for training. I also don't have any mirrors or any other distractions. I did add some good blue tooth compatible speakers. It's just a very simple space to train. For me it's perfect.
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I have a small dungeon style room in my low ceiling basement. I've had bars, bells and a basic bench for years. Sold my dip station when moving to this house as it was to high for the ceiling. Two upgrades recently. Half rack and a lever squat.
Tis a tight floor plan but works well for me and have great training there. My escape room I suppose. I have a few mirrors and some posters to spruce up the walls. Whats a dungeon without a classic Farrah Fawcett or Frank Zane poster ;-)
I've only belonged to one commercial gym years ago. Didn't care for it as I've alway been a after work lifter. And we all know how busy it is then.
When you say half rack with cable are you referring to a lat pulldown station?0 -
We have a treadmill, a rowing machine, a skipping rope, a medicine ball, a kettleball and a yoga mat. I guess its kind of a gym.0
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Sounds like a good space. I like the dungeon and classic poster idea. I also workout after work and yes, 6 pm in a commercial gym is the 7th circle of hell.
The extra rack is a half rack with a lat pull down/low pulley combination. It's honestly a piece of shyte 2x2 version, but it gets the job done and I can't see the point in selling it off and buying a proper lat pull down/low pulley combo when I have this and it has the extra pull-up bar. I use it mostly for pull-ups when I have the cage set up for bench and for rope pulldowns etc. I'm finding that I have no more space so if I get a GHD it may have to sit in this rack space for storage and get used in the driveway.
ETA - nice bike0 -
beautifulsparkles wrote: »We have a treadmill, a rowing machine, a skipping rope, a medicine ball, a kettleball and a yoga mat. I guess its kind of a gym.
If it's where you work out, it's your space, and it serves your purposes, then it's your gym.0 -
I don't even have a garage right now. I wish I did, I have the funds set aside for a kick *kitten* set up. I think I'm going to end up building a large metal building with gym and garage area and a largish apartment attached, makes the most sense for our lifestyle.0
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I've had a garage and then basement gym since 2009. I've got about 800lbs in plates, a rack, bench, dip stand, texas power bar, cheap chrome bar, safety squat bar, platform three sheets thick of plywood topped with stall mats, olympic dumb bells, 1" dumb bells, kettle bell, bands, a *kitten* ton of knee sleeves, knee wraps and a boat load of bench shirts and squat suits.
Really the only thing I'd like is an ER competition set but that's way down the road.0 -
juliewatkin wrote: »I've had a garage and then basement gym since 2009. I've got about 800lbs in plates, a rack, bench, dip stand, texas power bar, cheap chrome bar, safety squat bar, platform three sheets thick of plywood topped with stall mats, olympic dumb bells, 1" dumb bells, kettle bell, bands, a *kitten* ton of knee sleeves, knee wraps and a boat load of bench shirts and squat suits.
Really the only thing I'd like is an ER competition set but that's way down the road.
Sounds like one hell of a gym!0 -
I don't even have a garage right now. I wish I did, I have the funds set aside for a kick *kitten* set up. I think I'm going to end up building a large metal building with gym and garage area and a largish apartment attached, makes the most sense for our lifestyle.
If I had more yard I'd love to do that. The garage also serves for kiddo stuff and bike storage so it's very tight.0 -
a year ago I invested in a Rogue RML 3x3 power rack, Rogue ohio bar, 500+lbs of plates, Ironmaster quicklock dumbbells, legend 0-90 bench, spud inc. cable system and other various accessories. Never need to step foot in a public gym again. I've used it 5x a week for a year now, absolutely worth every penny.
Next purchase will be a Ivanko OBZ-40 rackable curl bar. They're not cheap though, so I'm hoping one shows up on craigslist.0 -
galgenstrick wrote: »a year ago I invested in a Rogue RML 3x3 power rack, Rogue ohio bar, 500+lbs of plates, Ironmaster quicklock dumbbells, legend 0-90 bench, spud inc. cable system and other various accessories. Never need to step foot in a public gym again. I've used it 5x a week for a year now, absolutely worth every penny.
Next purchase will be a Ivanko OBZ-40 rackable curl bar. They're not cheap though, so I'm hoping one shows up on craigslist.
Very nice set up. I'm slowly falling in love with Rogue mostly because of their relatively inexpensive and quick shipping. I tossed around between the Elite FTS and Rogue racks for some time and finally went with a Rogue Fortis on close out. I almost feel bad for how pretty it is but it is definitely solid, and it didn't cost $300 to ship. All that said, I love craigslist for their deals. Best purchase so far was a 110 pound set of pro-style dumbbells for $50.0 -
My squat rack, bench, 3 different bars 800 lbs of plates and dumbells to 40(need a to get my set to 65s) are all where some people might put the dinner table. A cr 250 in the laundry room , a kx 65 in the living room and my daughter's three bmx bikes by the front door....I NEED A GARAGE:)0
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sunnybeaches105 wrote: »galgenstrick wrote: »a year ago I invested in a Rogue RML 3x3 power rack, Rogue ohio bar, 500+lbs of plates, Ironmaster quicklock dumbbells, legend 0-90 bench, spud inc. cable system and other various accessories. Never need to step foot in a public gym again. I've used it 5x a week for a year now, absolutely worth every penny.
Next purchase will be a Ivanko OBZ-40 rackable curl bar. They're not cheap though, so I'm hoping one shows up on craigslist.
Very nice set up. I'm slowly falling in love with Rogue mostly because of their relatively inexpensive and quick shipping. I tossed around between the Elite FTS and Rogue racks for some time and finally went with a Rogue Fortis on close out. I almost feel bad for how pretty it is but it is definitely solid, and it didn't cost $300 to ship. All that said, I love craigslist for their deals. Best purchase so far was a 110 pound set of pro-style dumbbells for $50.
Yeah, I'm not into crossfit, but Rogue has some awesome stuff for the everday weight lifter or power lifter. I'm hoping they come out with a line of curl bars and a black oxide power bar to match my ohio bar. definitely recommend their gear.0 -
galgenstrick wrote: »sunnybeaches105 wrote: »galgenstrick wrote: »a year ago I invested in a Rogue RML 3x3 power rack, Rogue ohio bar, 500+lbs of plates, Ironmaster quicklock dumbbells, legend 0-90 bench, spud inc. cable system and other various accessories. Never need to step foot in a public gym again. I've used it 5x a week for a year now, absolutely worth every penny.
Next purchase will be a Ivanko OBZ-40 rackable curl bar. They're not cheap though, so I'm hoping one shows up on craigslist.
Very nice set up. I'm slowly falling in love with Rogue mostly because of their relatively inexpensive and quick shipping. I tossed around between the Elite FTS and Rogue racks for some time and finally went with a Rogue Fortis on close out. I almost feel bad for how pretty it is but it is definitely solid, and it didn't cost $300 to ship. All that said, I love craigslist for their deals. Best purchase so far was a 110 pound set of pro-style dumbbells for $50.
Yeah, I'm not into crossfit, but Rogue has some awesome stuff for the everday weight lifter or power lifter. I'm hoping they come out with a line of curl bars and a black oxide power bar to match my ohio bar. definitely recommend their gear.
I have their Ohio Power Bar and am pretty happy with it. It's solid and the knurling is aggressive but doesn't rip skin0 -
970Mikaela1 wrote: »My squat rack, bench, 3 different bars 800 lbs of plates and dumbells to 40(need a to get my set to 65s) are all where some people might put the dinner table. A cr 250 in the laundry room , a kx 65 in the living room and my daughter's three bmx bikes by the front door....I NEED A GARAGE:)
Now, that's dedication! I use a bunch of 10 pound plates and dumbbell bars mostly except my one set of 110s. Dumbbells seem to be the most ridiculously expensive part of a gym if you're not careful!0 -
About 2/3 of our garage is our home gym. Heavy rubber mats cover the floor, and we have a Rogue squat rack with safety squat and Olympic bars, bench, plates, and full set of dumbbells. We also have a treadmill and Power Tower in the house. I wish we had more plates (smaller and fractional). It's definitely a setup for a stronger lifter. I just started Stronglifts 5x5 last week though with what we have.0
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sunnybeaches105 wrote: »Anyone else out there who have built their own gyms
Mine:
I’ve gotten pretty serious into my training and instead of just merely lifting for aesthetics, powerlifting has now become a passion of mine. I live in a pretty remote area and with my limited amount of time that I can possibly train (I train at 430 am most weekdays) and the only gym being severely under equipped, I decided to build a garage gym. (They only have one barbell and one power rack that is a severe joke.)
Here’s the build over the weekend.
What I started with.
Then some sketching. I used Adobe Illustrator to get my thoughts down after measuring the space. Drawn in 0.25" to 1' scale.
Before I purchased the materials to build the platforms I purchased one horse stall mat and a Rogue Monster Lite 70" half-rack because of the ceiling height (88") and the platforms I was intending to build -- couldn't be to tall of a rack. Rogue had one of the few shorter ones and with the Westside hole spacing too, was an easy decision.
One materials buy.
Laying it out.
I used Simpson Strong Ties with 1" screws that I had leftover from another build from a few years ago. Went really quick.
Tic marks.
First and second plywood screwed down. My cordless drill ran out of juice, so I resorted to the 30+ year old drill my dad gave me to screw the plywood down.
I took a small detour before completing the 3 foot platform and installed this halogen lamp that I picked up a few weeks prior for $10 at a rummage sale. It has two settings and this cute little turtle hanging off the pull switch.
The cute turtle. What should I name him?
3 foot platform. I need to park one of the cars in the garage during the winter which is why I made this platform a bit smaller - I wanted to be confident that I could still pick it up off the floor. Also notice the oil/grease stain on the floor - there is no way I want to lift directly on that.
Both platforms together with horse stalls and birch "dry" fitted. Cutting the horse stall mats was pretty easy -- took about a half and hour for three cuts -- I've been cutting for years as a graphic designer. Trick is to score and cut through the "layers" with many passes and a very sharp blade and not in one single pass.
And here they are all finished. I still have a few minor details to complete on them, but they are lift ready. Haven't lifted on them yet, but hope too tomorrow.
You might have noticed that there is no glue used with the construction, this is because we intended to move out of this condo (whether we sell or not) by next fall and I don't want anything permanent. I can just unscrew it and move it. Also, I kept the 8 foot long and 1 foot wide pieces for my new space. These lifting decks will be reconfigured to work in my expected new basement without a platform. I will lay another layer of plywood below these sheets and stagger in the cut pieces so make a one thick floor-level solid platform.
All-in-all it took around or under 7 hours to complete.2 -
I've only ever had a home gym. Never even considered paying for a gym membership until my wife wanted the kids to be able to swim in the winter.
I started out with a standard bar, plates, a handful of dumbbells and a basic bench with a squat rack in the basement. It had a preacher curl and leg curl/extension attachment, but I haven't used that since I was a teen and was doing my own thing.
I recently upgraded as I was squatting 240lb and that was probably over the limit of the bar. I bought a cheap olympic set, half rack, and incline/decline bench that is rated for 600lb, which should be good enough for me. I built a lifting platform and an insert for my half rack.
The only thing I need now is to upgrade the bar and get some real 45's, as my 45's are a tiny bit under regulation and the bar obviously won't hold more than the 255lb in plates it came with. It's worked for the past 4 months though, and while I can deadlift 300lb I'm yet to do reps at 300lb. I need to start perusing craigslist for a replacement.0 -
I started with a full bench and olympic bar with associated plates. I added some dumbbells - not specific weights, but threaded dumbbell that takes plates. I added a suspension trainer when my son was rehabbing from a surgically repaired injury...his PT used one so I got one for his off days. I've learned to love it to supplement my workouts. Have a treadmill bought off a friend for 50 bones when they chose not to use it anymore. Have both a heavy and speed bag, a couple kettle bells, and a few slam type medicine balls. Rubber mats for my garage floor. I spent heavy on one fan and have another cheap box fan to move air...no ac or heat in the garage. Winter is fine as my workouts generate plenty of heat but summer can be rough as the sun bakes the front of the garage all day and I lift in the evening so the fans were a must. I wish I had bought a bigger one when I got the nice one. Working on getting my hands on a trailer so I can pick up a rack from my brother that he no longer needs. He wants to donate it to mine and my son's workouts (darn nice of him). It has a cable system and lat/pullup bars. Lighting needs upgrading as does the music system. I add plates for the dumbells and olympic bar as I need. Decent set of gloves, a few mirrors to keep an eye on form, and a whiteboard to keep notes on runs and lifts.0
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I wish I had the money for doing this... And the garage... I hate the gym and all the people.. I want to be like a ninja when I exercise... Unheard and unseen. Lol. Pipe dream for me tho.0
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CassidyScaglione wrote: »I wish I had the money for doing this... And the garage... I hate the gym and all the people.. I want to be like a ninja when I exercise... Unheard and unseen. Lol. Pipe dream for me tho.
It doesn't have to be fancy. I got mine on the cheap buying mostly second hand and knowing the right people. I bought my plates (800lbs) for $100 from a strength coach for a rowing team who was unloading his stuff. I had to drive for it though.
It's been more than worth it over the years but, to be honest, I'll still go to a gym from time to time because I like to people watch.0 -
Basement gym for me. Olympic weight set, power cage, dip station attached to the wall, and an home made pull up/Suspension trainer mount made out of 1" piping attached to the wall and ceiling. I wish the ceiling was higher, but it is likely we will have to move sometime in the next year, so then we can look for something better. At least, that would be one of the factors weighed into choosing a new place.0
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nakedraygun wrote: »sunnybeaches105 wrote: »Anyone else out there who have built their own gyms
Mine:
I’ve gotten pretty serious into my training and instead of just merely lifting for aesthetics, powerlifting has now become a passion of mine. I live in a pretty remote area and with my limited amount of time that I can possibly train (I train at 430 am most weekdays) and the only gym being severely under equipped, I decided to build a garage gym. (They only have one barbell and one power rack that is a severe joke.)
Here’s the build over the weekend.
What I started with.
Then some sketching. I used Adobe Illustrator to get my thoughts down after measuring the space. Drawn in 0.25" to 1' scale.
Before I purchased the materials to build the platforms I purchased one horse stall mat and a Rogue Monster Lite 70" half-rack because of the ceiling height (88") and the platforms I was intending to build -- couldn't be to tall of a rack. Rogue had one of the few shorter ones and with the Westside hole spacing too, was an easy decision.
One materials buy.
Laying it out.
I used Simpson Strong Ties with 1" screws that I had leftover from another build from a few years ago. Went really quick.
Tic marks.
First and second plywood screwed down. My cordless drill ran out of juice, so I resorted to the 30+ year old drill my dad gave me to screw the plywood down.
I took a small detour before completing the 3 foot platform and installed this halogen lamp that I picked up a few weeks prior for $10 at a rummage sale. It has two settings and this cute little turtle hanging off the pull switch.
The cute turtle. What should I name him?
3 foot platform. I need to park one of the cars in the garage during the winter which is why I made this platform a bit smaller - I wanted to be confident that I could still pick it up off the floor. Also notice the oil/grease stain on the floor - there is no way I want to lift directly on that.
Both platforms together with horse stalls and birch "dry" fitted. Cutting the horse stall mats was pretty easy -- took about a half and hour for three cuts -- I've been cutting for years as a graphic designer. Trick is to score and cut through the "layers" with many passes and a very sharp blade and not in one single pass.
And here they are all finished. I still have a few minor details to complete on them, but they are lift ready. Haven't lifted on them yet, but hope too tomorrow.
You might have noticed that there is no glue used with the construction, this is because we intended to move out of this condo (whether we sell or not) by next fall and I don't want anything permanent. I can just unscrew it and move it. Also, I kept the 8 foot long and 1 foot wide pieces for my new space. These lifting decks will be reconfigured to work in my expected new basement without a platform. I will lay another layer of plywood below these sheets and stagger in the cut pieces so make a one thick floor-level solid platform.
All-in-all it took around or under 7 hours to complete.
I love this platform! I just built mine with layered plywood and rubber matting so it's not nearly this thick.0 -
Last commercial gym I belonged to was in 1990. I've gone thru a bunch of iterations in my home gyms through the years, but my current gym is in my basement. It's 16 x 24 with lots of windows. I have a Titan HD power rack with dip arms and spotter arms, a Powertec Workbench Leverage Gym, a hyperextension, lat machine with 250# weight stack, dumbbells from 8#-75#, Olympic bar, hex bar, curl bar and plenty of Olympic plates. For cardio I have a Schwinn Johnny G Spinner and a SportsArt treadmill.0
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70chevellegsp wrote: »Last commercial gym I belonged to was in 1990. I've gone thru a bunch of iterations in my home gyms through the years, but my current gym is in my basement. It's 16 x 24 with lots of windows. I have a Titan HD power rack with dip arms and spotter arms, a Powertec Workbench Leverage Gym, a hyperextension, lat machine with 250# weight stack, dumbbells from 8#-75#, Olympic bar, hex bar, curl bar and plenty of Olympic plates. For cardio I have a Schwinn Johnny G Spinner and a SportsArt treadmill.
How do you like the Titan? I came very close to going that direction but ended up buying a Rogue on sale. I don't care about aesthetics, just functionality.
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I had one until I moved and I loved it. Basic squat rack, oly bar, 480# of oly plates, bench, some dumbbells, pull up bar, and some other miscellaneous stuff. I don't have a garage at the moment, but once I do I'll be piecing another home gym together.0
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Got a home gym here. Wouldn't say it's built as there is no power rack but I do have enough kit to start my own personal training business. Up to about 120kg in free weight plates (not ideal but it'll have to do), kettlebells (8kg, 12kg, 16kg), pull up bar, recumbent cycle, gym ball, 6 dumbbell handles, push up bars.
I have no excuses for missing a session - and it's a lot less hassle than driving 15 minutes to the gym. I had a trial membership and actually chose to train at home as it is better than using a gym - can put the music on that I like, no waiting for equipment, nobody to judge because I'm playing on my phone between sets. No hot lasses to eye up, though.0 -
sunnybeaches105 wrote: »70chevellegsp wrote: »Last commercial gym I belonged to was in 1990. I've gone thru a bunch of iterations in my home gyms through the years, but my current gym is in my basement. It's 16 x 24 with lots of windows. I have a Titan HD power rack with dip arms and spotter arms, a Powertec Workbench Leverage Gym, a hyperextension, lat machine with 250# weight stack, dumbbells from 8#-75#, Olympic bar, hex bar, curl bar and plenty of Olympic plates. For cardio I have a Schwinn Johnny G Spinner and a SportsArt treadmill.
How do you like the Titan? I came very close to going that direction but ended up buying a Rogue on sale. I don't care about aesthetics, just functionality.sunnybeaches105 wrote: »70chevellegsp wrote: »Last commercial gym I belonged to was in 1990. I've gone thru a bunch of iterations in my home gyms through the years, but my current gym is in my basement. It's 16 x 24 with lots of windows. I have a Titan HD power rack with dip arms and spotter arms, a Powertec Workbench Leverage Gym, a hyperextension, lat machine with 250# weight stack, dumbbells from 8#-75#, Olympic bar, hex bar, curl bar and plenty of Olympic plates. For cardio I have a Schwinn Johnny G Spinner and a SportsArt treadmill.
How do you like the Titan? I came very close to going that direction but ended up buying a Rogue on sale. I don't care about aesthetics, just functionality.
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I think it's a great value. The big knocks are that the welds are ugly, but it'll hold the weight like the others. I got the HD rack, spotter arms, and dip bars for $579 shipped. It's a Rogue R3 clone. I really like that it doesn't have the rear crossmember so I can use both sides and it doesn't interfere with my bench. It needs to be bolted down so tha may eliminate it for some.0
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70chevellegsp wrote: »I think it's a great value. The big knocks are that the welds are ugly, but it'll hold the weight like the others. I got the HD rack, spotter arms, and dip bars for $579 shipped. It's a Rogue R3 clone. I really like that it doesn't have the rear crossmember so I can use both sides and it doesn't interfere with my bench. It needs to be bolted down so tha may eliminate it for some.
Thank you - I had a feeling it was mostly cosmetic difference0
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