Cancelling the Gym Membership and turning a bedroom into a Gym room instead? - Advice wanted

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hollen_carol
hollen_carol Posts: 121 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Thinking of cancelling our gym membership (we pay $65.00 per month currently so close $800.00 per year---not really all that bad I guess??) We are looking to turn our one bedroom in our house into a home gym instead. We were thinking Free weights, Bars, Bells, a weight bench and a treadmill. Thoughts my MFP friends? I want to know if any of you currently maintain at home instead of a gym and how its worked for you or if you have done this little exercise and went back to the gym because you thought that was better I would like to know that too. One of the reasons I initially chose our gym is because it had a pool and in the beginning that was my exercise of choice for cardio because it came easy to me. But I got tired of always having to wash my hair after every pool session and the goggles and cap were truly making my wrinkles on my forehead and around my eyes worse and the chlorine was making my skin dry!!!! - haha VANITY! So now for me it is 1/2 lifting weights and 1/2 cardio as my general routine. I think I can do this at home? Thanks :)
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Replies

  • cathipa
    cathipa Posts: 2,991 Member
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    I have a home gym. Most of my equipment was purchased at yard sales, Craigslist and Amazon. I highly recommend variable dumbbells (Selectech are great, but pricey), an Olympic bar and plates with a power rack with safety bars.
  • Penthesilea514
    Penthesilea514 Posts: 1,189 Member
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    rainbow198 wrote: »
    I have lost over 80 pounds and kept it all off for over 4 years without stepping one foot inside of a gym.

    My home gym and outdoors are my playgrounds. In my home gym I've built up a nice variety of equipment like weights, resistance bands, a Pilates Reformer, a mini-stepper, stepper (for step aerobics), weighted hula hoop, TRX strap, fitness dvd's and I use Youtube workouts.

    I've found some amazing deals online from people practically giving things away and I'm always on the lookout to add more. :)

    Outdoors I enjoy power walking, hill runs and doing bodyweight work on a high school football field (walking lunges, burpees, jump squats, pull ups on the goal post etc.)

    Not everyone has the discipline to workout at home/on their own however. I would recommend maybe doing some workouts online first to see how it goes before cancelling your membership. Good luck.

    This is my problem lol. For some reason, going to the gym helps keep me on track more than any time I have tried working out from home. But everyone is different, good luck finding what works best for you! :smiley:
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    edited September 2017
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    Home gym here. I do have a membership to a rec center but rarely go. I mostly use it for an occasional special class and in order to get a discount on summer camp for my daughter.

    For me, the ability to use my home gym at anytime is a huge plus. I don't have to worry about the time it takes to drive to a gym or childcare issues. I can run upstairs to turn on the oven between sets. My daughter can workout with me there. I can superset as much as I want without bothering others. I can try new things and make a fool out of myself in private. It makes me think creatively when I want to do an exercise but don't have the exact right tool to do it. It's great and I love it.

    I have standard bars and plates. They max at 250 lbs, which is plenty for me. I use the same plates on the dumbbell handles I have. My other equipment includes squat stands, sawhorses I use as safeties, two benches, cinder blocks, an adjustable box, pull-up bar, various bands, an Airdyne, a very simple cable system that I use for lat pulldowns, pushdowns, face pulls, and cable rows, ab wheel, and a Swiss ball.
  • rainbow198
    rainbow198 Posts: 2,245 Member
    edited September 2017
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    Penthesilea514 wrote: »
    rainbow198 wrote: »
    I have lost over 80 pounds and kept it all off for over 4 years without stepping one foot inside of a gym.

    My home gym and outdoors are my playgrounds. In my home gym I've built up a nice variety of equipment like weights, resistance bands, a Pilates Reformer, a mini-stepper, stepper (for step aerobics), weighted hula hoop, TRX strap, fitness dvd's and I use Youtube workouts.

    I've found some amazing deals online from people practically giving things away and I'm always on the lookout to add more. :)

    Outdoors I enjoy power walking, hill runs and doing bodyweight work on a high school football field (walking lunges, burpees, jump squats, pull ups on the goal post etc.)

    Not everyone has the discipline to workout at home/on their own however. I would recommend maybe doing some workouts online first to see how it goes before cancelling your membership. Good luck.

    This is my problem lol. For some reason, going to the gym helps keep me on track more than any time I have tried working out from home. But everyone is different, good luck finding what works best for you! :smiley:

    ^^ Exactly! I see so many people that want to workout at home in theory, but come winter time are you going to get out of your warm, cozy bed to go workout at home? Many say nah, I'll just stay put. lol It's not easy!

    It is all about finding what works for you. Some find the gym and being surrounded by others trying to get fit inspiring! Glad the gym works for you!

  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,136 Member
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    I did exactly this last year, I wasn't making enough use of my gym membership to warrant the monthly cost, and most of the problem was that once I was home I had no intention of going back out to the gym because I didn't enjoy it and it was always too busy. I walk and run for cardio, I expect this will drop down a little in the winter but I will add in some HIIT at home. I think @rainbow198 makes a good point that it's not for everyone, might be worth seeing if you can freeze you membership, some gyms will allow you to pay a reduced rate or take a payment break for a month or two.

    This is what I started out with, the Barbell/Dumbell set was around 70 euros, the smaller dumbells were about 20 euros and the kettlebells were around the same, the matts were about 10 euros. I have since added more matting because my yoga mat had seen better days and some resistance bands.

    I like HASFIT and The Body Coach TV on Youtube for free online workouts.

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  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    My daughter says our home gym is a testament to everything that has been advertised on Television for the past twenty years, including Suzanne Somer's thigh master.

    But it is used lightly. Hubby and I are too social to use it much. And I prefer to run outdoors.

    If you are introverted and have a plan, the home gym could work very well for you.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    jgnatca wrote: »
    My daughter says our home gym is a testament to everything that has been advertised on Television for the past twenty years, including Suzanne Somer's thigh master.

    But it is used lightly. Hubby and I are too social to use it much. And I prefer to run outdoors.

    If you are introverted and have a plan, the home gym could work very well for you.

    This is why it works for me. For as much as I post here, I am not social at all in real life. Many people enjoy the social aspect of the gym, even if it's not directly talking to others--it might just be being around others. I mostly enjoy not being around others so my basement gym is perfect for me :smiley:
  • twinkles4
    twinkles4 Posts: 124 Member
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    I switched to a home gym last year. Financially, it didn't make sense to keep going to the gym. It was $1400 per year for the membership or $800 to buy the equipment I use.

    As long as you have the discipline to work out at home, why not? Just remember, if it's a workout day, then you work out. That doesn't change just because the venue does. ;)
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    rainbow198 wrote: »
    Not everyone has the discipline to workout at home/on their own however. I would recommend maybe doing some workouts online first to see how it goes before cancelling your membership. Good luck.

    • If you haven't started on a weightlifting routine, you might want to start out at the gym before canceling your membership and investing in equipment - [1] to make sure it's not something you hate doing & won't keep with and [2] you might be able to work out some bugs on exactly what features, etc you want in your home equipment (for instance, range of adjustability of safeties - in my case the fixed-position safety bars in the squat racks at the gym are too high so I know to watch for that when buying my own; rack or enclosed cage,...etc.). Outside of the barbells/racks/benches, I mainly use the cable machine for lat pulldowns when at the gym - but that is more of a temporary stop-gap until I'm strong enough for pull-ups.
    • Same for the treadmill - make sure you don't hate using it before buying one. I personally can't stand hampster wheels for cardio. (I've never used the gym for cardio).
  • jenniferbloomfield967
    jenniferbloomfield967 Posts: 16 Member
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    Depends what your goals are. If it's just to loose weight a home
    Gym
    Is totally doable
  • fatguylink
    fatguylink Posts: 6 Member
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    I have done both and I prefer the home gym as I don't have to wait if the gym is crowded. I have an extensive amount of equipment at home though including Olympic weights, good bench, power cage and a heavy bag. I do recommend the garage sale route as all my gear only ran about $300.
    One thing to consider is the layout of your house, my wife complains if I am to loud as my gym is right under our TV. Also if you use very heavy weights it can be an issue on the wooden floor joist in an older house like mine. Use the basement or somewhere on a concrete floor.
  • deluxmary2000
    deluxmary2000 Posts: 981 Member
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    ritzvin wrote: »
    rainbow198 wrote: »
    Not everyone has the discipline to workout at home/on their own however. I would recommend maybe doing some workouts online first to see how it goes before cancelling your membership. Good luck.

    • If you haven't started on a weightlifting routine, you might want to start out at the gym before canceling your membership and investing in equipment - [1] to make sure it's not something you hate doing & won't keep with and [2] you might be able to work out some bugs on exactly what features, etc you want in your home equipment (for instance, range of adjustability of safeties - in my case the fixed-position safety bars in the squat racks at the gym are too high so I know to watch for that when buying my own; rack or enclosed cage,...etc.). Outside of the barbells/racks/benches, I mainly use the cable machine for lat pulldowns when at the gym - but that is more of a temporary stop-gap until I'm strong enough for pull-ups.
    • Same for the treadmill - make sure you don't hate using it before buying one. I personally can't stand hampster wheels for cardio. (I've never used the gym for cardio).

    I was going to say pretty much the same thing. I would try out your new non-swimming routine at the gym first, because an at- home gym is a pretty big investment if it turns out it will be something you don't like.

  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
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    I bought a power cage, a bar and weights, plus an adjustable bench for about $800.

    I have this cage:

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HDVZJ9A/ref=cm_sw_r_pi_dp_x_OhjPybBQ8V8DQ
  • hollen_carol
    hollen_carol Posts: 121 Member
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    Thank you all so much for your responses. Much to think about. Just to let a few of you know who asked, I have already done my non-swimming routine now for about two years so I know the things I want for the home gym. It sounds like many of you who do work out at home have large spaces or use basements (which are typically larger then a bedroom). I do wonder if a bedroom (10' x 10') will be enough space? That is a concern and also, I do have wood floors in that room so I am wondering if a interlocking gym floor will work for that or no. I had not even thought about the floor part before so thank you to those that brought that up :) I would often do the cardio by jogging or walking outside but would want the treadmill for the days it was raining or snowing or just too cold in the wintertime.
  • hollen_carol
    hollen_carol Posts: 121 Member
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    Oh and just to add, I do not have to lose any more weight. Be there, done that. I started 3 years ago and lost 46 pounds to my goal in about 9 months. Now its all about keeping it off (and being able to eat a little more cause I'm burning a little more) and keeping my muscles toned and my heart fit.
  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,978 Member
    edited September 2017
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    First: what are your goals? How big is your room (width/length), how wide/high is the door and how high are the ceilings? Second: What are your goals?

    The answers to these questions will determine what type of gear you should get (goals) and what gear will fit in your room.

    If you need/want gear that won't fit in your room, consider a different location in your house (the garage is most common) or just continue to go to the gym.

    FWIW, I've got a full weight lifting set up in the single 10x20 space of my 3 car garage and every inch of that space is used.

    Wouldn't be able to fit 1/2 the gear in a 10x12 foot room, let alone thru the door and there would be no headroom left for the 7' high rack even if it could be disassembled to get thru the door. The strength of the floor would also be a concern; not a problem in the garage.

    Had to put the Concept 2 rower in my family room behind a 7' sofa because it has a 3x9' footprint. No room left in the garage and no other space large enough to accommodate it. Had to put the spinbike in the foyer.

    These are just some of the practical matters you may need to consider when trying to install a gym in your home.

    Good luck!

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    I have mixed feeling on the matter...

    We're actually house hunting right now and we're interested in finding a place that would have available space for a home gym as both my wife and I lift. On one hand, it would save us some money in the long run and we wouldn't have to go anywhere to workout.

    On the other hand, there's just so much going on once we step through the front door of home that a lot of well intentioned things to do fall by the wayside and I'm concerned about interruptions from kids, chores, etc. When I go to the gym, it's gym time and I'm away from all of those other distractions so I'm not sure how it would work out.

    I've also met a lot of great people over the years in the gym and I would definitely miss seeing them on the regular.
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
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    Here's a nice article by Dean Sommerset (a well regarded trainer/fitness writer) on the gym he designed for him and his wife (believe the wife is a competitive cyclist). It's going to be over the top for most people but there are a lot of explanations on how he selected equipment and set it up that may be helpful to you.

    http://deansomerset.com/building-the-basement-of-champions-how-to-build-a-legendary-home-gym/

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