The most productive home gym is one that fits your budget and lifestyle -- and it will inspire you to workout on a consistent basis. A wealth of fitness equipment is available to help you set up a home workout center -- this can include stationary machines that work your whole body to portable equipment that stores easily.
Inventory
Before you go out and buy a bunch of equipment, you should take an inventory of what you hope to achieve, how your exercise program will fit into your lifestyle, your budget and what kinds of things worked for you in the past. The bottom line is that you have to find a practical way to incorporate your home gym into your life so that you'll use it every day.
Elements
A productive home gym should provide both aerobic and strength training options as well as endurance and flexibility benefits. Aerobic exercise provides cardiovascular workouts that include any kind of exercise that gets your heartbeat up. Treadmills, aerobic dance routines or elliptical trainers can provide sufficient aerobic exercise. According to the Mayo Clinic, your fitness regimen should include strength training at least twice a week, which could consist of working out with free weights or using your body weight as resistance in pushups, situps and lunges. Stretching is an important component of the ideal fitness program and should be performed before and after you exercise.
Basics
Start with the basics and build on your core equipment. If you don't have a lot of space or a huge budget, you should start with a set of resistance bands, a few different sizes of free weights and a stability ball. Consider individual pieces of equipment that fold easily and store out of the way, such as cross-country ski machines and bike pedals you can use while sitting in a chair. A weight bench can help you work on various muscle groups more intensely. Your aerobic workouts may include walks or runs in your neighborhood.
Assistance
There are a slew of exercise videos on the market that can guide you through intense aerobic workouts at home. Many call for little or no special equipment. Personal trainers are available to come to your home to work you through a 30 or 60-minute session with the equipment you have available. According to the American College of Sports Medicine, using a personal trainer at home is just as effective as working with a trainer at a gym or fitness center.
Upgrades
After measuring your space or setting aside a designated workout room, you may find you have room to upgrade your equipment. A multi-station gym can take up as much as 200 square feet while a stationary bike only needs about 10 square feet. You need about 30 square feet for an elliptical trainer and closer to 20 square feet for a rowing machine. As you upgrade, make space for a bench for barbell workouts and mats on which you can perform crunches and floor exercises. According to the American Council on Exercise, it's better to spend the money on quality equipment. Cheaper models break down more easily and may ultimately be unsafe or inefficient.
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