You can get an effective workout in a home gym stocked with thousands of dollars worth of equipment -- or with barely any equipment at all. Any budget can accommodate a well-rounded exercise routine that touches on the five components of an effective program: aerobic exercise, strength training, flexibility, balance and core work.
Aerobic Workout
Aerobic exercise elevates your heart rate, burns calories and improves your overall fitness level. Inexpensive at-home aerobic options include walking or jogging outdoors or in place, riding a bicycle, working out with an exercise video, jumping rope or using low-cost machines, like a mini stepper, mini trampoline or mini cycling machine. More expensive options for your home gym include a treadmill, an elliptical, a rowing machine, a stair climber and a stationary bicycle.
Strength Training
Strength training uses resistance to tone and strengthen your muscles. Pushups, chinups and other resistance exercises that use your own body weight are a cheap way to go, as are a set of resistance bands or fitness cords. A midrange budget is enough to buy some free weights, consisting of dumbbells, barbells or both, and an exercise bench on which to use them. Elaborate home gym machines that include weights, pulleys and benches built into the system are the most expensive strength training options.
Flexibility, Balance and Core
You might already be working on flexibility, balance and core with your aerobic and strength training routine. If not, an exercise mat is enough equipment to work on your flexibility with stretching, yoga and other moves that extend your body to its full range of motion. Working on your balance, too, can involve little or no equipment. Mini trampolines help with balance, as does something as simple as standing on one leg for an extended period of time. An exercise mat is all you need for yoga moves that work your core, and you can also invest in a stability ball. These inexpensive, inflatable balls are useful for crunches and a variety of other exercises that focus on your abdominals and other core muscles.
Considerations
Your budget is a concern when it comes to outfitting your home gym, but so is the amount of space you have available. You need at least 30 sq. ft. to properly house a treadmill or an elliptical, and at least 10 to 20 sq. ft. for a stationary bike, rowing machine or stair climber. Free weights use up anywhere from 20 to 50 sq. ft., while even the smallest home gym machines with only a single station need at least 35 sq. ft. Larger, multistation gyms can take up as much as 200 sq. ft.
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