Hi lovelies,

If you're looking to smash your fitness goals, you could visit your local gym. You will find all of the equipment needed to tone your body and work on your cardio, and you will have professional assistance too.

Of course, gym memberships can be expensive, and not everybody feels comfortable working out in front of others. For these reasons, you might want to consider a home gym instead. You won't have to pay a monthly expense to work out at home, and you will have all the privacy you need away from the prying eyes of others.

Here are some tips on getting started.

#1: Find the space you need
The amount of space you need will depend on the exercises you intend to do. 

At the very least, you will want space for a yoga mat, as this is where you can do your stretch and core exercises. You won't need a large room for these and you might even be able to use your living room if you don't buy too large a mat. 

However, you will need a larger space if you are planning on stocking up your home gym with a range of exercise equipment. 

You will also need a room that is free of breakable items, especially if you're planning on lifting weights or doing a lot of jumping around during your session.

#2: Purchase the equipment you need
If you're focussing on yoga or Pilates, the only piece of equipment you need is a mat. But if you are looking to replicate your local gym, there are various items that you might consider buying. What you buy will depend on what you are trying to achieve, but here is a rough guide. 

• Dumbbells: Good for all muscle groups and improving strength

• Resistance bands: Good for targeting specific muscles

• Kettlebells: Useful for a high-intensity cardio workout

• Ab roller: Excellent for an upper body workout and strengthening core muscles

• Skipping rope: Great for a cardio workout

• Treadmill: Good for working out your lower body

• Exercise bike: Great for building strength in legs and lower body

These are just some of the pieces of equipment you might purchase for your home gym but there are many other items that are worth considering. 

Think about your particular fitness goals and then commit to research online to discover the equipment you need. 

There are all kinds of places where you can buy fitness equipment, including the local fitness stores in your neighborhood and specialist online stores, such as www.ironcompany.com. Shop around and spend according to your budget. 

#3: Prepare your space
The setup of your home gym is very important so don't start exercising until your room is ready. 

As we suggested earlier, you should remove breakable items, as the last thing you want to do is cause damage, such as when you're swinging kettlebells around. 

It's a good idea to add a mirror to your workout space as you will be better able to work on your form if you can see what you are doing. You will also have the opportunity to track your progress, especially if you have a full-body mirror, as you will start to see changes in your body eventually. 

If you are using a lot of heavy equipment, you will need to protect your flooring with specialist gym mats. This will also stop your flooring from getting slippery from sweat drips, and it will shield the noise of your workouts if you are working out upstairs. Gym mats are softly cushioned too, so you will have more comfort when you're doing plyo exercises or other bodyweight workouts. 

To make your workouts more fun, you might want to add a sound system. You don't need a full-blown speaker setup, of course, as a boombox or an Alexa device will do a good enough job of pumping out your workout tunes. 

And finally, consider a small refrigerator, especially if your home gym is located away from your kitchen. You will need to keep yourself hydrated, so having cold bottles of water on standby will do much to hydrate you when you're breaking out a sweat. 

Finally
After setting up your home gym, make sure you put it to good use. Schedule in time each day for your workout and buddy up with friends if you want to exercise with others. Continue to build on your home gym as your budget allows and adapt it according to your various fitness goals. 

You won't need to pay for a gym membership again when your home gym is organized, so consider what you might need to do to accommodate something in your home.