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 Congratulations on your commitment to strength training, which scientific research continues to show produces a wealth of benefits for individuals of any age. Home gyms provide a convenient, safe and effective way to exercise.
With the abundance of information on exercises and the numerous varieties of home fitness equipment, it can be overwhelming to determine what best suits your needs.
When evaluating home gyms, consider the following tips:
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Where to shop: Visit specialty fitness retail stores, where the selection of quality equipment is greater and the staff is professionally trained to demonstrate the machines and help you carefully evaluate each to find the ultimate match. It's unlikely that you'll see the same variety and high quality of home gyms and receive this type of personal attention at larger, general interest stores that carry fitness equipment.
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Who will use the gym: Be aware of who will be using the home gym and their personal goals so that the product is suitable for the individual goals of every user.
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Space available: Measure the space you have, including the ceiling height, to ensure that you can accommodate the gyms you're evaluating. Be sure to take into consideration the "user or live area space" which is the space required to actually use the machine.
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Test each machine: Wear your workout clothes and try a variety of different exercises on the machine to experience the feel of the machine, the ease of adjustments as well as any options available.
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Feel: With a home gym, movements should be solid and smooth (as opposed to jerky, catching or sticking) and should feel natural, in directions that your body moves comfortably. You should feel the exercise in the muscle/s that it is targeting, and you shouldn't feel pain. You should feel comfortable when positioned to use the product.
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Adjustability: Ensure that the gym has adequate range of weight and manageable resistance increments to challenge each user, and test various positions to confirm that adjustments are easily made and enable the gym to custom fit different size exercisers. Make sure moving from one exercise to another does not require plugging things in and out or attaching / detaching cables which wastes time, leads to frustration and diminishes your enthusiasm to use the product on a consistent basis (which is the biggest factor in achieving the results you are looking for).
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Solid construction: Quality home gyms should be stable and solid, without wobbling, loose bolts or squeaky parts. A frame that is built with 11-gauge steel that is at least 2"x3" in diameter and powder-coated with paint generally are extremely durable.
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Pads: Polyurethane, molded pads or contoured pads on the seats and press arms are most comfortable and resist cracking and tearing.
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Bearings, cables and pulleys: Oil-impregnated brass bearings reduce wear and tear. Fiberglass reinforced nylon pulleys with sealed grade A ball bearings or linear bearings and coated aircraft cables tested to at least a tensile strength of 2,000 pounds should endure rigorous use.
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Accessories/options: Tools like ankle or abdominal straps, straight bars, lat bars, and different length D-handle straps can add versatility and the ability to perform more exercises - all of which contribute extra motivation, more consistent usage and greater effectiveness.
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Safety: Premium home gyms encase their weight stacks and or working parts with a metal shroud to minimize pinching of fingers or catching clothes. Adjustment pins on seats and press arms should be snug and secure to prevent slippage. Weight stack pins should lock in the stack to prevent falling out during movements. |
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