A Guide for Building Your Own Gym in Any Area of Your Home

Want to set up a home gym but don’t know where to get started? Follow this guide to help you find the right products for your own gym setup at home. Whether you have a large, medium, or small space to work with, you can set up an effective workout area that will keep you feeling energized and strong!

Preliminary Planning

Before you start looking for the equipment to build your own home gym, answer the following questions:

• What are your fitness goals? Someone training for a marathon will likely need different equipment than someone training for a bodybuilding competition. Or if you are just building a gym so you can exercise and feel good for everyday life, consider what equipment you will enjoy using so you stay motivated. Like to run? A treadmill is probably the way to go. Like to ride? An exercise bike is a great option. Like to hike? A Max Trainer is a great fit.
• What is your budget? Make sure you know your spending limits and plan your equipment needs around that. Whatever the size of your budget though, you can get a great workout done.
• How much space do you have? Find a space that will be dedicated to your fitness area (be it the corner of your bedroom or a full three-car garage) and take measurements. The last thing you want is to find out that your dream gym setup doesn’t fit into the space you wanted to use!

Planning Out Your Spaces

Each space will take a little different configuration of equipment, depending on the size of the space, to make your gym feel like a place you want to be (and keep around). Here are some equipment options for small, medium, and large sized spaces:

Smaller Spaces

• If you are really pressed for space, a kettlebell might be your best option. BowFlex 840 Kettlebells are great for combining cardio and strength training at the same time. Using the space of one kettlebell, it’s really six kettlebells in one. The weight ranges from 8 pounds to 40 pounds.
• Is cardio more your style? A C6 Bike is JRNY, Zwift, and Peloton app-compatible and the Max Trainer M6 is an elliptical with 16 levels of resistance. Both products only take up a corner of your room.

Medium Spaces

If you have the room, you might want to pick one cardio machine to complement your strength training equipment. The best workouts combine aerobic with anaerobic exercises.

Cardio Suggestions:

• BowFlex Bikes are JRNY, Peloton and Zwift-app compatible and can quench your need for cycling. They all come with a free trial JRNY subscription for new members that gives you on-demand, trainer-led workouts and Explore the World workouts that let you ride in places all over the world.
• The Max Trainer M9 elliptical allows for high-intensity, low-impact workouts. It includes a free trial JRNY subscription for new members and 10" console.
• The BowFlex Treadmill 10 has a built-in 10" console with a free trial JRNY subscription for new members included that allows you to customize your workouts with on-demand workouts and Explore the World workouts that will take you on guided runs of over 200 locations.

Strength Training:

• Adjustable Dumbbells range from 5 to 52 to pounds or 10 to 90 pounds and increase the weight in small increments using an easy-to-use dial system. These dumbbells don't take up the same amount of space as a traditional wall rack would, which helps them fit just about anywhere. They also come with a free trial JRNY subscription for new members where you can follow along with on-demand videos to make your workout routines super simple.
• An adjustable Bench is a must for weight training so you can target large muscle groups from different angles, whether you are using bodyweight, dumbbells, or barbells.
• The BowFlex Xtreme 2 SE offers 210 lbs. of resistance and lets you switch quickly between exercises because no cable adjustments are required. You can upgrade the resistance up to 410 lbs. if needed, and there are various accessories to increase the variety in your workouts.

Larger Spaces

If you have a large space, your home gym can include multiple cardio machines as well as the full array of weights and equipment mentioned above, plus the suggestions below. The more exercise tools available, the easier it is to stay challenged, energized, and engaged.

Cardio Suggestions:

• The BowFlex Treadmill 22 has a built-in 22" console with a free trial JRNY subscription for new members included.
• The VeloCore Bike brings a leaning motion into your exercise bike workouts, which simulates the feel of riding a bike outdoors. It has a built-in console in two sizes plus a free trial JRNY subscription for new members included.
• The Max Total 16 is similar to the M9 in that it offers high-intensity, low-impact workouts. The Max Total 16, however, also offers 20 resistance levels and a 16" interactive console. This elliptical will grow with your fitness improvement, so you are always challenged.

Strength Training:

• The SelectTech 2080 Barbells allow you to take advantage of barbell exercises with a smaller footprint than what would be needed for a barbell system with a full set of weight plates. It can be great to pair with dumbbells to increase the variety of exercises you can do. Just like the SelectTech Dumbbells, they are compatible with JRNY on-demand videos and come with a free trial JRNY subscription for new members.
• The BowFlex Revolution offers 220 lbs. of resistance, which can be increased to 300 lbs. (600 lbs. when you do leg presses) with over 100 exercises and 400 variations for the complete home gym experience.

Creating a home gym is worth the effort. You can use it alone, or if you're like me, your whole family can make use of it. Gyms at home make exercise more convenient and are an affordable alternative to gym memberships that can be expensive or add up over time.