Personal fitness rooms are becoming more and more common in new home projects. With the focus on health and fitness in today’s world–where things like fast food reign supreme–we are seeing people working towards healthier living.
Not everyone wants to go the gym, though. With winter temperatures in Winnipeg reaching -40 degrees Celsius, there are many reasons individuals would rather work out at home than leave the house and go to the gym. A personal fitness room is an excellent way to tackle this.
Where to Start
First of all, find a room in your home you can dedicate solely to fitness. This room should be away from major distractions and be large enough to eventually fit some equipment. If you’re in the process of building a new home, you can work with your builder to incorporate a fitness room in your house plans.
Using your basement is likely one of the best options. With the concrete floor, you don’t risk any structural damage to your home from the weight of the equipment.
Lighting is also very important and will do wonders to motivate you when it’s dark out. Make sure your future workout room has windows, or at the very least, lots of warm lighting.
Prepping the Space
Once you’ve decided on the room it’s time to get it ready. There are a few key elements to any fitness room to consider:
- Flooring – To make ab workouts more comfortable and to make sure your equipment doesn’t ruin the finished flooring, consider installing some rubber mats or rubber flooring.
- Mirrors – A key element to workouts is form. Making sure you’re lifting equally on both sides and ensuring you have correct posture will guarantee a healthy body over time. Floor to ceiling mirrors are what the pros use, however they are not necessary. Consider what style of mirrors would be best for your space. For some great ideas on where to find the right mirrors, visit this link.
- Music – Anyone who works out regularly knows music motivates. Listening to your favourite music during a workout can get the adrenaline pumping and sometimes be the key to getting to that next level. Having an iPhone dock or Bluetooth speaker is a great starter. Installing a custom sound system can really make an impact.
Filling the Space
Now that your room is ready, it’s time to get your equipment in. Unless you have the budget for it, you don’t need to fully stock the room with all of the latest machines and tools. If you are new to working out, it pays dividends to start small and acquire machines over time as your workouts evolve. For those who prefer yoga, running, jogging, etc, sometimes less is more. Having less clutter around your activities can be great for concentration (especially if you’re working on a new pose).
Weight Lifting
Starting with a set of free weights, a jump rope and a foam mat are a great way to start tackling your fitness goals. The free weights allow for focused workouts of your arms, shoulders and more; the jump rope provides you with cardiovascular exercise and the mat is for doing abdominal workouts.
Once you’ve worked out with these tools for some time, ask yourself what is missing from your workout. A great second step is a bench press machine with additional capabilities. There are many multi-exercise machines out there and as you notice certain elements missing form your workouts, you can add them your space. Putting in some lockers or a closet is another great way to bring out the gym feel in your fitness room. You can store your workout clothes in there, and if you invite friends over to work out, so can they.
Yoga & Other Activities
Setting up a space for yoga revolves around the vibe you want to achieve. If you are looking for a serene quiet space for meditation and yoga, setting up a space with warm lighting might be best. This is a place where you want to escape the rush of daily life and feel calm, so gentle music is another great idea, in addition to soft surfaces. Consider covering the floor with thicker carpet or layers of softer material. Mirrors are also a good idea to ensure your poses are proper.
Some people like yoga as a way to energize and start the day. A bright space with lots of natural light is a great place to start. Adding in music and some mirrors are great final touches in a space like this.
If you find yourself walking, jogging or running more often than lifting weights or doing yoga, setting up your own running room is easy. Using equipment such as treadmills, an elliptical or stair-climbers are the best ways to get in a good long cardio workout when the weather is poor.
Some other things to consider are whether or not you want to have a sink in the room, a water cooler, or maybe even your own water fountain. Lots of people enjoy watching television while they work out, though there is some debate around whether it is more of a distraction than a motivator. If you think you’ll be distracted, perhaps skip the TV and stick to music.