How To Transform Your Garage Into A Killer Home Gym
If there’s one thing that most people find difficult about exercising, it’s the inconvenience of driving to the gym. You can avoid that with a garage gym in your own home.
Whether before work, after work, or on the weekends, getting to and from the gym can eat up precious time and limit the length of your workout.
But what if you had a gym in your garage? How would this change things?
The Perks Of Having A Garage Gym
Home gyms have always been popular and, most recently, you’ll find that thousands of people are leveraging the versatility of their garages to build out impressive home gyms.
Some of the benefits of garage gyms include:
Convenience
If you’re pressed for time – and who isn’t these days? – a home gym is the ultimate form of fitness convenience. This is especially true for people who work from home or stay at home with children.
Space
A typical two-car garage provides all of the room you could possibly need for a small home gym. And with ceilings that are typically much higher than basement ceilings (the other logical place for a home gym), you’ll find it easier to do things like overhead presses.
Indoor/Outdoor
With a garage, you can enjoy the elements when it’s pleasant outside and close the door when it’s too hot or too cold.
Socialization
When you do decide to open up the garage door, a home gym gives you the chance to socialize with neighbors and meet people as they walk by.
This helps offset some of the isolation that comes with no longer being a member of a traditional gym.
4 Tips For The Perfect Garage Gym
There are plenty of benefits of having a garage gym, but there are also some challenges to overcome.
In order to design and maintain the perfect garage gym, you’ll want to keep the following in mind:
1. Clear Out Space
If you’re like most people, your garage is currently filled with stuff, or it’s being used to park your vehicles. If the former, you’ll need to go through your items and figure out what can be trashed, donated, sold, and/or recycled.
Anything that’s left over will need to find a new home (perhaps in a shed or in storage bins stored on shelves above the garage door).
In terms of vehicles, a simple carport kit can be used to protect your cars without needing to use the garage for parking.
2. Prioritize Equipment
For the majority of people, building out a home gym comes with very specific budget limitations. If you don’t have tens of thousands of dollars to spend, you’ll need to be selective in the equipment you purchase.
“More equipment can be added gradually, and, with constant effort, assembling a complete gym in your garage in a short amount of time is possible,” Paul Montes writes for Fringe Sports. “Initially though, the equipment options are limited as much by what you want to accomplish as by what you can afford.”
3. Use Vertical Storage
Floor space is valuable in a garage gym. The last thing you want is to feel like you’re constantly maneuvering around items to avoid tripping over dumbbells and jump ropes.
The best way to keep the floor clear and to simultaneously maintain a functional gym space is to utilize vertical storage systems that let you organize items up the wall and across the ceiling.
Just make sure everything you need is within reach!
4. Insulate Your Garage Door
For people in climates with weather extremes during the summer or winter months, working out in a garage can be a miserable experience. Unless you have an insulated garage door, that is!
By insulating your garage door, you can keep heat in during the winter and heat out during the summer.
Combined with a space heater or window AC unit and a quality thick rubber flooring, you can carefully control the temperature in your gym!
Keep It Safe
Perhaps the biggest challenge with building a home gym in your garage is that it can be vulnerable to outside threats – such as burglary, vandalism, or even weather.
Make sure you have a plan for securing your garage and keeping unwanted elements outside.
In addition to having a good lock on your door, it may also be helpful to place a motion-based alarm system and/or security camera inside. If nothing else, this will provide peace of mind.
Anyway, you’ll only benefit from a garage gym – you’ll improve your overall health, get more time to spend with your family, and save money on gas and gym memberships.
