The Fun Fit Blog

Don't Let a Small Space Cramp Your Workout Style

Walking lunges are one of the best leg exercises. But when you think of walking lunges, you probably think of performing this exercise in a large space, such as a commercial gym. And because you are walking all over the gym as you perform the exercise, this is one of the more public exercises at the gym.

But how about performing walking lunges at home? All you need is a set of dumbbells. If you don't have a large area for the exercise, go back and forth 4 or 5 times for each set. So if you did 4 sets, you would walk back and forth a total of 16 to 20 times. And by performing walking lunges at home, you don't have to feel self-conscious about who's watching you work out.

I've already talked about how to perform lunges properly. Click here for a refresher. Don't let a small space cramp your workout style, just get more creative with how you work out.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

Why a Treadmill Should be the Last Piece to Your Home Gym

It seems that everyone who wants to get fit becomes interested in owning a treadmill at some point for their home.  And why not? A treadmill is a great way to quickly burn off a bunch of calories, all in the comfort of your home. However, a really good treadmill that you can run on and own for over a decade, can cost anywhere from $1500 to $6000 or more (US).

That’s a lot of money and if you don’t yet have a home gym, you might consider holding off on a treadmill and spending some money on some strength training equipment for your home gym first. Why? Well, strength training doesn’t burn calories as fast as a treadmill, but it offers a lot of variety and it builds muscle. Variety is very important for any training program. Without variety, you’ll quickly get bored and the risk of abandoning your fitness plan is high. Even if you own a really good treadmill, you’ll still need a fitness plan geared for variety.

Doing a price search on the internet today, I see you could get (shipping included)

Power Cage $299
Bench $149
300 pound Olympic barbell weight set $299
Dumbbell Set 5 to 50 pounds (550 pounds total) $599
Cable Crossover Machine $459

That comes to $1805, which is cheaper than the price of most good treadmills. For another $200, you could have a personal trainer train you at your home gym for 2 to 4 visits. Add a jump rope to your home gym and you have a cardio routine.

So for a little over $2000 you could have a complete strength training gym along with a few personal training sessions or you could own a decent treadmill.

It seems like many people decide to become healthier by buying a treadmill. But that’s all they do. Being healthy involves work, but more importantly, a plan. One machine, even a treadmill, cannot do all. Because your body quickly adjusts to anything you throw at it, you need variety in your workouts.

If your entire fitness plan consists of a treadmill and only a treadmill, try something different. Buy some strength training equipment for your home, join a gym, and hire a trainer. Go to the gym for your cardio and do most of your strength training at home. This way, you get the best of both worlds and it would still be cheaper than buying a really good treadmill.

Have Fun! Be Fit!
“Functional Marc”

Bench Basics For Your Home Gym

Today, I want to go over the basics of a bench. A bench is an essential part of any home gym. Benches are mostly used with weights. You can use a bench with a barbell and a power cage. You can use a bench with dumbbells. Or you could just use a bench for some ab exercises.

There are many options available to you when shopping for a home gym bench. Typically, the best type of bench for a home gym is one that can switch from flat to incline to decline (FID) positions. A FID bench will give you the most versatility. I use the incline position for doing incline chest, back, and tricep exercises. I use the flat position of my bench for one-leg lunges, chest, back, and shoulder exercises. I use the decline position for chest and ab exercises. I don't recommend Olympic weight benches which can hold a barbell in place for you. A plain bench with a power rack is much safer than an Olympic weight bench.

Many benches support add on accessories. Typical bench accessories include:

• Leg Extension/Leg Curl Attachment
• Bicep Curl Attachment For Preacher Curls

One bench manufacturer even offers a lat pull-down cable attachment for their bench. But the leg extension/leg curl attachment will probably give you more bang for your buck compared to any other bench attachment. The more leg exercises you can perform in the your home gym the better. A leg attachment will offer additional variety to the squats and lunges that you perform in your home gym.

Even if you don't plan to buy any bench attachments, you might be better off buying a bench that offers attachments. Who knows, in a year or so after your bench purchase, your needs may change and you may want to upgrade that bench.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

Assembly of a Powertec Power Cage

In a previous post, I mentioned I had ordered the Powertec Fitness Power Cage. Well, after a wait of almost a month and a half, my  Power Cage arrived. Today, I'll share with you my experience assembling this power cage.

It came in 2 boxes, weighing about 267 pounds, via a freight carrier.

The first step was to open the 2 boxes that were in my garage and then move each piece to my basement. All the parts were fairly easy to carry down to my basement.

Because the attachments will only be used after assembly of the frame is complete, I quickly sorted the frame pieces from the attachments pieces.

This cage comes with uniform bolts, washers, and nuts, which makes assembly really easy. However the washers were dripping wet with machine oil. I assume to prevent rusting or aid in assembly? Either way, paper towels were a life saver for assembling the cage. It's a good thing I had some paper towels in the house!

Once I identified all the parts, assembling the base was fairly easy. I used a wrench and a socket wrench.

With the base complete, I started attaching the posts.

With all 4 post assembled, I was halfway through.

With the posts complete, it was time to work on the top part of the frame.

The top part is the trickiest. You have to insert 2 bolts by hand and then slowly insert one of the 4 top pieces in between 2 bolts. This way, the loose bolts hold the piece in place while you're getting your washers, nuts, and wrench to make the attachment permanent. Also on my cage, one of the top plastic caps was inserted the wrong way by the manufacturer. This mistake blocked the bolt from going into one of the top pieces. I used an Allen wrench to pop out the plastic cap and then reinsert it correctly into the metal piece.

With the top frame complete, it was attachment time.

The lat pull-up bar and tricep dip bars are nice touches to this power cage.

Overall, assembly was fairly painless. The Powertec Power cage is very sturdy. After I use it a bit, I'll post a review. You too can assemble your own power cage for your home gym. It's easy.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

Ordering Gym Equipment Through the Internet

Recently, I moved my home gym to my basement.  Because of the new-found space for my basement home gym, I decided to get some additional equipment. I wanted to bypass my local fitness store and order all my new equipment via the internet so I would have a better selection of products to choose from. So today, I will share with you my successes and frustrations with my quest for obtaining home gym equipment through the internet.

First on the list was a power cage. I wanted a reliable power cage that would prevent me from being crushed to death and would give me a good work out. That means I want the following:

• Brand name
• Guaranteed weight limit
• Lat-pull up bar
• Tricep dip bars
• Positive reviews and good reputation

Surprisingly, many power cages are sold on the internet without even telling you who the brand is and the web sites are not specific with the maximum weight load of the rack. Some sites don't mention the rack weight capacity, while others give an "approximation". I usually don't lift with a crazy amount of weight, but I want a power cage that's been tested and is guaranteed for a certain weight, especially when it may be the only thing keeping me from being crushed to death! An approximation isn't good enough for me!

The lat pull-up bar and tricep dip bars are nice extras for my home gym. Some sites offer these bars as "extra" items to purchase, but it's confusing to figure out what accessory matches which rack, because many of these sites still have a web 1.0 design and offer little information.

Out of everything I read on the internet, one power cage stood out for quality, price, and features. It's tested and guaranteed for a 1000 pound weight load and it comes with lat pull-up bar and tricep dip bar standard. It's the Powertec Fitness Power Cage. Do some searches on the net and you'll find this is the most popular power cage on the net. Unfortunately, it's so popular that it's always out of stock. Powertec can't seem to make enough of these racks, ever. Year after year, these things are out of stock. You can order it, but you might wait a month or two or three. Worse yet, most sites don't tell you this, but they gladly take your order while you do the waiting.

Because I have a few gym memberships and I'm not in a rush to get the equipment, I ordered the Powertec Rack. However I have no idea when it will arrive. My best guess is in a month or two.

In addition to the rack, I ordered a leg extension/leg curl attachment for a bench I already own, a 300-pound Olympic barbell weight set, and a barbell plate rack, all from different companies on the internet.

Out of everything I ordered, the only item that wasn't out of stock was the 300-pound Olympic barbell weight set. The weight set arrived by freight shipping less than a week and half after I ordered it.

In a world where you can order almost anything from Amazon and have it arrive two days later, with free shipping, it seems like the majority of on-line fitness stores are years behind companies like Amazon. These fitness store sites have no real-time inventory on the site. After one of my purchases, it took a company a week to figure out that they didn't have the item in stock, plus 2 additional days to figure out that the manufacturer too was out of stock.

Ordering fitness equipment from the internet for your home gym can be more of a frustrating experience than you might expect. Plan anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to receive your gym equipment and don't cancel your gym membership just yet! However, having your home gym the way you want it, is worth the wait.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

Power Cages, Their Role in Your Home Gym

You've probably seen power cages at your local gym. They are typically 4 steel rods connecting from a steel base (on the floor) to a steel top that is 6 feet or more from the base. The primary function of the power cage is to act as a spotter for barbell exercises. Think of a power cage as your insurance policy in case something goes wrong.

When you stand in the cage, there will be 2 adjustable steel bars to the left and right of you. Before you start your exercise, you set these 2 bars to the proper height for your exercise. If you can't handle the weight while in the power cage, maneuver your body in a way so you can safely let go of the weight. The idea is that the weight will fall and be caught by the bars you set on the power cage. This is a great way to avoid being crushed to death by your weights.

Many people like to use the power cages to reach exercise failure. Even if you're not big on exercise failure, something could happen during your exercise causing you to let go of the weight (ie, maybe a tendon or rotator cuff doesn't feel right during the exercise or you get a muscle cramp).

If you workout with heavy barbells and have no spotter in your home gym, you should seriously consider a power cage. It will make your home gym safer and give you the confidence to train with heavy weights.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

 

Evolution of Your Home Gym, How it Can Last Forever

Unless you are very wealthy, with a single purchase, you can't buy equipment for your home gym that would rival that of a commercial gym.

Achieving your perfect home gym takes time. Part of it is the financial cost of a home gym. Part of it may be space limitations. Part of it is not knowing what you need to get the best workout.

But over time, people tend to earn more money, have more space, and become wiser. What worked for a home gym in your 20s might not work in your 30s or 40s.

Here are some tips for people who want to have a home gym to last them for a decade or two:

• Have an overall gym plan, tweak it, and follow it over time
• Stay away from "complete home gyms" with multiple stations - they are generally very expensive for what you get
• Stick with free weights (ie, dumbbells and barbells), they are cheaper and will give you the best results - if you feel uncomfortable with free weights, hire a trainer to show you how to use them
• Buy good quality equipment (new or used), ie, a new $3000 elliptical machine will last you a lot longer than a $600 elliptical machine, cast iron dumbbells will last forever compared to only a few years for the Bowflex SelectTech dumbbells
• For cardio equipment, pick a good brand that offers in home service and repairs, ie Precor
• Hold onto your good equipment forever, ie a $3000 elliptical machine can last you 20 years (about $150/year) while a $600 elliptical might last you only 3 years ($200/year)
• When you have the space, money for new equipment, or opportunity to obtain used equipment, go for it
• If you find something in your gym just isn't working for you, get rid of it and make space for what will work for you

If you want to save money look at online ads where people are getting rid of their equipment. Some of the used equipment may not have been used at all.

Have fun with planning your home gym, it will always be a work in progress, but with the right planning and effort you can create a home gym that can hold it's own against any commercial gym.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

Home Gyms in Basements: The Reality

So you have some fitness equipment in a guest bedroom and decide to move it to your basement and have a "real" home gym. It sounds like a good idea, you'll have a dedicated area in the house, specifically for working out. Today I want to talk about the realities of a home gym in a basement. I'm talking about unfinished basements because that's what most people have.

We like to be in a positive environment at all times. Exercising in a positive environment helps your motivation. Often a basement is anything but a positive environment.  Some home gym issues that many of us don't typically think about for an unfinished basement include:

• Radon Gas: Has the basement been tested? Does the basement need a radon abatement system?
• Lighting: Most basements are dark. Does the basement need extra lighting?
• Flooring: Does the basement need flooring, like Puzzle Tile?
• Gym Entertainment: radio, TV, iPod stereo system, cable TV, or a DVD player
• Electricity: Does the basement have enough outlets for a treadmill, stereo, tv, and other devices?
• Cleaning: Does the basement need to be dejunked to make room for the gym? How will you keep the gym area clean? ie, should you buy a ShopVac?
• Pests: Does the basement have any unwanted pests that need to be eliminated before you put your gym in the basement? How are the pests entering your basement? Can they be stopped?

How motivating is it to workout in dark space that has 50 times the normal radon gas levels, has no electrical outlets for a TV, is full of junk, and has unwanted pests walking along your gym? If you're going to put your home gym in a basement, do some planning first. Know what you will need in order to turn your basement into a positive fitness environment.

A home gym located in a basement can be very beneficial to your health. It's always open and the commute time is zero. Just make sure your home gym is the way you want it to be by planning ahead.

Have Fun, Be Fit!
"Functional Marc"

The Most Overlooked Black Friday Specials

Now that we've all had our Thanksgiving dinner, it's time to focus on fitness again.

One place where you won't see big lines this Black Friday is at your local fitness equipment store. Many of them will be offering special sales and deals this entire weekend. For example, Leisure Fitness is offering free shipping this weekend and Busy Body is offering all sorts of sales this weekend.

If you want to get a new piece of equipment for your home gym, this weekend is a good time.

Have fun, be fit!
"Functional Marc"

A Complete Home Gym for $200 or Less

With just a little money and space, you can create a decent home gym. Here's how you can do it.

First we have to make some budget cuts, So for your cardio, you can walk or run outside, uphill or downhill. When the weather is really bad and you need an indoor cardio routine, an inexpensive jump rope will do the job.

For our strength training, a bench would be nice. You can get an inexpensive one for about $70. But let's say that you don't have enough room for a bench. In that case you can substitute the bench for a burst-resistant stability ball. You can get one that can holds up to 600 pounds for about $27. If the ball becomes punctured, it releases the air slowly, giving you time to safely get off of the ball. With the ball you can even do incline and flat chest presses by changing the angle of your body on the ball. If you're new to stability ball training, start slow with low weights to get the feel of it. You can even do abs on the ball, but you'll probably want to get a mat also for abs. With the remaining $142, you can purchase a weight set or individual dumbbells.

• Jump Rope $11
• Mat $20
• Burst-resistant stability ball that holds up to 600-pound $27
• Weights, ie dumbbell weight set with the remaining $142

You might even check some local ads to try and find some of this stuff used in order to save some money.

Even if you have a gym membership, because of our busy schedules, it's nice to be able to get a workout from home once in a while.

Have fun, be fit!
"Functional Marc"