What to Consider when Designing your Home Fitness Room

Guest Blogger #477, Entry #1105, April 18, 2012

So, in honor of getting your body into good summertime condition, you’ve had a “Let’s face it” discussion with yourself and admitted that joining a gym or running on a track is not really your kind of thing; that you and your body would benefit far greater by working out of your own home gym. The thing is, you’re not really sure of all that goes into fitness room design being that the last time you even thought about exercising was basically the last time you were at the gym…months ago.

Don’t sweat it. Before you get to making plans and purchases, take out a moment to check out these simple dos and donts of fitness room design.

The do’s and don’ts of designing a home gym

Image via: Rachel Olsen

DO

Use a room that has a lot of space to work with. If you’re really going to be taking the workout thing seriously, there needs to be plenty of space to put equipment and to also move around freely.

DON’T

Attempt to use the workout room for something other than exercising. For instance, a home gym/guest room or a home office/fitness room doesn’t tend to work every well. Not just because it looks pretty tacky, but also it can put some of your prized possessions into jeopardy. Just think about it, do you really want your dumbbells on a shelf around your computer or your treadmill sharing space with your crystal collection? Basically, unless it’s your basement or a massive bonus room, make sure that your home gym has a space all to itself.

DO

Make sure the flooring is right. If you want to go the carpet route, just make sure to keep in mind that if you use a lot of heavy weights, it could ruin it over time. Hardwood floors are not advisable because unless you buy the faux kind, your equipment can cause a lot of scratches and nicks. However, with whatever it is that you decide to do, make sure to purchase a few floor gym mats for the exercises that require you being low to the ground. They’re good for both protection and traction.

DON’T

Pick a place that doesn’t get good ventilation, where you can’t easily adjust the temperature or that is soundproof. That last one may seem odd, but if you live with other people, someone needs to be able to hear you should you inadvertently injure yourself. Some people like soundproofing a fitness room for the sake of listening to loud music, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Besides, there are always headphones if you want your music to be on full blast.

Make sure the benefits outweigh the challenges in your home gym

Image via: Esquire Apartment

DO

Decorate in a way that will inspire you. After all, there’s no point in going into a room that you hate to do something that might not necessarily be your favorite activity to do to begin with or you’re not always in the mood for. If you’re going to be devoting an hour (give or take a few minutes) per day to exercise, you should be happy about the surroundings. Paint the room in your favorite color. Put up a few mirrors to check your progress and to make the space appear even larger (it doesn’t hurt to do a bit of research on some smooth fitness sales and deals too). Bring in a television if that will help you to pass the time and make sure to have a good music system packed with a big collection of some of your favorite artists.

DON’T

purchase equipment that either you’re not going to use or isn’t versatile. Sometimes, we’ll be up late at night watching infomercials and we’ll find ourselves tempted to get something that we know we’re not going to use just because it looks cool. That’s a waste of time, money and space. If you like to spin, get a stationary bike. If you are actually going to use a treadmill, then yes, make the purchase. But if you’re more of a “video-watching and following” kind of person, then get some free weights, an exercise ball and a Zumba DVD, instead. Remember, creating a fitness room is not so much about how it looks as catering it to your personal preference in relationship to the purpose that it serves.

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