Got the green light to build a small garage gym!

[boingyman]

Wife decided it would be better for us to have a gym at home (in the garage) due to our busy lives. I'm not trying to create a super high-end home gym. Just the essentials so I can lift some weights and do some squats, bench, deads, overhead presses, etc.

Looking for some suggestions or tips on the following categories.

Squat Rack
-Was initially thinking about getting one of those space efficient racks that can be stored against the walls, but I think a basic power rack should work out fine.
-Thinking about getting this below
https://www.titan.fitness/cages-and-racks/x-2-series/x-2-racks/x-2-series-short-power-rack.html
-Should be more than enough for me and being a manlet I can still do overhead preses without hitting the top.
-Any reason why I shouldn't get this ?


Flooring/Platform
-Main concern is keeping the foundation safe.
-Plan to bolt the squat rack to the platform
-Heaviest thing I'll be doing is deadlifts. No cleans/jerks
-I know many people recommned 2 layers of ply wood and stall mats for a good budget setup
-Thinking about either 8x6 or 12x6 setup.
-What would be enough thickness of plywood to keep the floor safe and prevent the platform to be wobbly that is not overkill?

Bar
-Any recommendations that's not too expensive?
-Ideally Rogue Ohio Power bar would do the trick, but prefer to spend less.
-I see some suggesting this below, but not sure if it's better to just buy once and spend on the Rogue bar
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006R4EOXM/ref=emc_b_5_t

Dumbbells
-Plan to get the powerblock elites that can go from 5-90#. I'm ok with not being able to do heavy dumbbell work if I do get stronger again and if I wanted to I still have gym options that I can go near work and 24-hour fitness.

Free Weights
-Plan to slowly build up. Maybe get used or find deals. Initially would like to have 45s x2 pairs, 35s, 25s, 10s, 5s, 2.5s
-Any places with good deals for plates?

That is basically it to start. Plan to get a treadmill per wife request.

 

[Oblivian]

I have two rugs and a small paneling layer under one horse stall mat. I have not had any issues with that and it muffles the sound a bit.

Also, my guess is that you'll be doing overhead presses outside of the rack, so I wouldn't worry about the rack height.

 

[MilkManUK]

I don't have a garage gym, but I do have a basic home gym setup in my back garden for the past 3 years which I absolutely love. Nothing better than going straight into the garden, getting my lifts done without having to wait for anyone else, having some coffee on the go and some tunes. I'm out there in all weather conditions - neighbours probably think I'm nuts, but I'm not hurting anyone.

As far as equipment, this is what I have, nothing is high end but has done me fine to date:

Bar is from strengthshop, and was used when I bought it for around £79. The exact one is no longer available, but it's very similar to this:

https://www.strengthshop.co.uk/weights-bars/olympic-bar.html

Bench was also from Strength Shop and was a factory second version of this but is absolutely fine and I think I paid £50 for it, if not less:


https://www.strengthshop.co.uk/equipment/benches/deluxe-utility-bench.html

I use squat stands which are adjustable so are used for bench too these were £80:

https://www.mirafit.co.uk/mirafit-a...MIlPjBt5vS3gIVCJ3tCh3J0wvzEAQYASABEgLFU_D_BwE

I also have a trapbar which was around £80 I think (gift my my mother).

I found the weights themselves were the most expensive items, could rarely get any on offer, and second hand over here seemed to be the same price as new. I have just over 200kg of plates with the smallest being 1.25kg.

I have a set of adjustable dumbbells and that's my setup.

Very basic but does the job and I'm happy with it.

Keep an eye out for sales / bargains and build up over time, is my advice.

I definitely don't regret any of my purchases, and feel I have got my money's worth already.

 

[Prokofievian]

I would treat myself to a nice bar, and save money elsewhere. Whatever rack you get I think it would be good to get one stable enough to mount a set of dip bars on.

 

[Davem10]

What's the budget for the actual build ? Not the equipment .

You can buy ready made "sheds" specifically designed to be used as gym for a few thousand gbp

 

[boingyman]

I have two rugs and a small paneling layer under one horse stall mat. I have not had any issues with that and it muffles the sound a bit.

Also, my guess is that you'll be doing overhead presses outside of the rack, so I wouldn't worry about the rack height.

Thanks. I was thinking about putting an outdoor rug/carpet down first, then the plywood and top it off with either a stall mat or pay a little more for some other 3/4" 4x6 rubber mat. Does your stall mat smell?

I would treat myself to a nice bar, and save money elsewhere. Whatever rack you get I think it would be good to get one stable enough to mount a set of dip bars on.

Yeah I'm thinking about just spending a little more on a bar. I know a lot of powerliftes in the area so I may ask around if people have extra they don't use. I think the titan squat rack is good enough for my needs as long as everything lines up perfectly and it's sturdy I am happy. I'm so weak now I won't be using any significant weight in a long time and have no plans to train like I use to. I just want to exercise consistently again and hopefully build some of my strength up.

 

[boingyman]

What's the budget for the actual build ? Not the equipment .

You can buy ready made "sheds" specifically designed to be used as gym for a few thousand gbp

Initially I don't want to spend more than about $2000-2500 including a treadmill that will cost about $600. Trying to be cheap, especially since it's nothing serious. My competitive powerlifting days are over for now. Shed would be nice, but that wouldn't fly with my wife and I'm guessing that would take a nice chunk of my backyard. I actually have a lot of front yard that I wish sometimes could be part of my backyard. It would almost double the size of my backyard, lol.... We considered using our downstairs guestroom, but we prefer to keep that as a guestroom since we will have one of her nephews occupying another spare room upstairs for 4 years while he's in college.

 

[Phlog]

I've been working out in my garage for years, it's the best.

Recommendations:

Power rack with high+low cable machine, it covers nearly everything you want to do then.

Wood, I have a few planks that I can use to raise weights off floor which also protects it.

Mirrors, don't skimp, they're great.

Weights don't vary much in price. Unless you go 1" and get them off clearances. Don't do that, go Olympic all the way from the start and save buying twice.

Don't forget bands, slam ball, jump platforms etc, it's the little things.

 

[Prokofievian]

Yeah I'm thinking about just spending a little more on a bar. I know a lot of powerliftes in the area so I may ask around if people have extra they don't use. I think the titan squat rack is good enough for my needs as long as everything lines up perfectly and it's sturdy I am happy. I'm so weak now I won't be using any significant weight in a long time and have no plans to train like I use to. I just want to exercise consistently again and hopefully build some of my strength up.

So long as it's sturdy, a rack is a rack is a rack. Olympic weightlifting gyms around the world are filled with wonky, flimsy, no name racks and they workd just fine. On the other hand, you will be touching your barbell for literally thousands of hours if you train consistently for years. The knurling should at least be nice.

 

[RDL81]

I have my garage covered in Horse mats they are really thick and have cable in them so tough really do the job. I assume you can get these deadlift deadners in the US

https://www.strengthshop.co.uk/deadlift-deadener-500.html

might be an idea if going heavy at some point and want to reduce the noise.

 

[boingyman]

I've been working out in my garage for years, it's the best.

Recommendations:

Power rack with high+low cable machine, it covers nearly everything you want to do then.

Wood, I have a few planks that I can use to raise weights off floor which also protects it.

Mirrors, don't skimp, they're great.

Weights don't vary much in price. Unless you go 1" and get them off clearances. Don't do that, go Olympic all the way from the start and save buying twice.

Don't forget bands, slam ball, jump platforms etc, it's the little things.

-I know a lot of racks can attach add on cable machines. Might be a good idea to add on eventually

-Yes I plan on building some raised platforms to do block pulls. I don't trust the uprights on the rack and don't want to damage my bar. Would be perfect for deficit deads too.

-I don't care about mirrors, but when we decide to renovate our bathrooms I can install those giant mirrors in the garage.

-Yes need to figure out where I can get decent weights. I might post on my FB and ask friends. When I competed I trained with a lot of powerlifters in Norcal and one of them even opened a gym recently. I might get hooked up with a whole bunch of stuff, lol. I also know guys at powerlifting gyms around the area such as Supertraining and Old School Iron so I may check if they sell stuff.

-Yes, I definitely want to build up the small stuff too. My bands are over a decade old so I probably need new ones. Maybe get some chains, battle ropes, med balls, etc. I have so much old shit everywhere, even squat suits, bench shirts, knee wraps, wrist wraps, etc that I probably will never use. Not sure if I should just toss all the suits/shirts since if I ever do compete again it will be raw.

 

[Oblivian]

Thanks. I was thinking about putting an outdoor rug/carpet down first, then the plywood and top it off with either a stall mat or pay a little more for some other 3/4" 4x6 rubber mat. Does your stall mat smell?

I use the 3/4" 4x6 horse stall mats. They do not smell at all. Maybe they smelled a bit like rubber when I first bought? I can't remember. I've had them around 10 years now and have not had to replace.

 

[Prokofievian]

While we're in here posting our dream weight sets:

 

[boingyman]

I use the 3/4" 4x6 horse stall mats. They do not smell at all. Maybe they smelled a bit like rubber when I first bought? I can't remember. I've had them around 10 years now and have not had to replace.

Do you have anything under the stall mats for added protection? The only reason why I ant to keep the flooring area as minimal height as possible is because we will still use one side (and likely even overlapping the other half of the garage slightly once we get our 7 seater SUV) of the garage to park our car. I just don't want it to be too much of a tripping hazzard for my 2 young kids and wife by having a platform over 2" thick unless I could taper all sides like a ramp.

 

[Oblivian]

Do you have anything under the stall mats for added protection? The only reason why I ant to keep the flooring area as minimal height as possible is because we will still use one side (and likely even overlapping the other half of the garage slightly once we get our 7 seater SUV) of the garage to park our car. I just don't want it to be too much of a tripping hazzard for my 2 young kids and wife by having a platform over 2" thick unless I could taper all sides like a ramp.

I'm the one with two rugs and a layer of paneling. It's basically one rug, a layer of paneling (thinner than plywood), another rug, and then the horse stall mats. I have two mats that are 4' x 6' laid side by side creating a 8' x 6' area. I have kids running around in my garage all of the time, and they do fine with it. Video below shows what it's like.

 

[boingyman]

I'm the one with two rugs and a layer of paneling. It's basically one rug, a layer of paneling (thinner than plywood), another rug, and then the horse stall mats. I have two mats that are 4' x 6' laid side by side creating a 8' x 6' area. I have kids running around in my garage all of the time, and they do fine with it. Video below shows what it's like.

I missed that, way too tired today, but nice setup! Do you have the rack bolted down through the stall mats into the paneling? So far in my head I"m thinking to do a 12' x 6' area. I may consider your way or do a rug with 2 layers of plywood, followed by 3 4x6 stall mats. I just want to make sure I have enough plywood to secure down the rack. I may keep it about 2" thick.

I'm not sure if I'm wasting money or not, but is there any difference between buying 4x6 horse stall mats vs 4x6 rubber mats from online stores such as rubberflooringinc or amazon? I am also wonder if I should just keep the mats outside under my covered backyard patio for a week or two to air out a little.

 

[Oblivian]

I missed that, way too tired today, but nice setup! Do you have the rack bolted down through the stall mats into the paneling? So far in my head I"m thinking to do a 12' x 6' area. I may consider your way or do a rug with 2 layers of plywood, followed by 3 4x6 stall mats. I just want to make sure I have enough plywood to secure down the rack. I may keep it about 2" thick.

I'm not sure if I'm wasting money or not, but is there any difference between buying 4x6 horse stall mats vs 4x6 rubber mats from online stores such as rubberflooringinc or amazon? I am also wonder if I should just keep the mats outside under my covered backyard patio for a week or two to air out a little.

Actually, my rack just sits on it. It doesn't need bolted. I move it from the mats when I deadlift. The rack does not budge much at all even when reracking.

As for flooring, the horse stall mats are easy to get where I'm at. They are heavy and hard to move. I'd be skeptical of how heavy and durable other flooring is, but I guess I'm ignorant on those. Other floor gym things like puzzle mats at major sporting good stores aren't even in the same ballpark as horse stall mats.

In my opinion, people overthink the home gyms. Mine obviously isn't the nicest setup, but it didn't take much time or money at all and it gets the job done.

 

[ThunderL1ps]

I'd buy what I could second hand.

 

[MilkManUK]

In my opinion, people overthink the home gyms. Mine obviously isn't the nicest setup, but it didn't take much time or money at all and it gets the job done.

Quote for truth.

 

[Nuffnuff]

I spent about 2 grand second hand from memory
Cage, proper mats, adjustable bench, ezycurl and bench bars both olympic, plates, small weight tree.
Cage had pec deck and cable pull down plus the front corners had cable rows as well
Just kinda built it up myself, got about 90% of the set up in one buy, then added another bench more plates etc as I went