A lot of people are looking for alternative ways to perform their exercises. While a bodyweight workout can be used as a substitute for heavy weightlifting, it’s not desirable for everyone.
Those folks will most likely be interested in how to build a home gym for cheap, while still reaping most of the rewards of a professional athletic facility. This way, they can still get their usual weight and cardio-based training sessions conveniently.
The biggest benefits are:
- Budget-friendly
- Always open
- Equipment is always available
- Privacy
- Time efficient
If you’re interested, this is how to build a home gym for cheap.
Advantages of a home gym
Budget-friendly
It’s a relatively small investment in the grand scheme of things.
If you’re planning on training for years, then an investment of €500-€1000 is nothing compared to years of gym membership that you would normally be paying. Which can add up surprisingly fast!
It’s indeed a considerable investment if we’re only looking at it from a short-term perspective. But over a prolonged time, the investment is an absolute no-brainer.
Always open
One of the largest advantages of a home gym is that it’s open 24/7. You probably wish your favorite bar had this as its opening sign. (Unfortunately, most don’t.)
Being able to choose when you train is a big advantage. No more looking at opening and closing times, since you’re capable of working out when it suits your schedule. That’s a particular advantage for those of us who live busy lives.
Equipment is always available
If you go to a public gym, you have to take into consideration that other people will also be using the equipment you need as well. This means the equipment you require may be occupied by others, which means you’ll have to wait until they’re done.
It also saves you the trouble of having to interact with this special kind of people who are constantly curling in the squat rack.
Privacy
You can do what you want since you don’t have to behave according to the rules and norms that society deems appropriate. We don’t have to regard other individuals when we’re exercising on our own.
Yell, scream, and put the music you like as hard as you want. Even the simple thing of being able to decide what kind of music you decide to blast through your speakers is pretty neat too!
Time efficient
Working out on your own is very time-efficient. Normally, you would have to drive to the gym, take a shower, change clothes, and probably speak to the other people who are training there at the same time as you.
You don’t have to do all those things when having the convenience of training at home. You won’t have to waste time that you could’ve spent exercising.
Disadvantages of a home gym
Investment
One of the biggest liabilities of making a home gym is the considerable financial investment you have to make.
If you’re not sure that you’re going to keep working out for at least a couple of years, then €500-€1000 is a substantial investment.
If you’re uncertain that you want to train for a considerable amount of time, I recommend paying for a gym membership for a few months. This way, you can see for yourself whether you like it or not, and if you can keep yourself motivated to keep going to the gym.
If you notice that you’re motivated enough to train on your own, and to stay disciplined, then you can still build a home gym afterward.
Limited equipment
No matter how you put it, you won’t be able to match all the training equipment that a paid gym membership has to offer. That’s part of what makes working out away from home enticing, and beneficial in a way.
However, you can train almost any body part with only the most basic equipment. The only downside is if you’re a highly trained athlete, or very competitive. If you are looking into specific or very advanced bodybuilding, then exercising in a gym might be better suited for you.
No social pressure to get you going
Some people rely on peer pressure to drag them to the gym.
If this is the case, and you can’t carry the sole responsibility and discipline of going to the gym on your own, then I would not recommend a home gym. That’s because you’ll never keep at it if you’re not regimented enough.
If you’re dependent on social pressure to get you going to the gym, then you’re better off going for a paid membership instead of building a home gym.
Distractions at home
Computers, TVs, video games, our spouse, and family, … There are simply a lot of distractions at home that we seemingly can’t get rid of. Sure, you can throw away the television and video games, but there’s always going to be something more interesting to do than exert yourself at home.
That’s exactly why you need to make it a habit of making sure your workout time is spent solely on exercising. Otherwise, you won’t get any quality training done. I don’t look at my phone when I’m exercising because I want to make my workout as effective, and efficient as possible.
No other people around
While this is personally an advantage for me, I can see why some people dislike being on their own when exercising.
A lot of us enjoy going to an open gym to interact and socialize with those around us in between exercising. But when you’ve built a training facility at home, you’re kind of “forced” to train there regularly to make up for the time and hard-earned money you’ve invested.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Do home gyms work?
Home gyms most certainly work!
Just because you have less equipment available at home doesn’t mean you can’t get a good workout in, nor does it convey that you’re going to make fewer gains or improvements.
Sometimes less is more, and we should always go for quality over quantity. This holds for the amount of equipment and exercise selection as well.
They’re a very convenient, time-efficient tool to exercise. That is if you’re dedicated and motivated enough to train on your own.
Is building a home gym worth it?
Whether building a home gym is worth it or not depends on what you’re seeking, what your needs are, how long you’re going to continue training, and if you’re disciplined enough to convince yourself to exercise on your own.
I consider it to be worth it if you’re regimented enough, are looking to train for a couple of years, and if you don’t mind have less equipment available to you.
I wouldn’t recommend it if you rely on social pressure to get going, want to interact with others, and don’t know whether you want to work out for multiple years before quitting. If that’s the case, then it might not be something that’s suited to your goals and demands.
Is a home gym better than a regular gym?
If a home gym is better than a regular gym depends on how you measure “better”.
Technically speaking, you have less equipment available at home, which doesn’t allow you to train as comprehensively as you could at a public gym. This is peculiarly detrimental if you’re training very specifically, or looking to compete at a high level.
But it is better in the sense that it’s time-efficient, convenient, always open, and budget-friendly if you’re going to continue training for years.
In short, it’s not the case of one being better than the other, and it will depend on your individual goals and wants to determine which one is more advantageous to you.
Conclusion
The reasons listed above should be enough to convince you to build a gym if it’s up your alley.
Of course, building your home gym is not for everybody since there are some essential downsides to it as well. The investment, limited pieces of equipment and possible distractions are some of them.
If you’re unsure of whether you’re going to keep training on your own, or if you need somebody else to get you going to the gym, then training at home might not be for you. That’s why you should consider your options carefully, and need to figure out if you’re disciplined enough to be persistent.
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