Home Gym what should I get?

[cooper10]

So here is the deal I am looking at getting some weight lifting equipment like Squat rack or Cage along with Bars and plates maybe some kettle balls so I can do some weight lifting at home. Where is a good place to get the equipment at a reasonable price is the stuff at dicks going to be decent quality or should I look elsewhere. what are good brands or brands I should stay away from.

 

[ianpadron]

Either go all out and get some ROGUE stuff or buy a used rack from a secondhand gym warehouse. ROGUE makes a kickass cage and rack system designed for garages that swing into the wall. That with a nice all around barbell, 400 pounds of iron plates, and a rack of dumbbells/kettlebells and there isn't much you can't do.

Send pics when you get things all set up!

 

[Felix40]

If you are doing any oly lifting I would stay away from the barbells at dicks. They are probably just fine if you never drop the bar but there is a considerable difference between the bars they sell and quality bars. Think savage axis vs Remington sendero. They both work good but the experience is better with one. I actually found a rogue bar on eBay for a little over $100. Kettlebells from dicks should be just fine. If you plan on buying a rack you would probably be fine with one from dicks. It's fairly easy to build one if that's what you want too. I ordered my bumper plates from rogue directly. If you get a set of like 200# or more then you can get free shipping. At least that's what I found a few years ago. You can always use steel plates as your small plates to add 5-50# to the bar so it's better to have big bumpers than small bumpers. If I could do it over again I would probably get two pair of 45s and two pair of 25s then use steel plates to fine tune your loads.

 

[afteamroper]

This a great starter set up, you can add weights and KBs latter but this will get you a lot of the basics to start with.

Rep Fitness Home Gym Equipment Package

 

[robie]

We went through this recently and I've picked up several GetRXed pieces of equipment. Mainly because I'm in Houston and can just drive over and pick it up. That being said I've liked it and would recommend it.

 

[RockyMtnHigh]

Check out Titan Fitness. They have a squat rack similar to Rogues that folds flat against the wall. I think they are around $250, and they always have a deal going on where you can get 5-10% off. Their prices are great and everything I have gotten from them is holding up great. I also agree with not going with a Dick's barbell, that is the one piece of equipment you don't want to fail, and for another $100 you can get a good barbell that will last significantly longer, especially if you are looking to do any olympic lifting.

As far as bumper plates and even barbells, I would keep an eye out on craigslist. I picked up 550 lbs of rogue and Umax bumpers and two barbells for $450. Lots of people who think the home gym idea is great, but they end up never using it and can't wait to get rid of all the stuff taking up space in their garage.

 

[BigDog00]

I got my rack from Rep fitness in Colorado. I was able to pick it up and save on shipping. Speaking of shipping...it will kill you. Fitness gear is heavy and you will pay for it. If you want to keep the cost down scour craigslist for everything. Depending on your market it could be hit or miss. The CAP OB-86B is a great entree level bar. If (when) I do it again I will be going with and Elite FTS rack. They make some of the best equipment out there. It can get addicting just like everything else.

 

[Dameon]

Well, I guess I'll be odd man out. I got a Marcy Pro leverage system from Dicks. I have it set up in my guest bedroom with 300 lbs of plates and every accessory I could find. I honestly really like it. I can squat and bench as much weight as I want without having to worry about a spotter or hurting myself unless I drop a plate on my foot. You get what you pay for, but I think it was a great $400 option for something easy to use at home that is almost the same as free weights.


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[Ironman8]

Lots of good suggestions here so I'll just add to it with my experience. First, I wouldn't buy anything from dick's, from what I've seen it's all cheap quality at a price point that is set too high. Second, if you want good pricing on lightly used premium equipment, then Craigslist is absolutely the way to go. Always someone selling off their home gym equipment. Also keep your eye out for Crossfit gyms closing doors too, might be able to score some awesome stuff for pennies on the dollar. If you've got the budget for it, just go with Rogue or another quality brand.

Here's some items I would be looking for...

If you just want to do general compound lifts such as squats, deadlift, ect. get:
-Barbell (doesn't have to be top of the line for general lifting)
-Squat Rack (I prefer a Yoke for strong man stuff)
-Steel plates (no need for bumpers if you're not doing Crossfit or Oly lifts)
-Rubber mats (only a couple for when/if you do deadlifts)
-Pull-up bar (either built in to your squat rack or stand alone)
-Kettle bells or Dumbbells (at least a couple different sizes)

If you want to do Crossfit-type and oly workouts get:
-Barbell (higher quality that spins freely)
-Squat Rack (I prefer a Yoke for strong man stuff)
-Bumpers & Steel plates (as said above, large bumpers and supplement with smaller plates)
-Rubber mats (space big enough for Oly lifts and CF stuff)
-Pull-up bar (either built in to your squat rack or stand alone)
-Kettle bells (at least a couple different sizes)
-Plyo Box (you can make this yourself pretty easy)
-Wall ball and Target (buy wall ball, make target)
-Jumprope (speed rope such as what Rogue sells)
-Row machine and/or Airdyne (if it's in your budget)
-Bands (for warmup and mobility)

Some extra stuff you could add if you wanted:
-Sandbags (look at Strongfit's version, it's the best and priced well IMO)
-Sled (for pulls and drags)
-Slam Balls or Stones (carries and cleans)

 

[LongWayAround]

I would buy a power rack and a dead-squat bar from biotest.

 

[Brightwhite]

I just built a home gym and after shopping around and looking at all kinds of equipment, I went with the fitness gear pro half rack and the adjustable bench rack from Dicks. Both have been solid and I am very happy with them for what I do.

Spend the money on a commercial quality treadmill and a concept 2 rower...those you don't want to skimp on.

 

[jkra410]

I wrote a post about my home gym journey here that you may find useful.

See Building the Garage Gym - MISSION: Capable.

Fully support Rogue as others have said. Bombproof. Don't skimp on cash for certain items. Good barbell is a lifetime purchase for example. Kettlebells too.

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[sveltri]

Rep Fitness has served me well, you can accomplish a lot with just a few kb's, dry bag/sand bag, and rings or a bar. I guess it really depends on what your fitness goals are.

 

[BigDog00]

One thing to consider on "cheaper" racks is their weight limitations. From what I remember the stuff you can buy at Dicks, etc. are not rated very high and I was worried about maxing the rack out. My rep fitness rack is rated for 1000 lbs. I will never even come close to that rating but I at least have confidence that its not going to fall apart if I bail out of a heavy squat or rack pull. I typically workout alone and with nobody home so it would really suck if something like that happened.

Something to keep in mind.

 

[D_Eightch]

I know I'm late to the party but if you're still looking check out PRX. They have stuff that's great for garage gyms.

 

[Trr15]

I also recommend checking out Rogue fitness. High quality stuff, but addictive. They've gotten a lot of my $ over the past two years.

 

[Clarktar]

Check out prfitness. I have gotten a good deal of my stuff from them. Rogue is nice but too expensive for me.

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[swanny]

I picked up my squat rack late November including bar and plates from Fringe sport. My only regret is getting the squat stand rather than a cage. I feel like storage options on the cage plus stability with pull ups, etc is better on a cage. Free shipping and they had gear in stock, which was a big consideration. Solid reviews also.

If you want to REALLY go down the rabbit hole, check out Garage Gym Reviews on YouTube or IG.

 

[LJ Buck]

I have the Rouge set up and it is worth the money. Love it. Pm me if you UA e any questions specific to it.

 

[LostArra]

I picked up my squat rack late November including bar and plates from Fringe sport. My only regret is getting the squat stand rather than a cage. I feel like storage options on the cage plus stability with pull ups, etc is better on a cage. Free shipping and they had gear in stock, which was a big consideration. Solid reviews also.

If you want to REALLY go down the rabbit hole, check out Garage Gym Reviews on YouTube or IG.

Pardon the interruption. I've already shared this with swanny but if your rack needs more plate storage, a couple of long 5/8" bolts with lock nuts will hold two 45s (iron) and provide a lot of stability if you are not bolting your rack to the floor or a platform

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