Garage Gym - In Progress
- Thread starter Shock6050
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Shock6050
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I had considered it and reinstating my CSCS certification to possibly do that, but after thinking about it more it’s be quite the endevour as I’d likely need to get insurance coverage. Also not sure what our wonderful (sarcasm) HOA would think of running a gym business in the garage. So for now it’s just for me and the immediate family.
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Shock6050
VIP
Haha yep I believe it! If going to train others I’d probably need to expand my gym to take over both sides of the garage. Probably add a leg press/hack squat combo, smith machine, and probably a setup to do cable crossovers. Can’t fit anything else big with my current setup but am good with it as I can do almost everything I want to do, though sometimes creativity is needed!
I’m now finally at a weight I want to just maintain or possibly increase a bit with just adding muscle (6ft, 205lbs), which was a huge change as I was just simply fat and out of shape back in January weighing in around 260lbs. Did a major recomp (fortunately I also had a good amount of muscle memory since I was lifting regularly since 16 years old up to just a couple years ago) as you’ve seen and definitely am on track and intend to keep this up long term. So much has improved in my life which includes more activity and “presence” with our kids, better relationship with wife, and just overall better mental clarity and feeling of well-being which affects everything.
I’m now finally at a weight I want to just maintain or possibly increase a bit with just adding muscle (6ft, 205lbs), which was a huge change as I was just simply fat and out of shape back in January weighing in around 260lbs. Did a major recomp (fortunately I also had a good amount of muscle memory since I was lifting regularly since 16 years old up to just a couple years ago) as you’ve seen and definitely am on track and intend to keep this up long term. So much has improved in my life which includes more activity and “presence” with our kids, better relationship with wife, and just overall better mental clarity and feeling of well-being which affects everything.
Shock6050
VIP
This is a good point and something that should be considered if you are thinking about cutting the “commercial gym cord.” Will this option work best for everyone, absolutely not. A lot will depend on your own training goals, your type of exercise programming (e.g, do you use a lot of machines or primarily barbells/dumbbells), whether you like training alone and can remain dedicated without having others around for motivation, along with a lot of other things! For me I’ve been fortunate to create a garage gym where I can perform virtually any exercise I would have been doing in the commercial gym; but in addition, it’s better for me as I can also add various attachments or other accessories that most gyms won’t have. I never did very much machine work so that wasn’t an issue to me, but yeah I’d occasionally use them for accessory work from time to time. Creativity is also a must to make it work especially if you don’t have a huge area available. If I were a competitive bodybuilder or power lifter I would imagine I’d need to reassess if a home gym is adequate. But for me having barbells/dumbbells that have the ability to go heavy enough for progressive overload/failure, a high/low pulley system w/ attachments, plate loaded leg extension/curl machine (really the only “machine I have), adjustable kettlebells, and bands serves my goals and the bonus is I own it all so can sell it at some point (doubt I will anytime soon 
). The biggest benefit for me is time, as I can work out anytime I want (working full time and having 5 young kids limits this A LOT), don’t have to spend time driving to/from a gym, and do not have to wait on equipment to be available.
So ultimately using a home gym isn’t for everyone and yeah you can’t fully replicate everything a large commercial gym has to offer, but works best for me at this current time in my life.
). The biggest benefit for me is time, as I can work out anytime I want (working full time and having 5 young kids limits this A LOT), don’t have to spend time driving to/from a gym, and do not have to wait on equipment to be available.So ultimately using a home gym isn’t for everyone and yeah you can’t fully replicate everything a large commercial gym has to offer, but works best for me at this current time in my life.
DarthSocrates
Well-known member
I hear that. I am a hybrid so for now. I pay $20 a year for 24hr fitness, so I probably will never cancel that, but I built a pretty good setup during Covid, so I use both. I have some back limitations that I can easily work around at a commercial gym that I find it harder to do at home, but it is really nice to not have to deal with the idiocy of a commercial gym sometimes. If there were more hot chicks at my gym though, I would probably go there all the time, but mostly its a sausage fest.
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