Body Fitness and Health Tips

For many years, if you wanted to start a strength training regimen, you only had two real choices. One is to buy free weights and dumbbells and workout at home, or you could get a monthly membership a fitness gym and get access to their weight machines. But today there are more options open to the fitness conscious consumer, and there are plenty of choices in the home gym equipment field to consider. So if you are in the market for a home gym here are some of the things that you should be looking for.

Generally, most home gym equipment falls into two major categories, the first being home gyms that use rods or bars to create resistance, and the second being strength training machines that use a weight stack or plates. The biggest difference in these two will be the price that you pay for them, and the second difference is the amount of space that each one takes up in your home.

The first kind of home gym equipment often can be folded up and takes up very little space in the room. However many experts claim that the workouts with this kind of equipment are not as thorough or complete as the more expensive weight training machines which usually take up a lot more room space. But whichever type of equipment you choose, keep these considerations in mind:

Consider the size of the room where you will be placing the equipment first. If space is a major consideration, then it may best to go with a unit that folds up and out of the way.

The assembly of any home gym equipment can be difficult at best, so if you are not used to assembling this kind of product you may want to pay extra to have someone put it together for you. Just be sure to include the assembly cost in your overall budget.

Make sure that any home gym you buy is made of solid and durable materials. The frame itself needs to be made of heavy steel, and be very strong and sturdy even when supporting the maximum weight. The cables that are used to connect to each weight stack should be especially strong and made of quality material too.

Most people will need a weight stack of around at least 200 lbs. to be able to make the most use of the equipment. If more than one person plans on working out at the same time on your equipment, you might even consider getting a second weight stack in that case.

Finally, never buy any home gym equipment without testing it personally beforehand. Regardless of whether you buy your home gym online or not, you need to go through a complete workout on it to make sure that it will fit you best. If you do, and you follow the guidelines listed above, you should be able to find the best home gym equipment for your needs.



By: Jim Johnson

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Exercise is an activity many of us want to or mean to do but do not get around to, due to lack of time, self-defeating negativity or just plain laziness. But all is not lost — solution is at hand if you invest in a good home gym.

The most important thing when buying a home gym is for you to first decide on your workout goals and requirements. There are different training methods for the various areas of your body, such as for your legs, calves, shoulders, chest, arms, back or abs etc. Some people exercise for overall fitness while others prefer to focus on toning and strengthening specific areas of their body. Depending on your focus and requirements your home gym equipment may be as simple as comprising of only barbells, weight-plates and racks, to more complex multi home gyms.

Simple home gym equipments such as power racks are suitable mainly for simple weight training exercises but they lack versatility. Multi home gyms allow variety in your fitness regimen. A good home gym lets you perform many types of exercises from bench press and leg curls to sit-ups and butterfly.

Another thing to consider is that home gyms are usually used by more than one user in the household, so it is more cost effective to purchase one that best meets all the users’ requirements. It is more practical if the home gym provides more than one workstation with two or more weight stacks so that more than one user can workout at the same time.

Home gym equipments nowadays include frames, cables, pulleys and weight-plates. To ensure you purchase a good quality home gym, check that the frames are made of rustproof steel, and test the cables for strength and durability. It should have a good combination of weight-plates to suit different needs. The bench should be adjustable for perfect body positioning for different exercises. Also check whether the individual components come with a lifetime warranty.

Home gym costs can range from $350 to more than $3,500 depending on the complexities of your home gym equipment. You could also buy your home gym equipment in parts, and some brands even offer options for various additions. Buying home gyms can be mind-boggling so it is recommended that you go read up on home gym reviews by health and fitness experts to learn about the pros and cons of different home gym brands available on the market.



By: Susan Jan

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Weider home gyms are some of the most popular home gyms on the market. How do they measure up against other home gyms on the market? Here’s a quick overview of Weider home gyms to help you decide if one is right for you.

Weider makes both weight stack home gyms and crossbar (or crossbow) home gyms (these are similar to the Bowflex Power Rod gyms).

Weider is a subsidiary of ICON Health and Fitness, one of the largest producers of fitness equipment in the world. Icon also manufactures brands like Proform, Golds Gym, Free Motion, Nordic Track, Epic and Reebok.

Most Weider home gyms use bendable bars (crossbow or crossbars) to create resistance.

The advantage to this (vs. using a weight stack with pulleys) is a more affordable, space efficient home gym that still gives you a wide variety of exercises to work your entire body including abs, back, legs and arms.

Weider has several crossbow home gym models, the most popular are the:

Weider Platinum – Offers resistance of up to 340 lbs. and 75 exercises

Weider Advantage – Offers resistance of up to 240 lbs (upgradable to 440 pounds) and 65 exercises

Weider Max – Offers resistance of up to 240 lbs. and 65 exercises

Another unique feature found on the Weider Platinum (and Platinum Plus) model is the Digital Resistance Control. This means you can change your resistance with the touch of a button – there are no manual adjustments needed.

Advantages of Weider home gyms are that they are space efficient, more affordable than weight stack gyms, and can give you an overall total body workout. They offer lots of exercises (65+) to work your major muscle groups. They can also be a viable (and more affordable) alternative to the more expensive Bowflex Power Rod home gyms.

It’s also important to note that while the warranties on the machines themselves tend to be short, there is a lifetime warranty on the crossbars.

Disadvantages to Weider machines are that, for the most part, these are economy machines (especially the Weider Max and Weider Crossbow Advantage).

They are not built with the same high degree of construction as other home gym brands and as such may not hold up over the long run as well as other brands.

Also, some people do not like the type of resistance that the Crossbow models give you, claiming that a weight stack machine with pulleys, give you a better range of motion and a more sophisticated type of resistance.

Because of this, a Weider Crossbow home gym might not be the best choice if your goal is to get ‘ripped’ or ‘huge’. (You might want to consider free weights or a leverage home gym for that).

A Crossbow home gym would be more suitable for toning and strengthening your muscles.

Bottom Line:

If you’re on a tight budget but still want a decent home gym that will give you a wide range of exercises to work your entire body, Weider home gyms give you good value.

They’re affordable, space efficient and can be more lightweight than a standard home gym. The Weider Advantage and the Weider Max have fairly positive user reviews behind them and they give you a large range of exercises, making these models a good value for the money.

The disadvantage is that these are economy gyms. They may not hold up as well over the long term as other gym brands – a fact seen in generally shorter warranties.

However, considering what you get for the price tag, most Weider home gyms – especially the Crossbow models – offer good value.



By: Kathryn Oneill

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I am a twenty-four years old graphic artist. I used to have a problem about my weight because my job does not really require me to exercise. In fact, my hands, brain, and eyes are my most active body organs when I work. Being a graphic artist, I sit down a lot. I reached a point when I became overweight at 220 lbs. At first, I did not care about my weight. After all, there were many other people around me who were heavier. I got teased by my friends and my family because of my weight. I also felt that my weight hindered me from doing the things I wanted to do. I easily got tired when at one point I tried playing basketball with my friends.

I also got depressed because I was not getting more attention from the ladies. That is why I decided to take action. I started going to the gym to work out. At first, I did not want to. I felt that those who go to the gym are just plain vain. I was proven wrong because there many people in the gym that come from different walks of life. They also have different reasons why they go to the gym. Not everyone went there to get ripped muscles. In the first three months, I dropped 40 lbs by undergoing intense workout. I was happy with the result but I knew that it was not enough. I had to continue with exercising and working out. Going to the gym, however, was getting in the way of my work. My friend told me that instead of going to the gym regularly, I could come up with my own home gym.

I started buying dumbbells and barbells. They were the cheapest. These home gym equipment helped me strengthen and build my biceps and triceps. They also developed my shoulders. The next home gym equipment that I got was the bench. This equipment assisted in my weight training program. My home gym was slowly filling up but I knew that I had to get other materials. I got a simple treadmill for my home gym as opposed to the more specialized ones in the gym. I then purchased a bicycle. These machines improved my cardiovascular endurance.

I hade to give importance to my heart as well after a long time of not caring about the things I eat, especially the ones rich in fat. These machines also help me sweat a lot. They were instrumental to my weight loss. That is why I enjoy using them. They are tedious to use, but I reap the rewards of having them in my home gym. I am a believer of the adage, “no pain, no gain.” Coming up with a home gym is very practical. While you may spend more buying your own home gym equipment than what you are already spending in your gym membership fee, you save on a lot of things.

You have these equipment to yourself, contrary to the setup in the gym where you have to share the equipment to other users. With this in mind, you are also responsible for these equipment and how long they will last. Finally, you save time. With a home gym, you do not need to go to other places to work out and exercise. You can work out even if you are busy with your work.



By: Lampangnao Mak

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Most homeowners are known for decorating and changing the look of their home. If there’s an area in their home that they thing needs a change, they immediately consult their home magazines, HGTV, and go to Lowe’s or Home Depot for color swatches. The area to be changed is inconsequential; it is the change itself that matters to the homeowner. With many people putting home gyms in their homes it is no wonder that some are beginning to redecorate these areas as well.

With redecorating your home gym you want to first remember what the room is used for. A home gym is a room used for working your body out and burning fat. This area is intended for weight loss and should look like a gym room. With these tips in mind, decorating your home gym should make the room look better, add to the appearance and make the room look like a home gym.

Perhaps more so than other rooms, redecorating your home gym may require you to use your imagination a bit more. This project could be hard for you if the gym in your house isn’t your favorite room in the house. If you are not an active person or just don’t use your home gym, discovering ways to improve the room may not really interest you at all, at least not as much as decorating your kitchen would.

One area that may give you a little difficulty is choosing a theme for your home gym. It’s not exactly a room to paint gold but it’s a room that’s needs some texture. Decorating your home gym should bring energy and life into the room. The easiest way to accomplish this is with the use of bright colors and lots lights.

When it comes to adding accessories to your home gym room again you have to focus on what the room is used for and stay away from white walls and pretty flowers. Of course mirrors and clocks are always a good addition to a home gym as the mirror forces you to look at yourself and enables you to see areas you need to work on and a clock will help keep you focused on your rest times. Another smart thing to add would be a nice stereo system so you can listen to motivating music while you work out. This is another nice thing about having a gym at home, you can crank up the music you want to listen to and you don’t have to wear headphones.



By: Gregg Hall

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