How to Build Your Home Gym on a Budget

Having a home Gym will save you tons of money in the long run but it does take some money up front to get it going.

Starting your home gym does not have to break the bank either.  There are some great hacks we have either created or found over time that help you a bunch to start.

Without up-front money, you have to prioritize what equipment to begin with and how you are going to obtain it.

Craigslist is a great starting point for all equipment because there are some good deals out there.

It’s very important to make sure you purchase quality brands which include:

  • OneFitWonder
  • Bomba
  • Vaughn (high quality)
  • Rogue

It’s also very important to make sure it’s in good condition.  Even good brands can be ruined.

  • Roll all barbells to make sure they are straight
  • Avoid rusty metal equipment
  • All soft material items like med-ball and ab-mat should be highly discounted because it’s tough to tell the wear and tear.

How to Prioritize

This is completely based off needs to complete WODs and not cost.  We will include all cost effective solutions.

TIER 1

  1. Create a Work-out Space
  2. Olympic Weightlifting Bar + Weights
  3. Pull-up Bar
  4. Kettlebell

TIER 2

  1. Jump Rope
  2. Gymnastic Rings
  3. Plyometric Box
  4. Medicine Ball
  5. Abmat
  6. Weight Bench
  7. Row Machine
  8. Glute Ham Developer

Create a Work-out Space

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  • 10ft x 10ft space minimum.  Make it close to where you can hang a pull-up bar and get outside to run easily without running through a nice area.  You just need room to move around.
  • Get rid of all cable machines, elliptical machines, total home gym machines.  These aren’t perform functional exercises, which are the basis for WOD at Home’s programming.  Sell them to make money and clear room, a win-win.
  • You want as flat of a surface as possible on which to lift.  Garage floors, concrete patios, hard ground, etc. are the best.  To upgrade your space, you can place 1/4” rubber mats down to make for a comfortable place to work-out. Don’t buy expensive mats marketed for exercise as they are way over-priced. Go to your nearest horse feed and tack store to get horse mats, they are much cheaper.
  • High ceilings.  The higher the better.  Depending on how tall you are, you can probably get away with 8′ ceiling, but you need room to hold a barbell over your head with bumper plates on it without hitting the ceiling.

Olympic Weightlifting Bar and Weights

This is an expensive cost but is  important to be able to do all of the olympic lifts. Think of it as 2 1/2 months membership fee at a Crossfit gym. Craigslist is a great place to find these at a good discount but it is time-consuming sifting through the trash.

Packages

OneFitWonder Weightlifting Technique Set ($199) – This set is made specifically for those unable to perform the correct technique with the 55-65lbs using a regular bar and 10lb plates.  These bounce and are the same height off the ground as other plates.
FRINGE Bar + Black Bumper Sets ($469-$949)
FRINGE Bar + Color Bumper Sets ($529-$1,119)
Vaughn Bar + Bumper Sets ($949-$1,229) 5yr warrantee on plates, lifetime on barbell

Just Bar

Trainer

OneFitWonder 15lb Training Bar ($129)

Womens (15kg=33.0693lbs)

Bomba Bar V2 – 15KG Womens – Black ($219)
Vaughn 15kg Olympic Barbell ($399)
Wonder Woman Bar – 15kg Women’s Olympic Barbell  ($189)

Mens (20kg=44.0925lbs)

Bomba Bar V2 – Black 20kg ($255)
Vaughn 20kg Olympic Barbell ($399)
Wonder Bar Olympic Bar 20KG ($199)
Bomba Bar – 20kg Oly Bar ($255)

Plates

Vaughn Competition Plates (KG)
OFW Color Bumpers (Pairs)

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Pull-up Bar

There are ways to make stand alone pull-up bars like this but I wouldn’t recommend it.  You give up too much in terms of quality for not enough of a discount.

We highly recommend one that’s part of a Power Cage or is anchored from a joist in the ceiling.  When you find the joist in the ceiling first drill a 2×4 to it and then connect your pull-up bar.  This further secures the bar for when you are kipping, etc.

OneFitWonder Ceiling/Wall Pullup Bar System $99
Kip Cage Power Cage $649
Bomba Wall Mount Garage Rig $599
OFW Squat + Pullup Rack $429

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Kettlebell

OneFitWonder Premium Kettlebells ($25-$189)

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Jump Rope

Momentum Elite Speed Ropes $39

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Gymnastic Rings

Bomba Wood Gymnastic Rings $65
OFW Black Gymnastic Rings $45

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Plyometric Box (Beginner=16″x20″x24″  Advanced=20″x24″x30″)

Building your own Plyo boxes is a good way to save some money and you can find out how to do that here.

Flat Pack Multi-Sided Boxes $115
Multi-Sided Plyo Boxes $145
Plyometric Boxes (Singles) $89-$119
Plyometric Box Sets SOLD OUT

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Medicine Ball – 10lb=Beginner, 16lb=Intermediate, 20lb=Advanced

OneFitWonder Medicine Balls V2 $49-$59

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Abmat

Abmat – Abdominal Trainer $35

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Weight Bench

Hopefully you can find one of these for cheap on Craigslist, if not you can find one with FringeSport.

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Row Machine

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Glute Ham Developer

OFW Glute Ham Developer GHD $399
OneFitWonder Commercial GHD $549

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 It’s difficult to give over-arching recommendations for equipment because everyone has different gym limitations.  Please send me an e-mail at wodathome@gmail.com with any specific gym questions.
More Resources:
http://library.crossfit.com/free/pdf/cfjissue1_Sep02.pdf.  Keep in mind this was written with the CrossFit affiliate in mind, so like the workouts, scale down the principles to be put to use in your home gym or garage gym.

See Coach Aly’s WOD at Home Gym

WAH Gym PicMonkey Collage

See Coach Kyle’s WOD at Home Gym

Garage Gym - KL