Help with home gym setup

[GingeRRRBeef]

I want to set up a home gym in my basement and was wondering if anyone here works at one of the fitness equipment stores here in Calgary that can help me out?

[KRyn]

Check THIS (http://www.ercanada.com/) site out if you are looking to outfit a home gym with some decent equipment.

[lint]

Do you know what you want and are looking for deals? or are you looking for advice on what to include?

here are a couple of good articles on the latter
http://www.t-nation.com/training/build-the-perfect-home-gym
http://www.jimwendler.com/2011/09/chalk-music-and-plates-building-your-home-gym/

[GingeRRRBeef]

I already know what I want to buy and would prefer to buy local.

[sheik_yerbouti]

Originally posted by KRyn
Check THIS (http://www.ercanada.com/) site out if you are looking to outfit a home gym with some decent equipment.

Thanks for the link. I'm thinking of putting a power rack and weights in the basement, and this guy looks good. I would rather use a gym, but we're really lacking in the Bowness/Montgomery area. You would think that Bowness would have some old school dingy gym, but it doesn't.

[fiveowed]

grab some powerblocks too. Worth the money IMO

[taemo]

bought my squat rack and olympic set from Fitness Depot, their warehouse is by the macleod area

[B69]

What are you doing for the flooring?

[CanmoreOrLess]

Just look on Kijiji, there are plenty to choose from, low ball them at 50%:

http://www.kijiji.ca/b-calgary/squat-rack/k0l1700199


PowerBlocks, again low ball:

http://www.kijiji.ca/b-calgary/powerblocks/k0l1700199

[austic]

Originally posted by KRyn
Check THIS (http://www.ercanada.com/) site out if you are looking to outfit a home gym with some decent equipment.

Thanks for this, was looking for a good place to get a new belt :thumbsup: Shipping and prices seem great.

[KRyn]

Originally posted by sheik_yerbouti


Thanks for the link. I'm thinking of putting a power rack and weights in the basement, and this guy looks good. I would rather use a gym, but we're really lacking in the Bowness/Montgomery area. You would think that Bowness would have some old school dingy gym, but it doesn't.



Originally posted by austic


Thanks for this, was looking for a good place to get a new belt :thumbsup: Shipping and prices seem great.


The owner of the company (Mike) is a great guy and is really involved in the powerlifting community. I have bought a few things from him and his service is top notch. If you are looking for a general purpose bar (that you will not be doing olympic lifts with) the Texas Power bar will last you a life time and is great quality / price.

[austic]

Originally posted by KRyn






The owner of the company (Mike) is a great guy and is really involved in the powerlifting community. I have bought a few things from him and his service is top notch. If you are looking for a general purpose bar (that you will not be doing olympic lifts with) the Texas Power bar will last you a life time and is great quality / price.

Belt arrived quickly, quality is spot on.

Added 20lbs to my front squat this morning as I felt so
secure. Overall great experience. :thumbsup:

[Little Dragon]

Any other local stores or online stores that are worth checking out?

Looking to pick up the following:
-power rack
-adjustable bench
-ab/dip/chin up tower
-olympic bar and weights

[403ep3]

Slowly trying to get a home gym together for my basement.

Sucks that my ceiling is only 90" as it limits what I can buy.

Taking a look at fitness depot and I think a basic setup will run about $1.5-2k:

Rack 600-1000
Bench 300
Bar and Weights 300-600
Flooring?

Any suggestions?

[B69]

Have you thought about a TRX? They're perfect for home use.

You can find lots of those rubber mats on kijiji for a decent price.

[taemo]

for heavy weights, I would recommend on getting a couple of horse mats, the rest of my flooring I just bought 4 packs from canadian tire when they were on sale :rofl:

waiting for fitnessdepot to call me for my 50ft 1.5" battling rope

http://s13.postimg.org/pgrn19pw7/photo.jpg

[Dumbass17]

my roommate has powerblocks
i tried them once
absolutely hated them. they were awkward as hell to change weights and i was always paranoid that the 'adjuster thingy' was going to slip out and weights were going to fall and crush me

[403ep3]

Originally posted by taemo
for heavy weights, I would recommend on getting a couple of horse mats, the rest of my flooring I just bought 4 packs from canadian tire when they were on sale :rofl:

waiting for fitnessdepot to call me for my 50ft 1.5" battling rope

http://s13.postimg.org/pgrn19pw7/photo.jpg

How do you like that rack? Is it sturdy enough? Did you go with the iron cage or the more expensive one?

TRX: Not big on TRX although it's probably really good

Tbh I was looking at something like this: http://www.ercanada.com/commercial-power-rack/ but fitnessdepot doesn't sell it and I can't customize it within that price range of $700. I'd prefer to buy in store, but am seriously thinking about ER canada.




Thanks for the suggestions on mats from kijiji and walmart.

The powerblocks are just odd for me although they can save alot of room.

[taemo]

Originally posted by 403ep3


How do you like that rack? Is it sturdy enough? Did you go with the iron cage or the more expensive one?

TRX: Not big on TRX although it's probably really good

Tbh I was looking at something like this: http://www.ercanada.com/commercial-power-rack/ but fitnessdepot doesn't sell it and I can't customize it within that price range of $700. I'd prefer to buy in store, but am seriously thinking about ER canada.


Thanks for the suggestions on mats from kijiji and walmart.

The powerblocks are just odd for me although they can save alot of room.

i bought the cheapest one (http://shop.fitnessdepot.ca/Iron-Factory-Power-Rack-P1477.aspx) as i wasn't planning to go overly heavy on mine, max squat I would do is 225lbs but it is sturdy enough for my need, I can also do pull ups and use it for bench press as well.

the suspension training kit is not a TRX (too cheap for that :rofl: ) and got me these instead (http://www.amazon.ca/WOSS-Military-Trainer-Built--Suspension/dp/B00HHZRA0E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1420584888
) but I don't use it very often as I'm concentrating on a different routine at the moment.

[403ep3]

If I was to grab a package from Bells of Steel or ER Canada there is a difference in pricing?

Is it worth it for the York brand vs BOS?

BOS:

Power Rack $697
Bumper plate package $732 (170kg or 375lb)

ER:

Power Rack $697
Bumper plate package $750 (355lb) York


Also, is it odd if I was to use bumper plates to bench and squat?!

[brucebanner]

403ep3 I think it comes down to preference. I've used bumper plates at a home gym for those exercises before, they take up more bar space. That's the issue you'll run into when you start loading the bar over 315lbs with 45lb plates.

[403ep3]

oh yaeh.. that makes sense. Is there a special bar that I will need to buy then?

It might be awhile till I reach that for bench/squats, but deadlifts will be over that right away.

[brucebanner]

I'm going strictly off memory, but I believe it was a standard length bar and I believe they were rogue bumper plates. I think you could load up 405, after that you would be SOL.

Like I said though, strictly going off memory.

[b_t]

imo for a home gym you only need a full cage squat rack w/height adjustable stops. A good one should have a chinup bar up top and be robust enough you can hang a dip bar off the front of it without it shaking. then get a good bench that can go incline/flat/full upright or close to it for shoulder press and that covers almost everything

stay away from machines in the home, either the machine sucks or you won't have enough room to get good machines for a full body workout

don't skimp on your bar either, make sure the ends can rotate independently from the center piece you grab, and that they fit Olympic bar standard sizes so you can grab cheap secondhand weights off Kijiji

don't buy hex dumbells.

[TYMSMNY]

why not hex dumbbells? I was just going to get a set...

[b_t]

Cuz you need to buy a new set of dumbells every time you go up in weight, or if you want to take a smaller step than the weights you have. Not owning 35s could stall a lift out if you have to try and jump from 30 to 40 instead. Even if you are buying hex weights secondhand they end up getting expensive.

With a good set of handles you can just add or remove weights as you need. If you are doing a lot of dumbell work I'd almost recommend you use a smaller non-Olympic bar so you can use the same weights on your dumbells and barbell.

I find those bars uncomfortable though as they are always trying to rotate out of your hands so I would recommend trying out powerblocks and getting a proper olympic bar with its own plates. I have been using them for years and they are awesome provided you can get along with the funny shape. You can buy them local in Calgary so try them out before you buy hex stuff... one time purchase and you have the equivalent of nine pairs of hex weights and the classic ones like I have are way cheaper now than the used to be.

edit: actually I have the Sport 5.0 set that you can expand later. They replace 16 pairs of dumbells from 2.5 pounds to 50 per hand. Still way cheaper than what I paid for them and they can go up to 130 now

[austic]

Originally posted by bruceod
I'm going strictly off memory, but I believe it was a standard length bar and I believe they were rogue bumper plates. I think you could load up 405, after that you would be SOL.

Like I said though, strictly going off memory.
you can normally squeeze on a couple of 10s if you don't put on the clips :dunno:

[rvd]

Originally posted by Little Dragon
Any other local stores or online stores that are worth checking out?

Looking to pick up the following:
-power rack
-adjustable bench
-ab/dip/chin up tower
-olympic bar and weights


Originally posted by 403ep3
Slowly trying to get a home gym together for my basement.

Sucks that my ceiling is only 90" as it limits what I can buy.

Taking a look at fitness depot and I think a basic setup will run about $1.5-2k:

Rack 600-1000
Bench 300
Bar and Weights 300-600
Flooring?

Any suggestions?

You should both look on kijjiji for power racks.

[ArjayAquino]

OP, any update on what you ended up doing?

I'm seriously thinking about investing in some equipment to put in my basement. Mainly a power rack, a bench, barbell and plates. Nothing fancy.

[lint]

There might be some useful information in this thread http://forums.beyond.ca/st/291635/pimp-my-home-gym-equipment-reviews/

[ArjayAquino]

Originally posted by lint
There might be some useful information in this thread http://forums.beyond.ca/st/291635/pimp-my-home-gym-equipment-reviews/

Thanks, some good ideas in there. I'm going to take a look at fitnessdepot and see what some of my options are locally.

[KRyn]

Originally posted by ArjayAquino


Thanks, some good ideas in there. I'm going to take a look at fitnessdepot and see what some of my options are locally.

What ever you do buy a decent quality bar. It is the single most important piece of equipment if you will benching/squating/deadliftin or performing any olympic lift.

[GingeRRRBeef]

Originally posted by ArjayAquino
OP, any update on what you ended up doing?

I'm seriously thinking about investing in some equipment to put in my basement. Mainly a power rack, a bench, barbell and plates. Nothing fancy.

It's kinda pathetic but I haven't bought anything yet. My requirements are a lot more simple but power rack, lift platform. But the wife wants something more elaborate which increases the costs substantially. I'll update you guys as soon as I do put something together!

[ArjayAquino]

Originally posted by KRyn


What ever you do buy a decent quality bar. It is the single most important piece of equipment if you will benching/squating/deadliftin or performing any olympic lift.

Started doing some research into bars and came across this pretty informative article (http://www.garage-gyms.com/olympic-barbell-review-shopping-guide/). I've been working out for awhile and I have to say, I never paid much attention to the bars. I just took it for granted when I went to gym. I'll definitely be looking into getting one of the quality ones.

[403ep3]

Originally posted by ArjayAquino


Started doing some research into bars and came across this pretty informative article (http://www.garage-gyms.com/olympic-barbell-review-shopping-guide/). I've been working out for awhile and I have to say, I never paid much attention to the bars. I just took it for granted when I went to gym. I'll definitely be looking into getting one of the quality ones.

I took a look at FitnessDepot and you're better off taking a look at ErCanada or Bellsofsteel. Both are pretty much local and seem like they have good quality equipment. My setup will cost me about 2k so I am currently saving my pennies for a couple more weeks.

[ArjayAquino]

Originally posted by 403ep3


I took a look at FitnessDepot and you're better off taking a look at ErCanada or Bellsofsteel. Both are pretty much local and seem like they have good quality equipment. My setup will cost me about 2k so I am currently saving my pennies for a couple more weeks.

Thanks, I'll take a look at those sites.

[ArjayAquino]

I think I will give these guys a call Perfect Surfaces (http://www.perfectsurfaces.ca/Gator-Floor-~-Rolled.cfm) for gym flooring. Looks like pretty fair pricing. Probably going with 3/8" thickness. Not sure how much difference there is between natural and black though.

[lint]

anyone still looking for equipment?

[403ep3]

After lots of procrastination and gaining of weight I have finally purchased a home gym setup from ERcanada. Spoke with both Mike and Kaevon at bells of steel and was able to work something out with them to purchase from one of them.

All in all looking at damages of a bit under 2400$. Will look at grabbing more weight once I exceed my 445lbs ordered :

Both Mike and Kaevon are extremely helpful and reply quickly.

[ArjayAquino]

Forgot to post pics. I finished setting mine up at the end of Feb.

https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/10313949_10153216813863754_1298209465722546245_n.jpg?oh=62e6368196eb92cb766bcb8f4d87534d&oe=5695A871
https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/11083908_10153216813968754_3646475420359166698_n.jpg?oh=cc421fa93b7043b891269b2c515f35ea&oe=56621EE4

obligatory dog pic
https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xta1/v/t1.0-9/11081057_10153216813873754_4298545154753755010_n.jpg?oh=79fe032cd23562105ed3a3405fe34121&oe=56A50B38

The power rack and barbell are from fitness depot. The long mats are from perfect surfaces and the square thick mats are from treadall. Bumper plates were from the treadmill factory, the bench from amazon.

Spent just over 1500 bucks.

[403ep3]

How much did flooring cost you? I might need like half of what you have

[ArjayAquino]

Originally posted by 403ep3
How much did flooring cost you? I might need like half of what you have

The thick mats were 56.95 each if you buy at least 5. Here's the kijiji link KIJIJI (http://www.kijiji.ca/v-sport-other/calgary/4-x-6-x-3-4-horse-mats/1088058931?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true)

If i remember correctly the long thin mats from perfect surfaces was 200. Thick mats are worth it IMO, they are heavy and awkward as hell to carry tho haha

[98type_r]

Did you have any issues with outgassing on the mats? I bought a couple from UFA several years back and the rubber smell was really strong to the point where it was overpowering.

[ArjayAquino]

Originally posted by 98type_r
Did you have any issues with outgassing on the mats? I bought a couple from UFA several years back and the rubber smell was really strong to the point where it was overpowering.

actually the ones I got I don't notice the smell on them now. If i remember correctly, I could smell the rubber for only a few days then it wasn't noticeable after... I also had a bunch of friends in my basement a week after I put them there and no one complained about the smell.

[Cody D]

Originally posted by b_t
stay away from machines in the home, either the machine sucks or you won't have enough room to get good machines for a full body workout

I really like my machine setup, I have a power rack as well but I like having the machine for mixing up my workouts. The one thing I will probably add that you mentioned was a set of power block dumbbells, I've never used them though so I'll have to find a set to try to see if I like the feel.

http://i.imgur.com/dbgEAiO.jpg

[maxout]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Cody D
[B]

I really like my machine setup, I have a power rack as well but I like having the machine for mixing up my workouts. The one thing I will probably add that you mentioned was a set of power block dumbbells, I've never used them though so I'll have to find a set to try to see if I like the feel.

Hey Cody, thats a pretty sweet power rack. Where is a good place to shop for a power rack?

I think I would be able to do more on a rack then just machines.

TIA

[Cody D]

Originally posted by maxout
Hey Cody, thats a pretty sweet power rack. Where is a good place to shop for a power rack?

I think I would be able to do more on a rack then just machines.

TIA

Thanks, I went around looking at the different power rack models until I found one I liked. I bought mine from Fitness Depot, it's made by Northern Lights.

You can customize it and buy the accessories that you want: http://shop.fitnessdepot.ca/Custom-High-Intensity-Training-CrossBox-P1331.aspx

I am going to move my setup into a bedroom so it will be a little bit tighter but I can then close a door and not have the kids playing video games right beside me.

The other thing that has changed a lot in my workout is I am starting to avoid barbell bench press, replacing it with dumbbell press as it seems to be easier on my bad wrist, that's why I want the power block.