Top 5 Home Gym Essentials in 2020

Resistant Bands, a home gym essentials in 2020

Let’s face it:

We all took the pilates or traditional gym for granted when we had access to it, and it feels like a huge privilege now.

These days, most of us are confined to our homes. Some luckier individuals might even have the option to do some exercise in the local park.

But is there anything we can do about all of this?

One option is to spend thousands of dollars and transform the garage into a home gym. But, since most of us are on a tight budget and we don’t have the space to fit an entire gym at home, we have to improvise on equipment for a home gym.

The good news is, all we need are several pieces of equipment for our quarantine home gym space.

Below, we’ll go over the home gym essentials, what they are, what benefits they offer, and how we can use them effectively.

1. Sliders / Gliders

Sliders / Gliders can be put on the feet to allow you to move your knees forward into a crunch motion (abs)

Sliders might seem a bit gimmicky at first, but girl, are they such a fantastic workout. The reason why most people have a love/hate relationship with sliders is that they genuinely push us to our limits. Storing sliders is a breeze making this a low impact item for your home gym.

Doing exercises with sliding disks is always incredibly challenging, but you will feel accomplished and fulfilled once you’re done.

The reason we’ve put sliders on the number one spot on our list is that they offer incredible versatility and are relatively cheap. You can do dozens of different exercises with them, train your entire body (especially your core), and put a spin on tried-and-true movements. Some examples include:

• Mountain climbers

• Body saw (a plank variation)

• Knee tucks

• Leg curls

What’s more, sliders push us to our limits because we have to work hard to stay balanced and prevent ourselves from sliding all over the room. This itself strengthens the entire body, improves our balance, makes us more endurant, and leads to better intermuscular coordination. Sliders are a home gym must in our opinion.

2. Resistance Bands

If you’re partial to weight training but can’t afford to get an entire set of bars, weights, and stands, then resistance bands are a fantastic alternative. Bands made it on our number 2 item for the home gym because they are, super effective, cheap and easy to store. You don’t have to break the bank, and you can stash them in your drawer.

Second, bands are quite versatile, and you can do numerous exercises with them.

Some examples include:

• Bicep curls

• Tricep extensions

• Squats

• Lunges
  
  
  
  

And, if you get yourself a resistance band door anchor, you can also do:

• Chest flyers

• Lat pulldowns

• Leg curls

Talk about a one stop shop home gym workout!

3. An Exercise Mat

Exercise mats come in all size, colors and patterns, find one that speaks to you

We don’t want to be doing exercises on a cold and hard floor, so we need something to lie on – this is where an exercise mat comes in. Sure, we can exercise directly on the floor of our home gym, but that’s not particularly pleasant, and it doesn’t deliver any benefit. When people say, “Feel the burn.” they’re not referring to home gym carpet burns. 

What’s more, mats offer cushion for the spine and back, especially on exercises we do while lying down, including leg raises, some yoga poses, and Pilates moves.

If you feel pain in your spine, tailbone, or upper back, you might stop the exercise (or workout) before you’ve challenged your muscles enough.

Having a mat is also beneficial for keeping you from sliding all over the place as you do an exercise. 

4. Foam Roller

Foam Rollers is an essential home gym item in 2020

Foam rollers are used as a form of self-myofascial release (self-massage, if you will), and some research seems to suggest that they can be beneficial.

For one, foam rolling seems to alleviate muscle tightness and pain-points. So, if you tend to have those, then investing in a foam roller is a fantastic idea. 

What’s more, foam rollers seem to improve range of motion. In studies, people who foam roll for five to ten minutes before training reliably increase their range of motion and get to train more safely.

Foam rolling after a workout also seems to be beneficial and can improve our mobility just as effectively.

5. A Jump Rope

Purchasing a quality jump rope won’t break the bank

Jumping rope is a fun, challenging, and useful activity you can do to get fit. For one, jumping rope is a great way to have a fun cardio workout, burn a lot of calories, and improve your conditioning.

The jump rope is also great for improving intermuscular coordination, balance, and stability.

Plus, you can jump rope in many ways, depending on your goals, schedule, and preferences. 

For example, you can have some less intense jump rope sessions where you focus on getting in the zone for a long time. You can also have more intense sessions where you do short bursts of intense hopping, followed by periods of rest.

And the best part is, getting a quality jump rope won’t break the bank and you can take it with you on the road or for exercise outside.

This concludes our 5 Home Gym Must-Have Items in 2020, want to really go down the rabbit hole? Check out the home gym reddit. Thanks for coming by and checking out our content.