Having a home gym is great, you get to work out whenever you want, the equipment is always available, and you can save a lot of time by cutting out the commute to a commercial gym.

But that's only if you actually use your home gym, many people rush into building one without considering factors like the size, types of equipment, and storage, resulting in a home gym that sits unused.

Today we'll be covering some of the most common mistakes people make when putting together a home gym, and how you can avoid them. Find inspiration in our photos that show you how to do it right!

Not Knowing Your Gym Space

The very first thing you need to consider is the space you'll be using for your home gym.

Whether you're building your gym in a garage or a portion of the living room, or whether it's in a basement or upstairs room can all make a big difference to your home gym possibilities.

And don't forget that if you're renting, you'll need to consider whether you're allowed to bolt equipment like squat racks to the floor, or mount pull up bars on the walls.

Just as important as choosing where the gym will go is measuring how much room you have available. Don't forget that you need more space than just the size of the equipment, for example a squat rack might be 132cm wide, but it’s likely going to be holding a 7ft barbell, and you'll need some extra space on either side to load plates onto it too.

If you don't mind sacrificing some weight capacity for a smaller bar, you can get a rackable 6ft Olympic bar instead to save some extra room.

Headroom is important too, if you want a power rack then make sure that the room is tall enough before you pick one, and keep in mind that you'll need a few inches of extra height to allow for assembly.

You'll also need to consider ventilation, the UK can get very hot during the summer and working out when it's 35° and muggy is never fun. Try to make sure you're able to at least open a window or door to let the fresh air in.

Choosing the Wrong Fitness Equipment

Everybody knows someone who had a sudden burst of motivation to start working out, only for them to buy exercise equipment that ends up being used as a place to hang clothes after a few weeks.

Start off by choosing equipment that you've already used at a commercial gym and know that you like. If you're brand new to working out then start small by going for versatile equipment such as dumbbells and a resistance band set. Don't invest in a 24kg Kettlebell if you've never lifted weights before - you'll have to work your way up to it.

Remember that making your perfect home gym is a marathon and not a sprint, you can always build your gym up with more specialised exercise equipment (such as a Preacher Curl Bench) over time once you know what kind of workouts you enjoy.

Forgetting About Gym Flooring

Your flooring is the literal foundation that the rest of your gym is built on, and can make a big impact on the types of workouts you can do.

For example, if you plan on deadlifting then rubber flooring is a necessity, otherwise you'll damage both your floor as well as your barbell and plates.

It will also help to dampen the noise, so the sound of plates clanging together and barbells being re-racked won't echo. Check out our Gym Flooring For Garages.

Buying Incompatible Equipment

Triple check that the equipment you want can actually work together, and be sure to pay close attention to which barbell you choose.

A “Standard” barbell has a 1” diameter sleeve which means it only takes weight plates with a 1” hole.

The more common Olympic Barbell has a 2” sleeve, which of course means it takes weight plates with a 2” hole. It also has rotating sleeves which are important for performing olympic lifts like the clean and the snatch, and you'll find a wider variety of weight plates available for them - such as bumper plates.

If you plan to follow along with online studio videos, you might want to buy a studio pump set, which can only take 30mm plates.

If this sounds confusing, don’t panic! Check out our Weight Bars Buyer’s Guide to get all the info you need to match with your perfect barbell.

Not Buying Gym Storage

Besides the big equipment like machines, racks and barbells you'll also accumulate a lot of smaller things like wrist wraps, straps, chalk, collars, belts, change plates etc, and you'll need somewhere to put it all when it's not in use.

You also might decide to upgrade your home gym with a few specialty bars, like an EZ curl bar and a safety squat bar, in which case you'll need a barbell holder and a weight tree to hold your plates.

Now you know some of the most common mistakes people make when building their home gym, so you can avoid making them too and get started building the home gym you've been dreaming of.

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Tags: Misc > Gym Planning