Garden & Outdoor

How to Create Your Own Home Gym

sports equipment for home workout

With benefits to our mental and physical health, now more than ever, turning your garden shed into a home gym has never been a better idea. Not only will it mean you can work out at a time that suits you, but the effort you put into creating your own home gym will provide you with a greater incentive to train.

But first, be safe and smart

Before you begin any DIY work, we recommend you read our DIY Safety Tips guide, along with your power tool manuals, to keep yourself and others safe.

If you’re in doubt about anything, you should reach out to a certified expert for assistance.

To help get you started, we have put together some important things to think about when it comes to turning your garden shed into a home gym.

 

What is your building of choice?

You may already have a garden shed suitable for your home gym. But if not, we have a wide range available to you. You can also use your garage as a home gym instead.

Your building needs to be two things – big enough to store your equipment and strong enough to hold it all.

A summer house or log cabin is a great choice, as they are more robust than a standard garden shed. The size you choose will depend on your individual budget, garden size and the workout equipment you like to use.

Once you have decided on your building, you may want to think about using a coat of exterior wood paint to help weather-proof and protect your new home gym.

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Floor protection

Make sure you protect the floor of your home gym by covering it with rubber pavers. This will help to provide comfort while you work out, while also preventing dents and grooves from your weights and other heavy equipment.  Rubber pavers are easy to clean and act as an insulator, helping to keep draughts at bay in your shed gym.

 

Electricity

If you want to add heaters, fans or lighting to your new home gym, you’ll need to get connected – however, do not attempt to do this step yourself.

You will need to get a qualified electrician to help you install the correct wires and cables into your shed gym.

Insulation

If your chosen outdoor building is not already insulated, you can do it yourself. Choose the appropriate insulation material and install it between the structural frames of your shed or against your garage walls.  You will need to wear safety goggles and old clothes that cover your entire body while doing this.

Top tip: Check out our “How to Insulate a Shed” guide to get more details on how it’s done.

 

Storage for gym equipment

For an effective workout, you need an organised storage solution for your gym equipment – as a small space can quickly become cluttered. Remember you need to keep enough space to comfortably and safely work out, so be clever with this.

Use hooks, floating shelves and storage units  to keep things tidy. You could even re-purpose old bookcases and cabinets. Also think about adding a clock to help you keep track of your workouts and even a mirror for some gym progress pictures.

Find our full selection of garage storage equipment here.

And there you have it, everything you need to set up your own home gym. Make sure you take some pictures of your new set up and upload them to social media and tag us @homebase_uk.



Homebase

Homebase

Writer and expert