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Plan Your Gym

If you fail to plan…
You are planning to fail.
Learn from my mistakes and take a few minutes to plan before building or buying.
I wish I’d done that.

Horse Stall Mats, Are They Really the Best Choice for Home Gym Flooring?

by Tim Steward
Horse stall mat

When you build a home gym, one of the first decisions you have to make is what to do with the floor. Not only do you need a reliable surface to train on, but you also need to prevent damage to the floor below. Most home gym owners use one of two options: Horse stall … Read more

Categories Plan Your Gym, Flooring, Gym Build-Out, Reviews 10 Comments

Do you really need an Olympic lifting platform?

by Tim Steward
Lifting platform

When I was planning my full gym build-out, one of the first things that went on my list was a weightlifting platform. It seemed like every gym I looked at online had a platform. I honestly didn’t even know why I might need one (or not). I simply figured it was something you needed if … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym, Racks

Can you really build a garage gym for $500?

by Tim Steward
500 scaled

So you want to build a home gym for $500. You start shopping and soon realize that in the world of home fitness equipment, $500 doesn’t go all that far. You are faced with a choice. Do you get only a couple of quality items? Or do you try to buy a “full gym” with … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Plan Your Gym

Gym Closed? Work out at home for under $100!

by Tim Steward
cash dollars hands money 271168 1

Everyone should have the ability to work out at home. That simple idea is why I built GymCrafter. With recent events (This article is being written in mid-March, 2020, right at the beginning of a shelter in place order where I live in Illinois), people who previously relied on commercial gyms for their fitness are … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Plan Your Gym

Is your pull-up bar mounted in the right place?

by Tim Steward
using a multi-grip pull-up bar

Pull-ups are a fundamental and functional movement pattern. They should also be a part of any well-programmed training regimen. For those of us with home gyms, that means that we need to find a place to put our pull-up bar. It also means we need to figure out exactly how high to mount it. There … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym

Should you buy weight plates in lbs or kilos?

by Tim Steward
Kilos v Lbs

Weight plates are something we should only have to buy once. If we buy right the first time, they typically won’t wear out. That means there are a few decisions we need to make when buying weight for our home gyms. Steel, coated, or bumper plates? How many? What sizes? New or used? I answer … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Plan Your Gym, Plates 2 Comments

The best ways to store your barbells

by Tim Steward
barbell storage

Too much gear and not enough space. It’s the age-old dilemma faced by most home gym owners. For some gear, it doesn’t matter how you store it. For your barbell, that’s not the case. Improper bar storage can damage your prized barbell, so it’s important to follow a few basic guidelines. Proper barbell storage guidelines: … Read more

Categories Maintain Your Gym, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym 12 Comments

How to Fit a Gym You’ll Love in a Small Apartment

by Tim Steward
Apartment building

While my current home gym is located in my garage, that wasn’t always the case. I’m very fortunate to have a two-car garage and only one car. That has allowed me the room to build a home gym I could only fantasize about previously. Apartment Gym Challenges For many years, I lived in an apartment. … Read more

Categories Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym

How Much Does it Cost to Build a Home Gym You’ll Love?

by Tim Steward
Weight on bar small

The first thing most people consider when building a home gym is where in their home it might be able to fit. A millisecond later those same people are usually wondering what their new gym is going to cost. It’s probably a safe assumption that budget is one of, if not the primary concern of … Read more

Categories Plan Your Gym, Gym Build-Out

Easy Ways to Keep Deadlifts From Damaging Your Floor

by Tim Steward
danielle cerullo Oo rHghLNhA unsplash scaled

The weight dropped with a thud that shook the whole house. I hadn’t expected to lose my grip, but the bar (which was loaded to just over 300 lbs.) slipped without warning. After I inspected myself for injury, I checked the weights for damage (at that time I was using a set of sharp-edged iron … Read more

Categories Plan Your Gym, Flooring, Gym Build-Out, Maintain Your Gym 6 Comments

Getting the Smell Out of Your Rubber Gym Floor

by Tim Steward
Fumes

When people ask about the best flooring for their home gym, the answer is almost always rubber. Rubber flooring has a ton of benefits and is the ideal floor for your home fitness area. That said, it’s important that you use the right kind rubber. If you don’t, you can run into a few different … Read more

Categories Maintain Your Gym, Flooring, Gym Build-Out 6 Comments

Should You Bolt Your Squat Rack to the Floor?

by Tim Steward
Anchor small

The sound of the power rack’s metal feet scraping across the floor was almost unbearable. Real nails on a chalk board type sounds. I had attached a heavy band to one of the uprights and was trying to do banded rows. Every time I pulled, the rack moved. This wasn’t the only time I was … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym, Racks

How Many Weight Plates Should You Buy For Your Home Gym?

by Tim Steward
Iron weight plates

12/13/22 Update. Since writing the below article, I’ve reconsidered my views on what size plates to buy. I still stand by the method presented below. The change comes with what plates you should buy as part of your set once you determine just how much weight you are going to need. Once you finish this … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Plan Your Gym, Plates

How Much Room Do You Need For a Squat Rack?

by Tim Steward
Squat Rack

I get pretty pumped every time I add a piece of gear to my home gym. But no addition has ever excited me more than the addition of a power rack. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve stood in my garage imagining a full-size rack as the centerpiece of my garage workout space. … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym, Racks

Is It Safe to Build a Home Gym on the Second Floor?

by Tim Steward
Stairs small

Sometimes my imagination gets the best of me. As I was using my treadmill the other day (it’s in an upstairs bedroom), I envisioned my 205 lb. frame riding the 350 lb. treadmill as it crashed through my floor into the garage below. I’m fairly sure that won’t happen, but that’s just how my mind … Read more

Categories Plan Your Gym, Gym Build-Out 6 Comments

How to Hang a Heavy Bag in Your Home Gym

by Tim Steward
Heavy Bags small

The knock at my door was unexpected. It was my neighbor. “Hey, we’re moving, and we have to be out fast. If there’s anything over in my garage, you see that you might want, let me know. We’d rather not have to move most of it.” The housing crisis had claimed yet another victim. I … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Gym Build-Out

How Much Space Do You Need For Your New Treadmill?

by Tim Steward
Tread small

I love walking outside. But here near Chicago, there comes a time of year when no matter how hearty you think you are, walking outside just isn’t gonna happen. When the wind chill is 30 below, and the actual temp is -2° F, even the dog doesn’t want to go outside. And I can’t blame … Read more

Categories Equip Your Gym, Cardio, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym

The Best Ways to Light Your Home Gym, A Complete Guide

by Tim Steward
LED light strip

Every time I was in my garage working out, something always felt a little off. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something just didn’t seem right. Then spring came and for the first time in several months I opened the garage door before I started training. The fresh air and warm temps were … Read more

Categories Guides, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym 4 Comments

21 Highly Effective Ways to Quiet Your Home Gym

by Tim Steward
Shhh small

One of the biggest benefits of having a home gym is that it’s right there in your home. One of the biggest drawbacks is that, well, it’s right there in your home. It’s easy for you to get to, but it’s also easy for your family (if you have one) to be a distraction from … Read more

Categories Guides, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym

The Best Way to Save Money on Your Home Gym

by Tim Steward
Money small

One of the most commonly asked questions by folks putting together a home gym is, “How much will it cost?”. You don’t have to spend a ton of money to have a highly useful and enjoyable home gym. In some cases you don’t have to spend any money at all. Yet somehow when we start … Read more

Categories Plan Your Gym 2 Comments

Use These 7 Awesome Tips to Warm Up Your Cold Garage Gym and Train Consistently in the Winter Months!

by Tim Steward
Thermometer

Tired of shivering through your workouts in your cold garage gym? These 7 highly useful tips will warm you up in no time!

Categories Plan Your Gym, Gym Build-Out 4 Comments

The Complete Guide to Home Gym Flooring

by Tim Steward
Rubber floor main small

How is leg day like installing a new floor in your home gym? It’s critical to your foundation and it’s something a lot of people would rather skip! Of course, you would never skip leg day, would you? It’s fun, exciting, and not at all painful, right?! I think that’s why so many people don’t … Read more

Categories Guides, Flooring, Gym Build-Out, Plan Your Gym 17 Comments

What Are Kettlebells And Should They Be a Part of Your Garage Gym?

by Tim Steward
IMG 9435

If you’ve ever wondered “what are kettlebells?” and would they be a good addition to your home gym, this is the article to read!

Categories Equip Your Gym, Conditioning, Plan Your Gym Leave a comment
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6615 Grand Ave #1086
Gurnee, IL 60031
USA

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