Home Gym

[enpower]

What do I actually need for a basic home gym? I was thinking of getting:

- Dumbbells
- Barbells
- Rubber mat (to protect concrete floor in garage)
- Swiss ball
- Step up box
- Bench

Anyone else have a home gym set up?

[Mrs. Frugalwoods]

We have a weight bench with power block weights (which work perfectly for us since we lift at vastly different weights), a rowing machine, a balance ball, and yoga mats and blocks. I suppose it depends on what all you want to accomplish, though.

[apfroggy0408]

If it was my gym that I was building then.

Power rack
Adjustable Bench
Olympic Bar
Olympic Weights

That be my minimum then slowly gather.

Dumbells
Specialty bars
Kettlebells

[Spudd]

Get the book "You Are Your Own Gym" by Mark Lauren. No special equipment required.

[peace99]

Just gone through that process myself. I was getting overwhelmed with what I 'might' need. I got...


 Dumbbells
- Rubber Matt
- Bench
Push up handles

Figure it's enough to do the basics and I can always add items to it later.

Note it does depend on what you are trying to achieve e.g bulk up, lose weight etc. what are your goals?

[missj]

unless you have a bunch of space, I think less is more.  My goals may be quite different than a typical male's but I am not trying to bulk up, but just stay toned and fit and maintain a healthy weight.  I mostly use my own body weight instead of purchasing weights.   Not only is it cheaper, but it's safer and I've always got it with me.

here's what I have at home
jump rope
bike trainer for indoor cardio (I don't know what your winters are like)
roll up rubber mat
hand weights 2 lb, 3lb, 5 lb
ankle weights 5 lb
elastic stretch bands
all of this fits in one of those dollar store laundry baskets (except the bike trainer)

here's what I wish I had at home:
pull up bar

I am a triathlete, so I also belong to a gym and this is 90% for access to their pool.  Even when at the gym, I pretty much just use my own body weight to workout (calisthenics).

my workout routines begin and end with a 5 minute stretch.  then I alternate a circuit of about 4 of the things below

pushups
burpees
sit ups
crunches
leg lifts
lunges
squats
pullups (OK, I can't REALLY do these. I'm still trying though. I can do the assisted pull up with the minimum weight assistance)
dips

I only do about 20-25 mins of the above circuit before doing my cardio piece, which is nearly always swimming, biking or running.  If my joints are bugging me I might do the elliptical trainer instead of the treadmill or road running.

So, the only "real" gym equipment that I use is the elliptical trainer and the assisted pull up machine. (and the pool) oh and of course the DAYCARE!!! that is the real miracle....unlimited daycare at the gym for $10 a month.  that right there is enough to motivate me to workout.  I'll take my "me" time however I can get it, even if that means pushups and running.

[bluecheeze]

If it was my gym that I was building then.

Power rack
Adjustable Bench
Olympic Bar
Olympic Weights

That be my minimum then slowly gather.

Dumbells
Specialty bars
Kettlebells

Second this.  Power rack should have a pullup bar and I would get a belt to hang weights on for pullups.  Would also add rubber floors so you can do cleans/deadlifts without damaging anything.  I think the horse stall mats are cheap and get the job done.

[jpo]

I have a yoga mat and a pair of these rings.

fitloop.co

[GuitarStv]

I DIY'd a lot of my home gym.  You can build squat stands and uprights for a bench press for under 40$.  I built a weight bench for about 30$.  Build a chin up bar for 10-15$.  Use adjustable saw horses as safeties for bench press/squats, and to do dips off of.

What I bought was a bunch of plates (mostly used), a bar, and some dumbells that could be loaded up with the weight for the bar.  I got some 1" thick rubber mats to put under the weights eventually too . . . look for horse stall mats or similar from farm equipment wholesalers and you can find them pretty cheap now and again.  Ask a friend with a truck to help you move the mats though, the 4x6 ones that I got were close to 100 lbs each.

Throw in a 5$ skipping rope, and you should be set for a long time.  This setup has been working great for me for a few years, and is very versatile . . . everything can be shoved up to a corner if you need to use the space.

MMM Thread on it here:  http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/do-it-yourself-forum!/home-gym-equipment/

[neo von retorch]

I have an adjustable squat rack that I use for squat and bench, barbells and plates. All you need for squat, bench and deadlift. Also overhead press... though I need to take my stuff outside to do that. PITA, so it rarely happens. I also have dumbbells though I think they are a lot less important. I probably wouldn't have them but I managed to buy a "whole gym" from a guy via Craigslist, sell all the stuff for profit and then cherry pick exactly what I wanted.

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

(And few women are capable of "bulking up" by lifting heavy weights, let alone it happening outside of their control. But I digress...)

[PloddingInsight]

OP: we cannot answer your question without more information.

Do you currently go to a commercial gym?  If so what exercises do you do there?

Do you currently work out at home at all?  If so what do you do?

Are you looking to change your routine and do more exercise?  If so what are your goals.

In general my advice is to do as much exercising as you can without equipment, and add equipment one item at a time, as needed, to fill in the gaps.

[Cromacster]

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

Couldn't agree more.

(And few women are capable of "bulking up" by lifting heavy weights, let alone it happening outside of their control. But I digress...)

Though that myth continues it is slowly being broken.  More women are competing in powerlifting and weightlifting than ever.  I would argue this is largely due to the popularity of crossfit and what it has done to remove the stigmas of lifting heavy weights.

For some DIY guides check out End of Three Fitness.  There are good DIY for power racks, squat racks, pullup bars, jerk boxes, etc etc.
http://www.endofthreefitness.com/

[LibrarIan]

All this really depends on your preferences. You really don't need anything, as Spudd pointed out. However, I use the following:

- My bicycle (duh)
- a yoga mat
- small cardboard boxes for yoga blocks (never waste money on blocks)
- a series of dumbbells ranging from 5 lbs. up to about 30 lbs.
- a chair
- walls
- a set of bands
- an exercise ball
- a foam roller

That's it. The dumbbells are the most expensive part, but Craigslist or garage sale shopping can get you inexpensive ones. My foam roller was like $4.00. Happy exercising!

[svi]

depending on your goals, but in general, an ideal minimal home gym setup is:

2 kettlebells (small and large, size depending on your strength level)
barbell with weights (get round plates, hexagonal plates are really hard to use for dealifting)
power rack - this is the most versatile piece of equipment and essential if you are working out alone
starting strength book by mark rippettoe

everything else you can do with just your body.

I firmly believe that strength is the foundation of any fitness, the best way do obtain it is to do squats, dealifts and overhead presses. This equipment is relatively cheap and will last you for ever.

[JoshuaSpodek]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

[enigmaT120]

I did have an Olympic weight set (garage sale) with bench, but since I don't have anybody to spot I couldn't do reps to the point of failure.  So I got rid of them and found a Soloflex from another garage sale for $75.  It works better for me, though I have to replace the rubber bands every few years.  Used fitness equipment must be some of the best bargains around.  The guy who sold me the Soloflex tried to help me load it in my pickup.  Man he really should have kept it! 

[greaper007]

With a bench, pullup bar (put a foot on a chair until you can do a pullup) and dumbbells, I can do just about everything.    I do use barbells at the gym for a few things but I use dumbbells way more often.   I like them for a few reasons.

They work everything separately, which helps muscle development.

They're much easier to use without a spotter.    I never feel comfortable doing things like bench press without a spotter, and I hate asking people at the gym for help, and I don't always have someone at home that could help me.   Accidents with the bench press are the number one cause of death in home gyms, something to think about.

I'm also a big fan of lots of reps with lower weight.    For instance, my leg workout starts out with 5 sets of 20 reps with some sort of squat (I like front squats, easier to dump the bar). And ends with 5 sets of 25 for calf raises.    I could really care less about being strong, I just want to look better naked.    This approach seems to help that.

[Cressida]

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

Is there a good substitute for this that you can do with dumbbells instead?

[$200k]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

Agree with above post and missj.  See how tired you can get with just burpees alone.    You don't need much more.  My set-up is basically my body and three kettlebells.  I can blast through a workout in 15 minutes and feel great for the rest of the day.  But I like training for long-distance runs, so obviously my fitness goals do not include bulking up.  I cringe at the thought of dumbells, barbells, etc.

[greaper007]

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

Is there a good substitute for this that you can do with dumbbells instead?

Sure, stick the dumbbells on your shoulders or even hang them at your sides.    Either way you're adding weight to a squat.    It just gets hard to squat 300lbs with this setup, but if you just up the reps you can still get a good, muscle building workout.

[Cressida]

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

Is there a good substitute for this that you can do with dumbbells instead?

Sure, stick the dumbbells on your shoulders or even hang them at your sides.    Either way you're adding weight to a squat.    It just gets hard to squat 300lbs with this setup, but if you just up the reps you can still get a good, muscle building workout.

LOL, I'm hardly worried about that (the 300 lbs) yet at this point, but thanks.

[greaper007]

Man or woman, there's nothing better for the body than barbell squat.

Is there a good substitute for this that you can do with dumbbells instead?

Sure, stick the dumbbells on your shoulders or even hang them at your sides.    Either way you're adding weight to a squat.    It just gets hard to squat 300lbs with this setup, but if you just up the reps you can still get a good, muscle building workout.

LOL, I'm hardly worried about that (the 300 lbs) yet at this point, but thanks.

NP, check out this site and just browse muscle groups for barbell alternatives.

http://www.exrx.net/WeightExercises/Quadriceps/DBSquat.html    (this is a dumbbell squat).

[missj]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

I like your website...unfortunately I got sucked in and just clicked away about 2 hours of my life and failed to get any of my chores done!  But you've got lots of good stuff in there.

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago (actually, that was just the most recent attempt of 3 attempts).  I made it to 36 consecutive good form pushups (not girl pushups) but could never progress beyond that.  The other 2 times I made it to the low 30s.

I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge?  they are way harder than pushups (obviously, since they contain a pushup in them) but I am motivated by working towards a goal.  just telling myself "do burpees every morning" is unlikely to get me to do it, but telling myself "I'm trying to work up to  35 consecutive burpees by such and such date" will motivate me.

[AshStash]

I work out in my small flat so all of my equipment is optimized to be used and stored in my bedroom. If I had a whole garage, I'd make a few additions.

What I have:
1) Interlocking floor mats to protect my joints, the floor, and keep the neighbors from complaining about the noise when I do cardio
2) Yoga mat
3) Yoga towel (doubles as travel mat)
4) 2kg and 4kg dumbbells
5) 2x 20kg adjustable dumbbell sets (I could really get rid of the separate 2and 4kg sets, as I can make weights ranging from 1.5kg to 10 kg with these sets)
6) set of tubing and resistance bands (mostly I have these because they travel well, I don't use them at home very often)
7) Lebert Equalizer (by far the most expensive item but I don't have any doorways in my flat that would hold a pull up bar. The Equalizer has other uses, but I'd have preferred a pull up bar.)
8) foam roller
9) stability ball that doubles as my desk chair

All of this was accumulated over about 6 years and looking for used equipment and sales. In my dream home gym, with plenty of space and high ceilings, I'd add a jump rope, pull up bar, bench, set of medicine balls, a BOSU, and mirrors to check my form.

[GuitarStv]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

Agree with above post and missj.  See how tired you can get with just burpees alone.    You don't need much more.  My set-up is basically my body and three kettlebells.  I can blast through a workout in 15 minutes and feel great for the rest of the day.  But I like training for long-distance runs, so obviously my fitness goals do not include bulking up.  I cringe at the thought of dumbells, barbells, etc.

A common misconception about weight training is that it will bulk you up.  Weight training burns fat and develops strength.  You only really gain size if you're eating more.  I regularly used weight training to maintain my strength while cutting weight for wrestling tournaments, and it was quite effective.  Particular higher rep forms of weight training are more likely to develop muscle growth, but if you stick to high effort low rep (1-4) sets your central nervous system is worked harder with limited muscle growth.

I love doing burpees myself, they're a pretty awesome exercise . . . but certainly wouldn't limit my exercise to burpees alone.

[dragoncar]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

Agree with above post and missj.  See how tired you can get with just burpees alone.    You don't need much more.  My set-up is basically my body and three kettlebells.  I can blast through a workout in 15 minutes and feel great for the rest of the day.  But I like training for long-distance runs, so obviously my fitness goals do not include bulking up.  I cringe at the thought of dumbells, barbells, etc.

A common misconception about weight training is that it will bulk you up.  Weight training burns fat and develops strength.  You only really gain size if you're eating more.  I regularly used weight training to maintain my strength while cutting weight for wrestling tournaments, and it was quite effective.  Particular higher rep forms of weight training are more likely to develop muscle growth, but if you stick to high effort low rep (1-4) sets your central nervous system is worked harder with limited muscle growth.

I love doing burpees myself, they're a pretty awesome exercise . . . but certainly wouldn't limit my exercise to burpees alone.

Bro science says the opposite - that low reps lead to hypertrophy

[MichaelR]

+1 on body weight exercises (YAYOG is my favorite). No money outlay for fantastic workout. Can't get more frugal than that!

[GuitarStv]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

Agree with above post and missj.  See how tired you can get with just burpees alone.    You don't need much more.  My set-up is basically my body and three kettlebells.  I can blast through a workout in 15 minutes and feel great for the rest of the day.  But I like training for long-distance runs, so obviously my fitness goals do not include bulking up.  I cringe at the thought of dumbells, barbells, etc.

A common misconception about weight training is that it will bulk you up.  Weight training burns fat and develops strength.  You only really gain size if you're eating more.  I regularly used weight training to maintain my strength while cutting weight for wrestling tournaments, and it was quite effective.  Particular higher rep forms of weight training are more likely to develop muscle growth, but if you stick to high effort low rep (1-4) sets your central nervous system is worked harder with limited muscle growth.

I love doing burpees myself, they're a pretty awesome exercise . . . but certainly wouldn't limit my exercise to burpees alone.

Bro science says the opposite - that low reps lead to hypertrophy

Fortunately, actual science on the matter can set us straight.  It's all based around how we adapt to the stimulus of weight training, and how the body uses energy.

When you exercise your muscles pull energy from different sources.  For the first few seconds (10 or so) you burn through stored ATP, for the next few minutes you are burning glycogen.  (These energy sources replenish after rest, through an oxidative process - and if you are keeping muscle under tension for periods of longer than a few minutes then we enter into a different phase of aerobic energy replacement).  Muscular endurance weightlifting with higher reps lasts several minutes . . . first it blows through the ATP and then it slowly burns through your glycogen stores in your muscles.  This forces the adaptation of storing more glycogen.  When glycogen is stored by the body it brings a lot of water along with it, which gives muscles a bigger, swollen appearance.  This is why bodybuilders tend to use higher rep stuff (usually 8 - 20 rep ranges) for a lot of their training . . . contractile protein in muscle is developed, but it is the addition of glycogen that makes you big.

When training in the lower rep ranges with high weights it increases your neuro-muscular efficiency somewhat independently of muscle size.  Look at Olympic weightlifters.  They're way the hell smaller than bodybuilders even though they're pushing more than twice their bodyweight overhead regularly.  This is due to the way that they train (low rep, high intensity) . . . it blows ATP supplies in a second or two for energy, then is done.  This style of training increases the concentration of contractile proteins in the muscle, but doesn't add in all that glycogen and water (as it's not under tension for long enough to need it) so you don't get the big bulky appearance.  Instead, you become efficient at using the ATP your muscles have stored.

[dragoncar]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

Agree with above post and missj.  See how tired you can get with just burpees alone.    You don't need much more.  My set-up is basically my body and three kettlebells.  I can blast through a workout in 15 minutes and feel great for the rest of the day.  But I like training for long-distance runs, so obviously my fitness goals do not include bulking up.  I cringe at the thought of dumbells, barbells, etc.

A common misconception about weight training is that it will bulk you up.  Weight training burns fat and develops strength.  You only really gain size if you're eating more.  I regularly used weight training to maintain my strength while cutting weight for wrestling tournaments, and it was quite effective.  Particular higher rep forms of weight training are more likely to develop muscle growth, but if you stick to high effort low rep (1-4) sets your central nervous system is worked harder with limited muscle growth.

I love doing burpees myself, they're a pretty awesome exercise . . . but certainly wouldn't limit my exercise to burpees alone.

Bro science says the opposite - that low reps lead to hypertrophy

Fortunately, actual science on the matter can set us straight.  It's all based around how we adapt to the stimulus of weight training, and how the body uses energy.

When you exercise your muscles pull energy from different sources.  For the first few seconds (10 or so) you burn through stored ATP, for the next few minutes you are burning glycogen.  (These energy sources replenish after rest, through an oxidative process - and if you are keeping muscle under tension for periods of longer than a few minutes then we enter into a different phase of aerobic energy replacement).  Muscular endurance weightlifting with higher reps lasts several minutes . . . first it blows through the ATP and then it slowly burns through your glycogen stores in your muscles.  This forces the adaptation of storing more glycogen.  When glycogen is stored by the body it brings a lot of water along with it, which gives muscles a bigger, swollen appearance.  This is why bodybuilders tend to use higher rep stuff (usually 8 - 20 rep ranges) for a lot of their training . . . contractile protein in muscle is developed, but it is the addition of glycogen that makes you big.

When training in the lower rep ranges with high weights it increases your neuro-muscular efficiency somewhat independently of muscle size.  Look at Olympic weightlifters.  They're way the hell smaller than bodybuilders even though they're pushing more than twice their bodyweight overhead regularly.  This is due to the way that they train (low rep, high intensity) . . . it blows ATP supplies in a second or two for energy, then is done.  This style of training increases the concentration of contractile proteins in the muscle, but doesn't add in all that glycogen and water (as it's not under tension for long enough to need it) so you don't get the big bulky appearance.  Instead, you become efficient at using the ATP your muscles have stored.

Thanks, bra!

[Cromacster]

When training in the lower rep ranges with high weights it increases your neuro-muscular efficiency somewhat independently of muscle size.  Look at Olympic weightlifters.  They're way the hell smaller than bodybuilders even though they're pushing more than twice their bodyweight overhead regularly.

Typically a weightlifter will have a smaller upperbody compared to a body builder, but their legs are probably bigger...they're all legs and ass.

[GuitarStv]

Olympic weight lifters very heavily train their legs (it's what determines if every lift they do will succeed or fail).  Bodybuilders train according to aesthetic guidelines.  Legs are not currently valued as much in competition as a huge upper body, so it's not a focus of bodybuilders.  Applying higher reps (without going too far into aerobic activity) to leg training will yield larger legs than lower reps.

Note that I'm not saying it's impossible to develop muscle size with a lower rep range.  It absolutely is (provided you have an appropriate eating plan in place).  If you want to move really heavy weights obviously you need a certain amount of contractile protein to do it.  Lower reps do two things that reduce size gain though:

- more efficiently uses your muscles . . . so less musculature is required to lift the same amount of weight.
- doesn't force enhanced glycogen adaptation, so less glycogen and water will be stored in the muscles, reducing their size.

[JoshuaSpodek]

Depends on your goals, but I'm going great with only burpees, which I've been doing daily without fail for almost three years. Two sets of twenty-five now, though I started with ten a day. I recently passed 40,000 total.

Lately I've been doing something like pull-ups from under the side of my counter top too (maybe called inverted rows?). I sometimes use a Concept 2 rowing machine I bought before I started burpees ($500 used from Craigs List, works like new).

Burpees won't bulk you up, but you can see my results here (with sunburn) -- http://joshuaspodek.com/six-pack-pix-accountability.

Here's some posts on my burpee journey -- http://joshuaspodek.com/js_blogseries/burpees

So if you want to build muscle, a home gym sounds great. If you want basic fitness, I've found it unnecessary.

I like your website...unfortunately I got sucked in and just clicked away about 2 hours of my life and failed to get any of my chores done!  But you've got lots of good stuff in there.

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago (actually, that was just the most recent attempt of 3 attempts).  I made it to 36 consecutive good form pushups (not girl pushups) but could never progress beyond that.  The other 2 times I made it to the low 30s.

I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge?  they are way harder than pushups (obviously, since they contain a pushup in them) but I am motivated by working towards a goal.  just telling myself "do burpees every morning" is unlikely to get me to do it, but telling myself "I'm trying to work up to  35 consecutive burpees by such and such date" will motivate me.

Thanks for the kind words about the blog. I hope the problem with the two hours was that you felt you wanted to spend more time there.

I'm not aware of any burpee challenge web site, but I'll be happy to help if someone wants to start one. My burpee pages get a lot of hits, though.

In the meantime, if it helps, I will personally challenge you to do 35 consecutive burpees by a date you recommend. Then you'll have a burpee challenge. As many people here as you like can hold you responsible. I'll do 35 in a row by then too, for support. I've never done 35 in a row before.

How does that sound?

[JGB]

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago...I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge? 

The 100 day burpee challenge is a relatively common thing to see Crossfitters add into their training. That said, there is some debate about whether the benefit is really enough to offset the risk of overtraining (assuming you are adding this to an already sufficient exercise routine).

http://crossfit561.com/the-100-day-burpee-challenge-2/

For my part, when I made a go at it in 2010, I started having a lot of knee and ankle pain by the time I reached the low 50s. Unless you are in pretty great shape already and/or aren't doing much else for fitness, I don't think I'd recommend it.

[dragoncar]

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago...I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge? 

The 100 day burpee challenge is a relatively common thing to see Crossfitters add into their training. That said, there is some debate about whether the benefit is really enough to offset the risk of overtraining (assuming you are adding this to an already sufficient exercise routine).

http://crossfit561.com/the-100-day-burpee-challenge-2/

For my part, when I made a go at it in 2010, I started having a lot of knee and ankle pain by the time I reached the low 50s. Unless you are in pretty great shape already and/or aren't doing much else for fitness, I don't think I'd recommend it.

What's a reasonable number of burpees to do?  Any number over 10 would probably qualify as a "challenge" for me

[Cromacster]

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago...I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge? 

The 100 day burpee challenge is a relatively common thing to see Crossfitters add into their training. That said, there is some debate about whether the benefit is really enough to offset the risk of overtraining (assuming you are adding this to an already sufficient exercise routine).

http://crossfit561.com/the-100-day-burpee-challenge-2/

For my part, when I made a go at it in 2010, I started having a lot of knee and ankle pain by the time I reached the low 50s. Unless you are in pretty great shape already and/or aren't doing much else for fitness, I don't think I'd recommend it.

What's a reasonable number of burpees to do?  Any number over 10 would probably qualify as a "challenge" for me

I think it depends on what type of burpee you are doing.  The military style burpee utilizes a strict pushup with each rep.  A crossfit burpee is about speed.  Crossfit style I've done 100 in a row, the most I've done it a day was 260 or thereabouts.  The most I've done military style in a row is 30.  Each are a little different, both are hard in their own right.

So a reasonable number...military: 30  Crossfit: 100

[TurtleMarkets]

If it was my gym that I was building then.

Power rack
Adjustable Bench
Olympic Bar
Olympic Weights

That be my minimum then slowly gather.

Dumbells
Specialty bars
Kettlebells

X2, im working on collecting this for cheap right now.

[JGB]

I think it depends on what type of burpee you are doing.  The military style burpee utilizes a strict pushup with each rep.  A crossfit burpee is about speed.  Crossfit style I've done 100 in a row, the most I've done it a day was 260 or thereabouts.  The most I've done military style in a row is 30.  Each are a little different, both are hard in their own right.

So a reasonable number...military: 30  Crossfit: 100

Maybe that was part of my problem -- I've always done full chest-to-floor push-ups as the push-up component of my burpees.

[apfroggy0408]

strong people aren't small.

diet is what's going to make you big or small not your rep scheme

[JoshuaSpodek]

I attempted the 100 pushup challenge about a year ago...I wonder if there is a similar burpee challenge? 

The 100 day burpee challenge is a relatively common thing to see Crossfitters add into their training. That said, there is some debate about whether the benefit is really enough to offset the risk of overtraining (assuming you are adding this to an already sufficient exercise routine).

http://crossfit561.com/the-100-day-burpee-challenge-2/

For my part, when I made a go at it in 2010, I started having a lot of knee and ankle pain by the time I reached the low 50s. Unless you are in pretty great shape already and/or aren't doing much else for fitness, I don't think I'd recommend it.

What's a reasonable number of burpees to do?  Any number over 10 would probably qualify as a "challenge" for me

Since I do burpees every day, I like a number I can do daily forever.

I started at 10 per day. I've worked up to fifty per day in two sets of twenty-five over a couple years. I wasn't shooting for fast increases. Just consistency. Once I increase a number, I never do less than that number again.

If you want to do them like I do, daily indefinitely, I recommend starting with a number you can do daily and increasing the count by one or two every now and then. I tell people to do as many as they can once, decrease by two or three, make that your starting number, do that daily, and increase by one or two every now and then.

The challenge is keeping them up no matter what, even if you're traveling, came home drunk, or ran twenty miles that day. If you ask me, doing them when you don't want (we're talking about sixty to ninety seconds of exercise) is where the greatest value comes.

[missj]

Well,  my burpee challenge flopped.  I went on vacation (no biggy). Then there was an earthquake at my vacation spot...kinda forgot about the burgers.

I did 10 a day for 3 days then None for 2 days.

I'm gonna restart a challenge to do 35 consecutive burpees by thanksgiving.

Increasing incrementally.  Today I'll do 10
Tomorrow I'll do 10 x 2
Thursday I'll do 11 x 2

[dividendman]

Kettlebells!

Swings are the best things ever. If you can do 15 swings a minute for 15 minutes with a decent amount of weight you're going to get good cardio and weight training in there. I saw this actually on the early retirement extreme blog, starting at 45 minutes 5 swings per minute, working down the time so you keep the total reps constant but more reps per set and thus less rest between sets, it gets hardcore fast.

That and then walking/jogging, and pushups/squats and/or burpees, and you can even overhead press the kettlebells, you pretty much have everything covered methinks.

You can even do good squats with additional weight by inverting the kettle bell and resting it against your chest and then doing a squat.

[JGB]

Kettlebells!

Is there anything that you do with kettlebells that wouldn't be possible with dumbbells? Every time that I have encountered a kb workout I have been able to do it with dumbbells, so I am on the fence about which would be the better recommendation.

[TomTX]

If it was my gym that I was building then.

Power rack
Adjustable Bench
Olympic Bar
Olympic Weights

That be my minimum then slowly gather.

Dumbells
Specialty bars
Kettlebells

Yes, pretty much what I would do - though I would add horse stall mats (very tough rubber mats) in the first category. My friend has this setup, plus the dumbells, a second rack for benching and some jack stands for deads/rows (the ladies often use less than full wheels for deads, so the jack stands keep the bar at the right height)

[TomTX]

Sure, stick the dumbbells on your shoulders or even hang them at your sides.    Either way you're adding weight to a squat.    It just gets hard to squat 300lbs with this setup, but if you just up the reps you can still get a good, muscle building workout.

LOL, I'm hardly worried about that (the 300 lbs) yet at this point, but thanks.

Squatting 1x bodyweight for women and 1.5x bodyweight for men are quite reasonable goals.

[dividendman]

Kettlebells!

Is there anything that you do with kettlebells that wouldn't be possible with dumbbells? Every time that I have encountered a kb workout I have been able to do it with dumbbells, so I am on the fence about which would be the better recommendation.

Well, I'm not a hard-core weight lifter, but kettlebells help your minor muscles and help you every day muscle usage. The reason for this is that dumbells' center of balance is right where you're lifting it, so it's kind of fake. Kettlebells are off to the side like most things you would be lifting in real life... I think i read somewhere that makes you less likely to injure yourself when you're using your muscles for something other than weightlifting.

[horsepoor]

Kettlebells!

Is there anything that you do with kettlebells that wouldn't be possible with dumbbells? Every time that I have encountered a kb workout I have been able to do it with dumbbells, so I am on the fence about which would be the better recommendation.

Yes, doing the ballistic kettlebell exercises properly would be pretty much impossible with a dumbbell.  Especially swings, because the weight on  DB wouldn't swing out at the "up" part of the maneuver.  High pulls, I think you've be risking clobbering yourself in the head.  It would be pretty hard to do a smooth, clean snatch with a DB.  Turkish get-up is possible at lower weights, but awkward.

My home gym consists of:  squat rack (would like to get a power rack with a cable pull-down), barbell & plates, several kettlebells and a jump rope.  I'd really like to add a rowing machine and some boxes for box jumps; probably an adjustable bench to if I got the power rack.

[JGB]

Kettlebells!

Is there anything that you do with kettlebells that wouldn't be possible with dumbbells? Every time that I have encountered a kb workout I have been able to do it with dumbbells, so I am on the fence about which would be the better recommendation.

Yes, doing the ballistic kettlebell exercises properly would be pretty much impossible with a dumbbell.  Especially swings, because the weight on  DB wouldn't swing out at the "up" part of the maneuver.  High pulls, I think you've be risking clobbering yourself in the head.  It would be pretty hard to do a smooth, clean snatch with a DB.  Turkish get-up is possible at lower weights, but awkward.

My home gym consists of:  squat rack (would like to get a power rack with a cable pull-down), barbell & plates, several kettlebells and a jump rope.  I'd really like to add a rowing machine and some boxes for box jumps; probably an adjustable bench to if I got the power rack.

I guess ignorance is bliss. For years I have relied on dumbbells for any CrossFit workout that calls for kettlebells. That has included plenty of swings, snatches, and Turkish Get-ups. High pulls have been with enough weight to justify a barbell.

[jeninco]

This isn't exactly a response to the question, but I've really been enjoying 12-minute-athlete workouts from www.12minuteathlete.com.  They tend to use pretty basic stuff (jump rope, pull-up bar) and can be adapted for stuff you have (chairs, barstools for leg lifts, etc). Really efficient High Intensity Interval Training workouts, and 12-15 minutes, start-to-finish. But hard!

[antonzitz]

Pretty good summary here of some key items for a home gym.

http://homeworkout.co/home-gym-essentials-checklist/

[Case]

I'm resurrecting this old thread for the following question:

What's the best and most effective way to get cheap olympic plates?

I just got a power rack which I bought for cheap, and built my own platform.  I bought a fancy Rogue bar since I read that it's worth it to get a nice bar (the cheap shit has limited weight capacity).

Now I need to get olympic plates (weights).  I don't need bumper plates thanks to my platform.  I do know that round plates are necessary (not hexagonal) and that ones with holes for handling will give them a longer lifetime.  I can find them online on craigslist for $0.7/lb.  However, then I saw MMM's post about getting a full olympic set plus bar (olympic and a small one) for $99 at CostCo.  Jesus christ!   

Granted the bar he got is low quality, but the plates price is insanely cheap (~$0.4/lb)... plus you have extra bars for doing whatever-the-hell-else you want! 

I searched costcos website but could not find such things.  I don't have a costco membership and dont want to get one just for that... and I dont even know if they currently have that.  I have been perusing craigslist for deals... but it's basically a pain in the ass.  To get better deal than what I've already found, you have to wait around for the magical deal, or pick up yourset piecemeal which means you are making several trips (and maybe erasing your saving son fuel costs) and who has that type of free time when you aren't FIREd yet?

Any thoughts?  Otherwise I may just go with what I already found, which is at least huge savings versus the big name stores like Rogue etc...

At the end of all this, I may document my full set up for others here to see/critique/learn.