My garage gym setup

09 Jun, 2024

The philosophy

I started building my home gym during the pandemic. At first, it was just a jump rope. After a couple of months of training like that, I decided to invest in a basic barbell, bench and about 70 kg of plates. One might think you need all the different commercial gym machines, but it is not true unless you are a competitive bodybuilder that aims to isolate specific muscle groups. For all other use cases, you can get 20% of equipment that will get you 80% of results.

In this article, I’d like to review my home gym equipment and training philosophy.

When I buy stuff, I usually have a couple of criteria in mind:

• Versatility — I want to use each piece of equipment for different exercises to get the best bang for my buck
• Efficiency — the stuff I buy shall support compound exercises (I am not interested in isolation)
• Small footprint — I have a limited space, so the equipment shouldn’t be large
• Portability — this results from a constraint that parking a car is a primary purpose of the garage. Hence, I need the ability to move stuff around to free up space for the car.

Equipment: the basics

I have an Olympic (50mm) barbell that is a staple of my training. I grew up training with a focus on strength and compound movements. Furthermore, I do not consider myself a powerlifter, but squat, deadlift and bench press are foundational exercises in my training routine. My barbell is rated for 450 kg load capacity, but it is not a higher-end one, I’d say mid-range. This is my second one, as I sold the first barbell, which was cheap and not sturdy enough. Basically, a barbell is the 20% of equipment that gets 80% of results. It looks simple, but has a lot of nuance in construction, so I wouldn’t recommend going with the cheapest one.

It is important to get a standard sized Oly barbell to have access to a bigger market of plates (both new and aftermarket). I have around 180 kg of metal plates that make a sexy cling sound when you load them:

• 20 kg x 2 (default size)
• 15 kg x 2
• 10 kg x 6
• 5 kg x 2
• 2.5 kg x 2
• 1.25 kg x 4
• 20 kg x 2 (Oly size, 450mm diameter)

The 450mm diameter plates are required to start deadlifts from a default height from the ground (it is a disadvantage to deadlift with smaller plates, as you’d start pulling from a distance closer to the ground). My Olympic size 20’s were manufactured in mid-1980’s at Dynamo Luhansk factory - they are legendary and have an excellent durability - I was lucky to buy them on the aftermarket. These plates are, like fine wine, only become more rare and expensive with time.

My squat rack was custom-made, but the construction is pretty standard. It has an adjustable height, so can be used for both squat and bench press. It is also dismountable, so I can quickly free up space when required. I am happy that this squat rack comes with safety bars, as my first one didn’t have them.

The bench was custom-made and is nothing special, pretty standard but sturdy. I do not need an adjustable bench, so pretty happy with the fixed one.

I also have 16, 24 and 32 kg kettlebells manufactured by Gordey Diachenko. I love them for their versatility and use them almost every workout. It took me a couple of years to learn the value and advantages of kettlebells. Pro-tip: I use tennis racket grips on the kettlebell handles for improved grip and anti-slip effect even with sweaty hands.

Equipment: the essentials

Another important piece of equipment is a transformer pull-up bar / dip. It doesn’t cost a lot, but the versatility and value are enormous. Changing the mode (from dips to pull-ups and vice versa) takes less than 10 seconds. I hung gymnastic rings on the pull-up bar to do basic stuff like ring push-ups and dips.

Jump rope is a great tool for cardio, and I use it in two modes — light (no additional weight) and hard (wearing a weight vest with 10 kg).

The plate loaded weight vest by Kensui is a fantastic invention that has so many uses with traditional body weight exercises and even kettlebells. It was quite costly (around $90) but I’d say it is worth it, pay once, cry once.

As for the flooring, I use several pieces of rubber and children's floor mat pieces for cushioning.

Equipment: Nice-to-have's

One of the unconventional tools in my arsenal is a sledgehammer + tire combo. This exercise is great for endurance and quite brutal, but I do not use it much as I don’t like to be seen by others working out outside my garage (so used to complete privacy now!).

I also have a couple smaller items to add some variety to my workouts:

• Single loadable dumbbell — I mostly use it for biceps curls and one-handed presses
• Push-up bars — this is a very underrated exercise, it works especially well when loaded with weight vest
• Landmine handle — it is required for the T-bar rows

Gear

Lifting shoes — Adipower Weightlifting 3. I didn’t squat in lifting shoes for the first 5–7 years of my fitness journey, and when I finally decided to bite the bullet, it turned out to be one of the best investments. They are a bit costly, but sturdy and durable. I do all the lower-body exercises in them (including deadlift).

Shoes for upper-body / cardio exercise - Adidas Gazelle OG. They are lightweight and simple, and I simply love its timeless design.

Wrist wraps by Alexey Torokhtiy’s company. They are designed for weightlifting (not powerlifting), but serve well to support my wrists on heavy bench press days.

Leather lifting straps. I use them as handles for the front squats and for heavier multi-rep deadlifts.

Powerlifting belt by Pioneer. It is a luxury item as it is costly, but this is the best quality belt one could order, and it comes with a lifetime guarantee.

Insulator boots for the cold weather. I wear them on top of the lifting shoes during the winter months to keep my feet warm (as lifting shoes are simply not designed for the cold weather). It doesn’t 100% solve the problem, but makes the cold more bearable.

The training process

I employ 5/3/1 principles in my training since 2021. 5/3/1 appeals to me because it enables athletes to make steady progress, prevent overtraining, and keep the workouts varied and interesting. Making small steps and constantly breaking PRs is a great approach to training. I also like that 5/3/1 focuses mostly on progress with regard to increasing the number of reps with a given weight (as opposed to a one-dimensional program that only concerned with putting more weight on the barbell).

Lately, I also started to put a bigger emphasize on cardiovascular capacity, so my 5/3/1 assistance often consists of high-tempo circuits with kettlebells or jump rope in between sets. My inspiration here is Extreme Cardio Kettlebell Workouts by Keith Weber.

I keep track of my training cycles in KeyLifts app because it essentially removes math from the training. All the weight and reps for the main exercises are calculated automatically, all I have to do is to “follow the script”. It is helpful to step into the gym with a pre-made training routine, as it reduces the chances for slack.

Dealing with uncomfortable weather

Low-temperature training might sound dreadful, but it is not that bad in reality. The walls and roof keep you safe from winds and snow / rain, so it feels much warmer inside.

The weather becomes uncomfortable to work out when it drops below 10-15ºC, and mainly because the feet become cold (I work out in my lifting shoes all year round, and they are obviously not designed for very low temperatures). As I already mentioned, insulator boots help with this.

Extreme heat is also not so comfortable in July and early August because the walls retain the heat even after peak hot hours, so they add to the sauna effect inside. But it is bearable for me personally.