Why Start A Home Gym In Vancouver?

Vancouverites love working out. Whether it’s hiking on Cypress Mountain, biking around Stanley Park, volleyball on Kits Beach, or lifting weights, it’s something that's ingrained into a lot of us. With COVID-19 closing down gyms/increasing restrictions, and the general worry of COVID-19 in the air, home gyms have become more popular then ever.

While the demand for home gym equipment is certainly at an all time high, now is also the perfect time to start or expand a home gym. One positive outcome that has come out of this pandemic, is the increase in fitness equipment/gym retailers. This is great for consumers as the options are now endless with a lot of variety and choices.

While not everyone has the space or budget for a home gym, the great thing about them is that there’s so much that can be done that can fit each space and budget. While we personally recommend buying higher quality items that last a lifetime (buy once cry once), often cheaper items are great for short term solutions as well.

Some benefits of a home gym include:

• No commute
• Better focused workouts with no distractions
• No waiting for equipment or having to change your workout routine because of machine availability
• No need to worry about the sweat/blood/dandruff/urine/vomit of a stranger (just your own)
• Better consistency for workouts
• Able to dial down workouts better, and improve more quickly on the limited exercises
• Can listen to whichever song or podcast as loud as you like
• No need to put back weights (we like to put them back though)
• Your home gym can grow over time as you get a higher budget/bigger space
• Depending on the items, home gym equipment does hold its value relatively well (this does depend on a few factors including what it is, the brand, what shape it’s in etc.)
• It’s something that the whole family can use and even pitch in towards
• Can be cost effective if you factor in the savings over the long run for gym memberships
• However, nothing beats the convenience of a home gym. Many of us workout after a long day of work and it’s very easy to skip the 15 commute to the gym and the workout itself to relax on the couch.

Of course home gyms aren’t for everyone as there are some downsides as well:

• Lack of social aspect
• Need to be self-motivated (some people require external motivation and seeing other fit individuals often helps, and there’s nothing wrong with this)
• The number of exercises could be limited
• Short term cost could potentially be high

We personally believe that the benefits of home gyms outweigh the limited drawbacks. Often times home gym equipment is purchased with the intent of using it but it ends up being unused or used for other purposes like drying clothes instead. To prevent this, one suggestion we’ve found is to aim for a specific cost per use for the home gym. Lets say that you spent $1,000 on furnishing your new home gym, and would like to bring the cost per use down to $5/use. Divide the $1,000 by $5 and you get 200. Meaning that when you reach 200 workouts you will have effectively brought the cost/use of the gym down to $5. This is just one motivational strategy that we’ve found that works really well, especially for pricier items. One of the most positive aspects of a home gym is the convenience and therefore time savings. At the end of the day you only have so much time, and why commute the 10-30+ minute commute to and from the gym every day which certainly does add up over time, and why not use that extra time for the workout itself. Coop from Garage Gym Review put it perfectly "With a home gym, you can work out twice as much in half the time. This is the most overlooked benefit".

Make 2021 the year that you accomplish all your fitness goals regardless of the pandemic.