Fitness is just one of several areas of our lives that have been significantly impacted by the pandemic. Many folks who routinely went to the gym in the good old days haven’t been quite as comfortable with working out in close proximity to others lately, so more and more fitness buffs have been creating their own workout spaces at home. In this post, we’ll be talking about how to set up a home workout area and also offering some tips on how to keep it decluttered.
First, identify which area of your home or apartment might be most conducive to regular workout sessions. Garages are a good first place to start, but if you don’t have one at your disposal, consider a spare bedroom, a home office or even partitioning off a portion of your living room. It needs to be a place that’s easily accessible and will be used. That will help reinforce the home-workout habit. We do recommend steering away from using your bedroom, because that’s a place you need to associate with rest and relaxation—not a strenuous workout.
To help you get your home gym set up, start by decluttering your chosen space. Whether it’s a garage or a spare room, you’ll likely have a lot of nonessential items you won’t need in your workout area. This is where having a storage unit can come in handy. It will give you an overflow space to keep your belongings while your home gym is in play. Items that you don’t store, you might consider selling or donating to charity.
Once you’ve got your gym space cleared out and ready to set up, be organizational in your approach to putting your equipment and gear in place. Group like items and equipment and make sure everything has a storage location that’s away from the center of the room. You’ll need that space for getting sweaty, right? If you plan to use a lot of free weights, consider buying a cart for storing them off the floor. Baskets can be used to store yoga mats and foam rollers. Put your resistance bands on hooks on the wall for easy access.
If you’re turning your garage into a gym, you have a little more flexibility for storage. You can install mounts and hooks and racks on the walls and on the ceiling that are suitable for holding weights, straps, ropes, bands and all kinds of gear. That way, you’re making everything accessible for your workout and also freeing up space to continue parking your car in the garage when you’re not working out.