Best Budget Garage Gym Equipment of 2023

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We've all had to make adjustments to keep ourselves and the people around us safe, and one of the biggest changes has been to our weekly fitness routines. While there are plenty of no-equipment ways of staying fit, they're not the ideal solution for everyone.

This is especially true for those who prefer weight training as it's particularly hard to replicate the same variety of stations, machines, and racks you'd find at a gym. There are effective bodyweight exercises one can do but they're not always a suitable substitute for those who consider the gym a second residence.

I'm one of those people and if you're like me, I have some good news: If you have the space for it, building a versatile weightlifting station in your home or garage is both easy and affordable — so long as you know what equipment to focus on.

Below is a guide to building a basic weight training setup that allows you to target all the muscle groups you're used to working on, all while keeping equipment costs to a minimum. It's intended to help home-bound bodybuilders construct a home gym setup that offers a full-body workout without the steep costs that often come with it.

Fitness Gear Pro Half Rack

The centerpiece of this operation is a versatile rack that facilitates as much movement as possible without locking you into specific functions. Squat racks typically do the trick since they feature multiple points of rack height that can be used for different exercises — no matter if you need to stand, sit, or lay down on a bench.

A rack is also the most intimidating part to shop for since most of the setups you find online are huge power racks with equally huge asking prices. My choice was this Fitness Gear Pro Squat Rack that's set to do all I need without a scary cost.

The added safety bars help me work out alone with confidence and it's easy to quickly adjust the pegs between exercises.

Other racks to consider:

Fitness Gear 300 lb. Olympic Weight Set

Weights also typically come with a hesitation-inducing price tag, mainly due to the fact you need so many for even a modest selection. Thankfully, Fitness Gear's 300 lb. Olympic Weight Set alleviates a lot of that sticker shock (even if they don't look exactly like what you're used to). Some of its weights are dimensionally smaller than their gym counterparts but they weigh the same and that's what ultimately counts.

The barbell is a standard 7-foot, 45 lb. bar that accommodates plates with a 2-inch diameter hole. Spring clips are also included.

Even if you normally max out certain exercises at a higher weight, this 300-pound kit still gives you plenty to work with, especially if you're mixing things up. If you feel the need to upgrade and your chosen rack can handle it, improving your kit is as easy as buying a few new weight plates.

The main drawback is that, as a standard set of iron weights, they aren't meant to be tossed around or dropped like rubberized plates. Slamming them or doing an overhead lift that you might need to bail from is likely to damage them (or the ground), so be mindful of this when mapping out a routine.

Other weight sets to consider:

Fitness Gear Fixed Flat Weight Bench

A simple bench rounds out a core home gym setup since having something to sit or lay down on makes all the difference when diversifying workouts. And when it's paired with the rack and barbell set, you've got a complete full-body workout unit.

This bench from Fitness Gear yet again features a more manageable price tag, too. It won't be able to fold up to create an incline or completely vertical bench but it does work well for a variety of exercises like bench press and dumbbell flys.

Other benches to consider:

As you complete your set, there are a few things you might want to consider adding, depending on where your home gym is located and how your strength gains progress. Here are some examples of extras to consider:

Some time ago, I decided to put the tiny, shed-like garage in the back of my house to good use and constructed a mini gym. My goal was to build something capable of supplementing the training I often did elsewhere and that would suffice when getting to the gym was difficult, or for when I wanted to train in private.

Along with not having much space to work with, I wasn't ready to drop loads of cash I didn't have on a pricey, sophisticated power rack with a ton of moving parts. By sticking to the fundamentals, I was able to put together an inexpensive setup that gives me a diverse number of options when it comes to different exercises.

Now, whatever I'm used to doing at the gym I can do at home, and even when I can't, it's still designed to provide a worthy alternative. It's a setup that's good for beginners and intermediate lifters, and can even help advanced trainers maintain their fitness — all while keeping the price tag as low as possible.

With your new setup, you might find yourself experimenting with loads of different exercises — and you should. Just keep in mind that while this gear allows you to do certain movements, it might not be the best idea.

First, trying something new that's beyond your level of strength and coordination could lead to trouble, so start anything you do with a lighter weight.

You'll also want to consider the specific type of your equipment. If you have a standard set of iron weights, you're able to do things like power cleans, split jerks, and all the fun movements you'd see at your local CrossFit spot. However, it's far safer if you don't.

If you're alone in the garage and something happens, there's no one to bail you out of danger. And on the subject of bailing, many of those types of exercises ask you to drop the barbell and step away when there's a slip-up. It's one thing to do that in a big warehouse where rubberized weights can bounce away without harming your gear or anything else — it's another to send your iron equipment crashing down on itself in your confined garage space.

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