Home Gym

NicheG

Wondering if anyone can help me but I'm looking to get a shed into the backgarden where I can put a few pieces of gym equipment in.
I had in mind:Dip/Chin Bars, Squat Rack, Bench and with enough room then to store various other free weights as well.
Not sure what shed size I'm looking for but it will obviously have to be larger than your normal (new house with average sized back garden) 8ft x 6ft shed, which I think is about as small as they come.
Has anyone got something similar in their back garden and what other fixtures would I be looking to install (reinforced floor mats etc etc).

Cheers for any advice.

EileenG

Don't know if it will help, but I build a home gym in my small spare room. Cleared out all furniture, put in a couple of big mirrors, some protective tiling on the floor, and a bench press, a selection of barbells and dumbbells that I could adjust, a swiss ball, an old tool box that held collars and bits and could be used for step-ups etc, and a ghetto blaster playing lots of Guns 'n Roses.

BrianD3

Are you going for a full cage/rack? In terms of dimensions for your shed IMO you'll need at least 1 foot each side of the bar for comfort, so you're looking at a 9+ feet wide shed. The cage or rack will be probably 4-4.5 feet wide so you'll probably have a fair amount of free space each side of the cage for storing plates and other bits.

I'd say a depth of 9+ feet would also be needed so there is adequate space outside the cage for doing deadlifts.

As you are building a shed for your gym presumably you can specifiy any height you want within reason. If it were me I would get an extra high roof so there's the option of using an 8 feet high full cage rather than the usual ~7 feet high ones. An 8 feet cage would be much better for chinups as if you are fairly average height you will be able to hang fully stretched whereas with the lower cages (which are designed with a normal height ceiling in mind) you won't.

NicheG

Cheers fo the advice guys.
Unfortunately not enough spare rooms in the house to convert into a gym. Have thought about an attic conversion as one of my neighbours has done and managed to put some bench equipment in. Had a look at it and was impressed. Mind you he spent €10k plus on the conversion.
I'm really only looking to spend about a grand max on a bigger than normal wooden shed.
I think I would need a least a height of 10ft if I'm looking to put a decent chin up bar in. My only concern at the moment is reinforcing the floor space for possible acidents; dropping weights etc.
Obviously will need a light source but that should'nt be a problem wiring up. Might give a couple of local carpenters a call to see if I can get one custom made. Would defintely consider raising my budget to get one built that would suit.

BrianD3

re: the floor, a lot of people put wooden sheds up on some blocks this means that the floor may not be very well supported in places. However I have seen sheds where someone took the trouble to dig out the soil and laid a flat concrete foundation for the shed to sit flat on, this would probably be a lot better for your puposes although it would add a lot of expense. Also, a mate of mine has a metal shed that has a floor made of patio slabs (the shed has no floor of its own) there was a fair bit of work making a level floor out of the slabs.

Hanley

The best bet for the floor is to lay a solid layer of concrete, stick the shed on top of it, and build a platform in the shed.

My guess for dimensions would be something like 12x10, tho at a stretch you could probably pull off 10x10. (based off an 8x8 platform, 4 foot rack and a bit of safe space!!)

Remember, if you intend pressing overhead you need to account for the length of your arms extended over head and AT LEAST an extra foot for the plates at the lowest part (to be safe).

I can't wait to have my own home with a garden so I can stick a gym in it!!

NicheG

BrianD3 wrote: »

re: the floor, a lot of people put wooden sheds up on some blocks this means that the floor may not be very well supported in places. However I have seen sheds where someone took the trouble to dig out the soil and laid a flat concrete foundation for the shed to sit flat on, this would probably be a lot better for your puposes although it would add a lot of expense. Also, a mate of mine has a metal shed that has a floor made of patio slabs (the shed has no floor of its own) there was a fair bit of work making a level floor out of the slabs.

I had a look in the local paper yesterday at various trade adverts and saw a steel shed for approx €1,600. Initially I thought it was a bit steep but I guess you're talking about durability and no requirement to stick a coat of varnish on it to preserve it every other year. So could be a good investment if it allowed me just to stick down a concrete floor. In work here they've just finished building further office space and I asked the builders if they would'nt mind giving me any of the left over carpet tiles which I could throw down on top.

NicheG

Hanley wrote: »

The best bet for the floor is to lay a solid layer of concrete, stick the shed on top of it, and build a platform in the shed.

My guess for dimensions would be something like 12x10, tho at a stretch you could probably pull off 10x10. (based off an 8x8 platform, 4 foot rack and a bit of safe space!!)

Remember, if you intend pressing overhead you need to account for the length of your arms extended over head and AT LEAST an extra foot for the plates at the lowest part (to be safe).

I can't wait to have my own home with a garden so I can stick a gym in it!!

I think possibly the 10x10 is probably just about right based on your suggested equipment dimensions (as well as the fact that the GF would bate the head off me if I take up the whole garden). Obviously I'll be sourcing the equipment first before I decide on which structure (steel/wood) and size.
But all good advice from everyone.
Cheers again.

Roper

I'd say go with the steel shed. The floors in the wooden sheds are too spongy and then you'd be talking about reinforcing the floor which would be extra expense after that.

Have you thought about getting one built out of blocks? Then you could pick your dimensions and have that concrete floor too.

blazingsaddles

Always, always include a medicine ball, great for core and a great warm up doing a few slams or wall throws

NicheG

blazingsaddles wrote: »

Always, always include a medicine ball, great for core and a great warm up doing a few slams or wall throws

Good idea. Only for the fact that we have a little sh1t of jack russell (that they never let leave their back garden) next door to us that barks at the sound of a gentle breeze. I could just imagine what he would be like with medicine ball banging against a wall (as I hope to have the shed built against our partition).

dave80

NicheG wrote: »

Good idea. Only for the fact that we have a little sh1t of jack russell (that they never let leave their back garden) next door to us that barks at the sound of a gentle breeze. I could just imagine what he would be like with medicine ball banging against a wall (as I hope to have the shed built against our partition).

you could always throw the medicine ball over the wall and hit him by accident!:D

Hanley

Or just throw the dog against the wall...






















....too far??

rubadub

If I was doing it I would build the shed myself, this way you could incorporate stuff into the actual structure itself, e.g. have dip bars coming from the actual walls, in the corner you could span a bar across from one wall to the other at a 45degree angle for chinning. You could also possibly make a rack which is using the shed structure for most of its support.

If you click my signature link it is a sticky for a forum, click to get into the forum "training equipment", and there is another stickie with pics of home gym setups, might give you some ideas.

NicheG

rubadub wrote: »

If I was doing it I would build the shed myself, this way you could incorporate stuff into the actual structure itself, e.g. have dip bars coming from the actual walls, in the corner you could span a bar across from one wall to the other at a 45degree angle for chinning. You could also possibly make a rack which is using the shed structure for most of its support.

If you click my signature link it is a sticky for a forum, click to get into the forum "training equipment", and there is another stickie with pics of home gym setups, might give you some ideas.

Some great ideas there. However one step at a time. You're talking to a chap here who outsources everything to do with home improvements. Some even say I won't change a light bulb myself. Well not strictly true!!
Ironically, the next door neighbour who owns the dog is a builder; I might ask him would he do me a deal?