Gym Equipment You Should Buy First: A Beginner's Guide
If you are reading this, you are likely considering starting your home gym fitness journey. Firstly, you are not alone; home gyms have become increasingly popular over recent years. When first purchasing gym equipment, it can often be stressful due to not knowing what equipment to start out with. Therefore, this blog post is to provide a complete beginner's guide on which gym equipment you should buy first!
Start with the Basics: What Are Your Goals?
Firstly, the gym equipment you are likely to start with is dependent on your fitness goals. So, don’t feel the need to rush into buying your first staple piece. It is important to establish your personal goals or the goals of your gym users. For example, typically, personal goals are centered around gaining strength, losing fat, or improving mobility. By basing your purchases around your fitness goals, you are setting a guide for smarter equipment investments. This means over the long term, you will get a greater value for money.
One example: If your goal is around losing fat, you are likely going to incorporate muscular endurance exercises that could be used within a HIIT workout (High-Intensity Interval Training). This means you won’t be needing heavy lifting weights. Therefore, a range of dumbbells or kettlebells may be your best option. An adjustable dumbbell or kettlebell set would be even better. You can incorporate these into many movements, e.g., shoulder presses, bench presses, raises, curls, and squats. This means you can repetitively use this equipment for different movements within the same superset or circuit. This will play a massive role in losing body fat over purchasing a strength-based piece, e.g., a 20kg Olympic barbell, which would be more beneficial for experienced lifters.
Top 5 Pieces of Gym Equipment Every Beginner Should Consider
The majority of gym equipment you will come across is made to be versatile. Therefore, your imagination and creativity should run wild. The most cost-effective method when first purchasing equipment is to utilise equipment that can be used across multiple movements. Once you get to a stage where specificity (having a specific requirement from your training) becomes greater, more specialised equipment should be considered.
In this section, we will provide a list of equipment, with a brief explanation of the exercises you can complete, what aspect of training it is good for, and what muscles it targets. Our Entry-Level Equipment can be found on our website.
Resistance bands
Resistance bands are one of, if not the most versatile, pieces of equipment we have to offer. You can use these for strength training, regression (make an exercise easier), progression (make an exercise harder), and improved mobility. They are typically sold in bundles, providing a variety of thicknesses, meaning you can use them in line with the resistance you require. You can stand on the resistance bands and perform bicep curls, shoulder presses, lateral raises, and squats. Conversely, you can attach the resistance band around a pole to aid pull-ups, complete face pulls, triceps extensions, or, if attached near the floor, front raises. These exercises hit a range of muscle groups, including the biceps, triceps, shoulders, traps, and quadriceps. Furthermore, you can use a resistance band to aid movements during pilates or yoga sessions. Ultimately, resistance bands are typically used for muscular endurance, thus aiding fat loss or improving mobility.
For more information on the versatility of resistance bands, check out our previous blog entitled 'Can I Build Muscle With Resistance Bands?'
Dumbbells
As previously mentioned, dumbbells, especially adjustable dumbbells, are also a very versatile item. The adjustable nature allows you to not only complete strength or endurance exercises but also overload progressively. Research deems progressive overload as an essential principle to maximise strength and hypertrophy. It will also mean you are getting a greater value for money, as you can progress through higher weights without having to purchase anything extra. You can use dumbbells for curls, (targeting the biceps), shoulder presses (targeting deltoids and triceps), chest presses (off the floor or bench; targeting pectorals), lateral raises, front raise & shrugs (all targeting the deltoids and traps) and goblet squats (targeting the quadriceps). You can either load the dumbbells in a way to perform strength-based training or endurance-based training.
Bench
You can use a bench for multiple purposes. Simply put, a bench is something to sit or lie on; however, this alone opens up opportunities for other exercises. You can use the bench for stability during strength training or within core stability exercises. Additionally, your options for exercises increase even more if you purchase an adjustable bench, allowing different angles of seated/lying positions. Without other items, you can complete tricep dips, glute bridges (upper back only resting on the bench), leg raises, and flutters/kicks, thus targeting the triceps, glutes, and abdominals, respectively. With other equipment, such as dumbbells, you can also complete bench press, incline bench press, seated shoulder press, or you can use the bench for arm stability during bicep curls. This means that the addition of a bench opens the opportunity to complete exercises that can increase strength or aid with fat loss.
Workout Mat
Although not typically used much within strength training, a workout mat is essential for other popular exercise modalities, such as yoga and pilates or when warming up. It provides a comfortable surface when performing stretches and movements on the floor that aids with joint protection. Typically, you would perform a range of pilates and yoga movements, such as planks or downward-facing dog. Alternatively, it can limit surface impacts when performing exercises such as burpees. Ultimately, the musculature you activate depends on the exercise you perform on the workout mat, with the majority strengthening the abdominals and obliques as well as the core musculature that supports the spine. Considering the nature of the exercises you will perform on a workout mat, it is likely to be used when aiming to improve mobility.
Pull-up bar
A pull-up bar may be perceived as less versatile than it actually is. Alone, you can perform pull-ups at a range of hand grips, e.g., narrow grip, mainly targeting the biceps, and wide grip, targeting the lats. Additionally, you can also perform core exercises such as leg and knee raises. Furthermore, if you purchase some additional equipment, such as suspension ropes, you can complete prone rows that target the arms and back musculature. You are most likely to use a pull-up bar when developing strength and hypertrophy.
Summary of equipment:
- Resistance bands
- Dumbbells
- Bench
- Workout mat/Yoga mat
- Pull-up bar
How Should I Prioritise Purchasing Home Gym Equipment?
Start smart! It is easy to get overwhelmed due to the sheer volume and price of equipment. Therefore, the key to smart buying is to start small, as we previously described. For example, there is no need to commit to a full rack of dumbbells when you can first buy an adjustable dumbbell set to start.
Focus on the versatility of the equipment you are buying. It is important to think about how each piece of equipment can complement the others. For example, a bench can be used for bodyweight exercises or in conjunction with dumbbells and/or a barbell. Similarly, resistance bands can be used with a pull-up bar to aid pull-up progression or can be used during yoga sessions with a workout mat to optimise the range of motion.
Invest in high-quality items. Here at Exersci, partners have over 35 years of engineering and manufacturing experience and work with doctoral-level sports scientists to provide high-quality, long-lasting, and durable gym equipment.
Build gradually. It is not necessary to invest in a whole bunch of gym equipment initally. You can invest in versatile and durable equipment gradually. This way, you will slowly build your collection over time. However, by buying smart and choosing versatile pieces, you will be able to train and progress while building your gym.
What Gym Equipment to Add as You Progress
As mentioned previously, you should gradually build your collection over time. As you become more experienced, you may want to start buying more specialised equipment. E.g., a barbell and squat rack.
Likewise, you may want to go down the concurrent training route, whereby you complete resistance training and endurance training (over the same time course, i.e., resistance training in the morning and endurance training in the afternoon). Considering the growing popularity of full-body endurance, you may want to opt for equipment such as the ski erg, rowing machine, or air bike.
Conclusion
To summarise, the main thing to consider when first purchasing equipment is the fitness goals you have. Once your goals are set, start with the essential equipment you need to achieve these fitness goals. Once you have set the foundations in place, you should then start gradually expanding to broaden your potential fitness gains.
Ready to start building your home gym? Browse our collection of beginner-friendly gym equipment today.
If you have any enquiries, don’t hesitate to contact us.
