Clicking on any of the pictures below will take you to the corresponding products on Amazon. Jason is an affiliate with Amazon and any purchases you make by using these links will go to financially supporting Jason's work. 

Setting Up a Home Gym

A lot of people get into a home gym by buying the latest machine or device that is supposed to be the next best thing. One thing I've found though, is that you can't beat the versatility and durability of a good old fashioned squat cage. If you have some basic knowledge of how to workout, you can set a squat cage up to spot you during your lifts so you don't have to worry about dropping a bar on your neck or collapsing under the weight during squats. With a good barbell, some weights, and a squat cage, you can get in about 80% of your gym exercises. And some would argue, 100% of the results.

It's important to get the right type of bar. Some barbells support more weight than others, while some come with spinning sleeves. For instance, if you're going to be lifting relatively light weight, you can get away with spending less money on a bar, but I'd still recommend that you get one that has bearings in the sleeves so that there is less wear and tear on your joints. I have a few links down below of some bars and racks that seem to like a pretty good deal. Do your research, and these links are by now means the only or best options for you. They are a starting place for you to find the right piece of equipment for you.   

The Bench

The bench is probably the most identifiable part of a gym. Everyone knows what a benchpress is, and the most common question people ask someone when they see that they workout is, "How much do you bench?" So, on that note, when buying a bench, make sure that whatever you get is first sturdy and able to take at least 700 lbs or so of pressure. Secondly, it is able to adjust from incline to flat. After all, in a home gym set up, you're going to have a limits on how much room you can use. If you have a versatile bench, you'll not only be able to use it for different angles, but you'll be able to actually MOVE around your gym because you'll have more space. If you have limitless space, then I'd recommend that you have separate benches for separate purposes-it'll save you from moving the benches around. Most of us aren't lucky enough to be able to afford that much space though. So if this is the case, then go for a sturdy and adjustable bench like the one down below. This bench is a suggestion only, and if you read the reviews, it seems as if it meets the specifications I'm speaking of. Take a look by clicking on it if you wish and read the reviews on Amazon. 

Why Can't Gyms Have More of These? 

One thing that has always frustrated me, are gyms that refuse to keep their equipment in working order. Most gyms, it seems, have very little enthusiasm when it comes to replacing bent or broken barbells or dumbbells. A gym I was at the other day had a bar that resembled a caterpillar more than an Olympic Barbell. lol. On this note, one small investment that gyms seem to shy away from are proper collars for the Olympic barbells. They are cheap-as you can see on the right-and these collars, Lock-Jaw Collars, are among the best and most reliable that I've seen, but instead of using these, many gyms still persist in using the old useless springs that loosen so much over time that they really become more of a liability than a secure fastening device. So one thing I've come up with is to have a set of these in your gym bag so that when you go to the gym you're not stuck doing the Indiana Jones search for the Holy Grail just to keep your weights from falling off the bar. There's nothing more frustrating than wandering around a gym like a zombie looking for brains so that you can find proper bar clips just so you can get started on a set of barbell curls. lol. Either way, just a suggestion. These are the best I've used so far. Happy training! 

The Shoes I Wear

When I was a beginner, I'd wear any type of shoe to the gym. In some instances, I'd develop knee pain because of an elevated or unstable heal that is common in running shoes, but of course at least the running shoes had the nice flashy colors. After a few years, I connected the dots between knee pain and the wrong shoe, and since then, I've always squatted or trained legs in a flat shoe. The Addidas skate shoe is my favourite so far. (See down below) Since wearing these in my leg workouts and around town, I've found the perfect shoe for in the gym and out. The other shoe that is quite common to wear are the Converse All Stars. (See below) Either way, as long as it's a flat bottom shoe, you can't go wrong.