5 Ideas For Home Gyms
With all the delicious meals and treats we eat during the holiday season, it’s the perfect time of year to get set up for home workouts. It’s even better when it feels like a high-end gym or wellness space. This post includes 5 ideas for home gyms that include layout, storage, lighting, audio-visual equipment, color choices and flooring.
By incorporating high-quality fitness equipment, natural lighting and calming color palettes, you encourage both body and mind to thrive. Transforming an unused space into a home gym or wellness area can support a healthier lifestyle heading into the new year. Whether you’re into yoga, strength training, or relaxation, discover how to craft a wellness retreat that rivals top-tier fitness centers.
We’ve pulled together some ideas we employed at some of our renovation projects here in metro Atlanta. Here are 5 ideas for home gyms and wellness spaces.
1. Get Real About Your Home Workouts
First things first: Think carefully about all the types of workouts you like to do at home. Whether you’re a Peloton fan, like free weights or you’re a yogi, make a list of every piece of equipment you want to have at home. This will be important for space planning. Your best ideas for home gyms will come from thinking through how you’d like to work out at home.
Here are some examples of what to consider for different types of workouts:
- If you like to Zoom into Zumba class, you’ll need ample floor space to ensure you won’t be crashing into anything.
- For those who use floor weights, consider where they’ll be stored. It’s important to keep them out of the way so they aren’t a tripping hazard, and that a weight rack has proper support beneath it to handle the weight.
- If a treadmill is a part of your equipment, do not place it in a spot with a wall directly behind it. You don’t want to get stuck between the moving track and the wall if you fall.
- If more than one household member will be working out at the same time, consider those logistics.
- If you practice yoga, you’ll want the space around you to feel open, airy and not at all cramped. Natural light is also lovely to have in a yoga space.
- If you’re installing a barre, a chin-up bar or resistance equipment, you’ll need the appropriate amount of support in the walls.
- Make an inventory of other items you’d like to store in your gym. Cabinets, hooks, benches and cubbies can provide space for items like towels, shoes, resistance bands, yoga bocks, small handheld weights and more.
- Consider a small fridge to keep waters close at hand.
2. Be Thoughtful About Lighting
Home gyms need ample lighting and you’ll also want to be able to change it up. Put overhead lights on dimmers for more relaxing activities such as meditation, soft stretching and yoga. Another alternate layer of light can be used specifically for calmer exercising, such as wall sconces. Also, if possible, make the most of natural light in a home gym space.
Lots of home gyms are located in basements, so natural light is not always an option. One way to help maximize the light is with large mirrors. Many home gyms have expansive mirrors for checking form, but a secondary benefit to them is that they bounce the light around the room.
Also, consult with your electrician about well-placed fans. No matter how good your climate control system is, if you’re someone who wants the extra breeze, caged fan fixtures are a good option for home gyms.
3. Integrate Home Gym Audio Visual Equipment
Ideas for home gyms also come from thinking about what you like to watch or listen to while you work out. Whether you want to blast your favorite tunes, install a smart fitness mirror, catch up on your stories while you’re on the elliptical or practice yoga with Adrienne on YouTube, audio-visual equipment is an important part of home gyms and wellness spaces.
Once you’ve completed your space planning, think about where you’ll be when you want to catch something on a TV screen. Many of our clients opt for an adjustable arm so they can angle the TV for proper viewing.
If designing your home gym or wellness space is part of a home renovation, consider installing speakers in the ceiling to maximize the sound. Also, make sure you’ve extended the WiFi into your home gym space for streaming music, workouts and TV shows.
Also, consider electrical outlets for your home gym. It’s important to use a licensed electrician to meet safety codes. For convenience, adding ports for charging personal devices while you’re working out is a smart option.
4. Consider Home Gym Colors Carefully
Choosing colors for your home gym is a very personal choice. For example, we don’t see a raspberry accent wall all that often, but a home gym is a great spot for it. In fact, an energizing color like this can help get you in the groove for an intense workout.
Vibrant and saturated can be energizing. Some suggestions include:
- Red
- Yellow
- Orange
- Violet
- Turquoise
- Raspberry
On the flip side, you may want colors that lend a more Zen-like feel. For example, in a room where you want to practice yoga and meditation, a calming color is appropriate. Colors that will calm the mind include organic, nature-inspired and pastel hues. Colors to consider include:
- Sage green
- Creams and tans
- Warm grays
- Quiet blues
- Earthy tones like terracotta
5. Pick the Right Home Gym Flooring
Flooring in a home gym needs to have several qualities.
- It has to be durable to stand up to heavy equipment and weights.
- It’s important that it is non-slip and provides good grip.
- A bit of cushioning in the surface is good for your joints.
“In a home gym space, a thick rubber flooring is best,” Innovative Design and Build designer Sabrina Brown says. “This is especially if you are adding a gym to your garage or basement that has a concrete floor. You’ll need a nice layer of cushion for heavier weights.”
We hope these 5 Ideas for home gyms and wellness spaces. If you’d like professional help remodeling, please contact us for a free remodeling consultation. Our design team will help you inventory what you’d like to install in your gym, how you’d like to light it, consult on color choices, come up with storage solutions, install audio-visual components and make it all feel the way you’d like it to.
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