How to Create Your Own Outdoor Gym

Who needs a gym membership when you can develop your own gym at home? Even better, why not set up your home gym outdoors? An outdoor home gym presents plenty of opportunities to adopt a healthy lifestyle without spending more than you should. You can also get the whole family to work out with you, turning exercising into a family activity.

An outdoor gym is also better than a home gym because being close to nature stimulates the mind and body. And when you’re senses are stimulated, you are likely to work harder to achieve your fitness goals.

In today’s post, we are giving you a basic guide on how to develop your yard into a fantastic outdoor gym:

Mapping out the Plans

Regardless if the yard is large or small, you can adjust the floor plan to create an outdoor gym. Start by figuring out where to build the gym. You want to create two portions of the space: one for strength training, another for weight training.

Strength training refers to exercises that require some form of resistance to strengthen the muscles. These resistance include weight machines, hand-held weights (dumbbells, kettlebell) and resistance bands. You can also use your own body weight as resistance to strengthen the muscles. Yoga and Pilates are workouts that utilize a person’s own body weight to achieve strength and flexibility.

For strength training, you can furnish the area with dumbbells, pull-up bars, etc. You may also add DIY barbells, pull-up bars, etc. You can find tutorials of these projects online.

On the other hand, weight training is a strength training exercise that use free weights or weight machines to build resistance and develop muscle definition. Ideally, you want to perform at least 20 minutes of weight training twice or thrice per week to achieve a muscular physique. The most common weight training equipment are weight benches, barbells, weight lifting bars, etc.

Clean up the Space

Remove all obstructions from the space. You want a clean, blank space for your gym equipment. If you have gym equipment at home, bring them outside for the outdoor fitness center. However, some gym equipment is sensitive to moisture or the elements. Make sure to keep the equipment in shaded areas of the yard. If you must, trim the grass so they are not in the way when you work out. Trim the trees, remove branches, relocate certain plants to clear a space for your gym equipment.

You may also pave certain areas of the yard for cardio workout. This works if you have a yard large enough for running or jogging.

Furnishing Your Outdoor Home Gym

Once you have a clean area to work with, start adding the right gym equipment to each portion of the space. For example, start adding dumbbells, kettlebells or other strength training tools to the strength training portion of the gym. The same thing goes for the weight training area. Don’t forget to add cardio tools such as jumping rope, a stationary bike, and a raised platform for aerobics.

Don’t forget to create an area reserved for miscellaneous necessities such as water bottles, towels, footwear stand, etc.