We are riding the wave of gyms opening and closing. Stores are allowing you to come in one day and the next we are fully shut down again. Wether you like it or not, this is the new reality for the time being. And I get it… you are frustrated because you want to jump in on ZOOM classes but you feel like you dont have the right weights (or any at all) or you are bummed because a killer workout you see on this site or on your friends feed feels just out of reach because you lack equipment. Well here is a definitive guide to everything you will need to stay up on your fitness at home.
When Cristin and I started our first gym we had very little equipment. A couple dumbbells , kettlebells, a heavy tire, some jump ropes, a pull up bar (Home Depot special), and a rower. Slowly we started training up to 6 people with very little equipment, getting more and more creative each day. While we have grown immensely since those early days over 12 years ago, the root of all the programming can still be utilized with minimal equipment. Ive helped countless people build garage set ups and usually under 500$.
The ZOOM life is with us for a while and just as you are frustrated with you cheap ass 2lb. rubber weights from Wal Mart, I also am upset that many of y’all have not invested in a proper set up to tag along and get fit with me. So here it is, the easiest and most diverse gym set up for your home.
1. A set of moderately heavy Dumbbells.
For men I recommend 40’s or 50’s. For women I recommend 25’s or 35’s . And before you gasp at the weights I will say that even if you usually go lighter, I promise you you will grow into them. You may need to cut reps but strength and power are built by overloading the body. You will keep these suckers working for you for years instead of regretting the lack of weight later on.
Secondly, you can use dumbbells for a MILLION different workouts. In lieu of a barbell, these work great AND they challenge your midline and balance by adding the difficulty of unilateral and unbalanced external load. Basically, you will get stronger, faster.
2. Jump Rope .
Before we had all the rowers, runners, bikes, and other contraptions in the gym, there was the Jump Rope. Agility, Balance, Plyometrics, and Cardio are all accomplished with this one piece of equipment. And if you dont think there is a ton of different workouts you can do with a Jump Rope, think again.
Just go to You Tube and check out the all time great Buddy Lee . He will show you that there is a lot more than just swinging the rope around the body!! Seriously badass.
The jump rope fits everywhere. I mean there cannot be a more practical training tool for your home gym. You dont need any space at all and the results you get are a full body workout with a ton of variation. This is why its #2 on my list.
3. Pull Up Bar.
No matter what you say, mastering the pull up has huge effects on your quality of life and I would venture to say that how well you perform the exercise says a lot about you as an athlete.
If you have the ability to mount a bar to your wall in the garage or a door way then you never loose space on the floor. Since many of us do not have a ton of room in our garages or if you live in an apartment, this is huge. Once again, there are a ton of different ways to play with the pull up bar. When buying or building your own, please by some resistance bands as well. The bands will allow you to work your way through difficult gymnastic movements in isometrics, eccentric and dynamic pulling.
4. Gymnastic Rings.
Another way to utilize the pull up bar in your set up is to have a versatile tool to hang from it. The rings are adjustable from ground height to head heights which meant that you can do ring push ups, L sit holds, Ring Rows/Dips and even scale the Pull Up with the Australian Pull up variation.
Gymnasts have the best bodies in the world because they train to have complete control over all muscles in both static and dynamic motion. The rings will give you the opportunity to work your body from the ground up.
Additionally, having the unstable and unilateral strength developed through ring use makes your core the Strongest it could possibly be.
5. Heavy Sandbag or Stone.
Nothing mimics life like a Heavy ass object. What I LOVE about the stone is two fold.
1) The stone uses Internal torque VS. External Rotation and stabilization. This means that by grasping an object into the belly ‘internally’ we activate the entire ring of midline stabilizers and creates a back and belly that are bulletproof.
2) They are awkward as hell. By lifting a stone or sandbag you have to manipulate your body to the object VS. using a perfectly weighted and balanced Barbell. I believe that this helps to prevent injuries and makes you more of a useful human being in the long run.
Additionally, I have proven that if you love Olympic Lifting, Sandbag training will increase your PR. Yes, 150# of dead weight up and over your shoulder will teach you more about rapid and powerful hip extension than spending years and money on Olympic Lifting Coaches.
This is my list of economical pieces that you should add to your garage or apartment gym NOW. If you care about getting stronger and more fit, there is no excuse why you shouldn’t prioritize this. We are going to be doing the Quarantine dance for a while still so dont loose out any more.
As a side note, I struggles with the Kettlebell making the top 5. If you know me, I believe that it is the best damn training tool out there. Why it didn’t make the list is because the functionality of the Dumbbell for beginners outweighs the benefits of the KB. Once you know how to use a KB to its full extent then you will find that the tools are interchangeable .
I love you all . When you are ready to buy please think of checking out Again Faster or X Training for your equipment. Tell them Eric Sent you ….
In Strength,
Eric
Programming Notes 7/13-7/17 *** This is week 7 of the Sprint Block . In leiu of the fact that many of us train alone at home, Ive put some weighted elements in the programming Tuesday to stimulate the muscles before sprinting. If you have a partner who can provide support with a banded buddy pull or a sled then use that.
7/13
Baseline:
3X
400m Run
6 Reverse Hand Push Ups
8 Elbow TO Instep Lunges
10 Jump Squats
Squat Flow: Squat Flow: Kang Squat, Internal Rotation, Ankle Roll Out, Bootstraps, PNF Stretch, Squat W/ T Spine Stretch
Clean Warm Up:
7 @ Each
-Barbell Good Mornings
-Barbell Romanian Deadlift
-Barbell Muscle Clean
-Hang Power Clean + Press
-Front Squat + Push Press
-Pausing Squat Clean + Jerk
Clean Power Intervals:
5 X on the 3:00
2X High Hang Squat Clean
2X Hang Squat Clean
2X Squat Clean
Conditioning:
For Time
800m Weight Vest Run
20 Pull Up
20 Sandbag Squat
400m Weight Vest Run
15 Pull Up
15 Sandbag Squat
200m Weight Vest Run
10 Pull Up
10 Sandbag Squat
7/14
Baseline:
Agility Warm Up @ 10m Each
High Knee Pull
Quad Pull
Squat 180 **stepping the leg high over hip, swing opposite leg to 180, squat
High Knees
Butt kickers
Marching High Kicks
Groiners
Straight leg shuffles
A Skip
B Skip
Fig 4 Drill
Lateral Shuffle
Carioca
Lateral Bounding
Sprint W/ Change of Direction
Skil Development:
4X
8 DB Renegade Row
16 Weighted Glute bridges
8 DB Renegade Row
16 2X DB Snatch
Sprint WOD: #7
5 Rounds
4X 1.5 Squat Jumps + 200m Sprint
Rest 2:00 Between
5 Rounds
4X 6 Lump Lunges + 100m Sprint
Rest 2:00 Between
7/15
Baseline:
3X
20 Cal Bike
10 Muscle Clean
10 Barbell Good Mornings
10 barbell Side Lunges
Shoulder Prep:
10 @
Banded Pull Aparts
Banded Pass Thru
Banded Bench Press
Banded Press and Rip
Banded Reverse Flys
Pressing Skill:
Every 2:00 for 5 Rounds
3 X Pausing Push Jerks
2X Alternating Split Jerks
WOD:
“The Chief”
3 Power Clean 135/95
6 Push Up
9 Squats
7/16
4X
10 Squat Jacks
10 Mountain Climbers
10 Side Plank Knee to Elbow ‘L’
10 Side Plank Knee To Elbow ‘R’
10 Push Ups To Pike
Midline Strength:
Not For Time
3X
15 Strict Toe To bar
12 Ring Dip
9 Supine Ring Row
Conditioning:
40 KB Overhead Lunges
20 Cal Row
100’ Sandbag Carry
30 KB Overhead Lunge
20 Cal Row
100’ Sandbag Carry
20 KB Overhead Lunge
20 Cal Row
100’ Sandbag Carry
7/17
Baseline:
2X
12 Standing Toe Touch
12 Pineapple Pickers
12 Cossack Lunges
12 Jumping Pull Up
Hamstring Primer:
3X8
Barbell Row 135/95
Deficit Romanian Deadlift
Strength:
6 Rounds
5X Deadlift
*Across All Sets
Conditioning:
21-15-9
Overhead Squat 115/75
Bar Over Burpees
-Rest :90-
15-12-9
Power Snatch 115/75
Lateral Box Jump Overs
