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Turn Your Flex Space Into a Workout Room

February 18, 2022
Published by Garrette Custom Homes

The past couple of years have seen people reconsidering a lot of elements of their lifestyle, including gym memberships that often go to waste. It’s not that you don’t have the desire to exercise and stay healthy, but the hassle of having to leave home or remember to take your workout gear with you often makes it easy to skip your visit, so you pay a lot of money for  a service you don’t use. However, if you’ve purchased or are thinking about purchasing one of our Puget Sound homes, you’ll find that our homes typically come with a flex room and there’s no reason a flex room can’t become your own personalized home gym.

Whether upstairs in a bonus room or downstairs in a flex room, or in a finished basement level with plenty of room for a guest suite and a workout room, our home designs, whether standard or as an option, provide plenty of space for you to have a dedicated workout room that is filled with the equipment best suited to your preferred workout.

If you already have some equipment, think about the type of exercise you do regularly. The key is to make sure you have enough space for each exercise without having to move equipment. The more you have to move things out of the way, the less likely you’re going to follow through.

For example, you may do a combination of treadmill or stationary bike along with weights and floor exercises. You need to arrange the room to allow for each workout to be comfortable and have enough space. Consider putting the treadmill or bike somewhere with a window view unless you prefer to watch tv while working out. Then you want to make sure you have an easy view of the TV with nothing in the way..

In fact, having a TV mounted on the wall is a great idea, whether simply for entertainment to get you through a workout or for video workouts that give you the chance to change things up so you don’t get bored with the same routines.

Speaking of video workouts, while some floor exercises like yoga and pilates don’t require extensive floor space, other cardio workouts like dance or kickboxing style workouts may require more floor space so you don’t accidentally run into equipment or run out of space. Keep this in mind when laying out your workout room.

If you don’t have any equipment and are starting from scratch, you don’t have to break the bank putting together a solid workout room. Start with a yoga mat, which can be useful for a variety of exercise formats. Get a pair of resistance bands for stretching and strength training, and consider either a few hand weights in low and medium weights, depending on your current ability, or go with a couple of kettle balls in different weights for another weight lifting workout, as well as an addition for body weight workouts. A foam roller is also nice to have to massage and stretch tight muscles.

If you want to add machines like you find in a gym, look for second-hand items. There are some stores that specifically sell used exercise equipment, but you can also find items listed on various resale websites locally. This is a good way to save some money and help you build your home gym over time.

Finally, don’t forget the smaller things that make your flex room into a real gym. Put up full-length mirrors to check your form. If you don’t install a TV, at least have somewhere you can put a laptop or tablet where you can easily see workout videos or listen to music playlists. Consider keeping a small fridge and a basket of towels in the room, too. This way you always have a refreshing cold drink to keep you hydrated and a towel to help mop up the sweat when you really get going. Best of all, you can paint and decorate any way you like. Make it a room you feel happy spending time in so that you’re more inclined to use it.

When you don’t have to leave your Puget Sound homes, it makes it a little easier to stick to a workout routine, especially if you have a room that is ready to go at any time, day or night. You should be able to go in, warm up and start working out without spending time setting things up to get the most out of your flex room turned personalized home gym. Check out our home designs to find the plan with the ideal space for your own workout room.

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This post was written by Garrette Custom Homes