Best Home Gym

What are the requirements for the best home gym?

Gives results
Can perform many exercises with it
Compact; doesn't take up much room to use or store
Can be expanded as your strength grows
Affordable

The first thing you want to consider is what type of resistance the home gym has; cable and weight stack; your own body weight; power rod or rubber band; or free weights.

Free-weight exercises are MUCH more effective for building muscle. Anything that uses barbells, dumbbells or kettle bells is going to be far better, and if I had to only pick one out of the three, dumbbells are the best.

Dumbbell routines work every body part separately, meaning the stronger side can't compensate for the weaker, as can happen with barbells. You have to use more muscles (stabilizing muscles) to help support the weight and exercise with proper form. Stick with dumbbell exercises like squats, deadlifts, presses and rows.

Next you need a way to do pull-ups and dips and a bench for pressing exercises. You can do all this with the Ironmaster package 3:

As shown above the Ironmaster package #3 includes everything you need for the perfect home gym. The quick-Lock dumbbells go up to 75 pounds each and can be adjusted by using 2.5lb or 5lb plates. The dumbbells can be expanded to 160lbs each! Read the Ironmaster Quick Lock Dumbbell review here.

Package 3 comes with the Super Bench with the crunch situp, pullup and dip attachment. Read more about the Ironmaster Super Bench here. The whole package #3 can fit in a closet:

You can get a complete upper and lower body workout with package #3. Check out this workout poster. An additional leg exercise not illustrated on the poster is bench step ups. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and place one foot on the super bench and step up; repeat with the other leg.

Here's a complete full body dumbbell workout

What about Cardio?

You can even do cardio with the Ironmaster dumbbells. The following two exercises will get your heart rate up.

Dumbbell Squat & Press

Photo courtesy of Truth About Abs

Dumbbell One Arm Swings

Photo courtesy of Truth About Abs

Conclusion

If I was forced to sell my garage gym equipment, out of everything I have I would keep the Ironmaster dumbbells and super bench. They were my first purchases for my home gym, and by far the best purchase.

Buy yours here.