The Greatest House Exercise Tools You Can Purchase in 2024

The Greatest House Exercise Tools You Can Purchase in 2024


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One of our testers using a rowing machine.

Fitness goals

Okay, bad news: There’s no magical piece of equipment that’ll work for everyone’s individual fitness preferences and goals. But some products target lots of different muscle groups in a single workout, and we think they’re worth considering for your new space. “Tonal offers amazing pieces of equipment that allow you to perform a wide array of exercises to target muscles throughout the entire body,” says Dr. Calabrese. For another versatile heavy hitter, Dr. McCartney says rowers are a great piece of equipment to include in a home gym.

How we test fitness equipment

If you could take a peek behind the curtain, you’d see that a lot happens to make sure we’re really picking the best home workout equipment. To find these products, SELF’s vetted team of testers tries hundreds of fitness products and tests for various performance criteria, including durability, the “ACE” factor, and footprint. (For a detailed breakdown of everything we consider, check out our full fitness-testing methodology.)

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One of our testers folding a treadmill to reduce its footprint.

Footprint

Home gym equipment should ideally be easy to move around. We included some products that are lighter weight, easy to store, and foldable. Basically, we don’t want future-you to have to ping everyone in your group chat for help when you want to rearrange your gym.

Durability

When you’re shopping for the best home gym equipment, you want it to last! For that reason, we push each piece of equipment past its limits (think: loading a barbell with 1,000 pounds and dropping it from 6 feet high to see if the equipment gets damaged) to test how much the products can take.

The ACE Factor

This refers to “adjustability, customizability, and ergonomics,” all of which are important factors in making sure a product works for as many people as possible. We want to know if a product can accommodate different body sizes, if it’s personalizable, and if speed or other specs can be changed easily.

FAQs

TL;DR? We get that sometimes you just want fast facts to help you make a quick choice. To summarize some of the most important info about picking the best home workout equipment, we’ve shared some of the most frequently asked questions; if you skip everything else, read this.

What basic home gym equipment do I need?

Dr. Calabrese recommends kettlebells, dumbbells, and resistance bands for basic home gym equipment because they’re small, easy to move, and cost effective. We recommend the Bells of Steel kettlebells, Rep Fitness dumbbells, and Living.Fit resistance bands [links for all] above.

What is the most effective home exercise equipment?

Dr. McCartney recommends rowers as the most effective home exercise equipment because they provide a full-body workout; research has found that they can target around 80% of the body’s muscles at a time. Our testers like the Hydrow Wave and Concept2 RowErg. Dr. Calabrese says smart home gyms like the Tonal can also be efficient pieces of equipment, given that they offer workouts that can target multiple muscle groups at a time.

How much does a full home gym machine cost to set up?

The cost for a full home gym can vary from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars depending on what and how many pieces of equipment you’re buying. But whether your gym includes a jump rope and a yoga mat or a treadmill, rower, and elliptical, the most important piece of the equation is whether or not you use it. When it comes to exercise, “consistency is the key,” says Dr. Calabrese. “The ability to have something in the convenience of your own home will definitely increase the chances of staying consistent.”

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