Home Fitness

Home Fitness

Home gym equipment that works in a spare room, a garage or the corner of a sitting room, covering free weights, mats, cardio, recovery and the bags to carry it all. Nothing here needs a dedicated gym floor: neoprene hex dumbbells stack quietly, soft kettlebells will not mark a wooden floor, mats roll away, and the magnetic exercise bike and walking treadmill are both sized for indoor use. Recovery has become as much a part of home training as the training itself, which is why massage guns, foam rollers, saunas and ice baths sit alongside the weights.

Fitness Weights & Dumbbells

Free weights are the cheapest way to build a home gym and the easiest to store. Neoprene covered hex dumbbells are sold in pairs from 2 x 0.5kg up to 2 x 4kg, colour coded by weight so you can grab the right pair without reading the label, and the hex shape stops them rolling away. Dual soft kettlebells come in 4kg, 6kg and 8kg with a coated shell that is kinder to floors and shins than cast iron. Medicine balls run 2kg, 3kg and 4kg for throws, twists and core work. Urban Fitness supplies the full weights range.

Yoga Mats

Mat thickness is the thing to get right. A 6mm mat gives a stable base for standing yoga poses and balance work, while a 10mm NBR mat adds cushioning that suits floor work, pilates and anyone training on a hard tiled or concrete floor. Urban Fitness covers both, in a 6mm purple mat and a 10mm NBR mat in black, plus a complete yoga kit that pairs a mat with blocks and a strap for anyone starting from nothing. An adjustable aerobic step and push up bars extend the same floor space into cardio and upper body work.

Pilates

Pilates equipment is small, light and cheap relative to what it does, which is why it suits home training so well. A pilates ring, sometimes called a magic circle, is a sprung 14 inch hoop you squeeze between the hands or knees to add resistance to core, inner thigh and arm work without any weight at all. Double handle versions give a firmer grip for upper body sets. A head block supports the neck and keeps the spine aligned during floor sequences. Fitness Mad and Urban Fitness both supply 14 inch rings, with Fitness Mad adding the Pilates Mad head block in charcoal.

Massage

Recovery tools loosen tight muscle after training and between sessions. A massage gun applies rapid percussive pressure through interchangeable heads and is the quickest way to work a specific knot, with full size, pro and mini formats depending on whether it lives at home or in a gym bag. A foam massage roller at 33cm x 14cm covers larger areas such as quads, calves and back, using body weight rather than a motor. Hyperice supplies the Hypervolt 3, Hypervolt 3 Pro and Hypervolt Go 3, Urban Fitness a full size and mini gun plus the roller, and Cecotec the BodyCare back massager.

Skipping Ropes

A skipping rope is the most portable cardio there is and the cheapest way to raise a heart rate at home. Rope length should match your height: 8ft suits shorter users, 9ft is the general purpose length, and 10ft gives taller users the clearance they need to keep a smooth turn. Speed ropes are built light and thin so the rope turns fast for double unders and interval work, rather than the heavier weighted ropes used for conditioning. Fitness Mad Yoga Mad speed ropes cover all three lengths, and a skipping rope is also included in the Urban Fight punch bag boxing kit.

Sauna & Ice Bath

Contrast therapy has moved from elite sport into home use, and both halves of it are here. A portable home sauna gives dry heat to relax muscle and open circulation after training, and folds away when not in use. An ice bath does the opposite, using cold water immersion to reduce soreness and inflammation after hard sessions, in an 80cm x 75cm tub that fills and empties in a garden or garage. Urban Fitness Recovery supplies both the black home sauna and the ice bath.

Fitness Bags

Kit bags are sized by litre capacity, and the number tells you what fits. A 2 litre drawstring bag takes a pair of runners and a towel for the pool or the gym. A 17 litre to 22 litre backpack covers a school or training day with room for a change of clothes. A 30 litre backpack or a 41 litre duffel handles a full training kit, and a 60 litre duffel carries team gear or a weekend away. Nike supplies the Academy duffel bags in 41 and 60 litre and the Academy Team backpacks in junior 22 litre and 30 litre, with Urban Fitness adding drawstring and small holdall bags and New Era the 17 litre Yankees backpacks. Garmin heart rate monitors round out the range.