Advice Needed Again - Motivation/Gym/Equipment

OREGATO

Hi guys,

I was on here last year and got some good advice and again, I'm looking for some more.

Last year I joined my local gym and got some really good advice off here regarding losing weight and the correct excerises to do in the gym. I ended up losing 2 stone which I was very happy with, however, as time has passed, stuff has changed and I've stopped going to the gym.

Mainly because of the fact that my local gym is too overcrowded, waiting for exercise machines especially weights is very off putting and I find that I lose rhythm and motivation. I gave up the gym altogether after around 4 months hard work last year, I just hated the thought of going, I hated the smell and I just hated the fact that I had to wait around 15 minutes to get a bench.

Now, I'm still trying to eat healthy, but I can see that bad habits are creeping in again and my belly is growing bigger again.

I got thinking and chatting to the gf last night regarding this and I told her that I wouldn't be going back to the gym, I just can't face the place, as well as that, I've changed jobs since last year and find that my time is very limited now, i.e. I don't have the spare time I used to in this job, which means that early sessions are a nono.

So as well as not wanting to go to the gym, I think that my renewal money would go down the swanny as I wouldn't have the time to go.

So after discussing this, a tiny light bulb came on in my head. I've a spare room in the house, it's the box bedroom which is not that big, but then again it's not tiny neither, at the moment, theres a single bed, table, wardrobe and dresser in there, no one uses it and I think the wardrobe is stuffed with some old clothes etc. What I'm thinking of doing is getting a skip, throwing out the bed/desk/wardrobes and putting a weight bench in there. I already have a set of dumbells and based on my research so far and the work out I was on last year, the only routine I wouldn't be able to do would be the lat pull downs.

Now, I've had a look online and some benches seem to fit the bill, this one i've just spotted that will actually let me do the lats http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9237269/c_1/1|category_root|Sport+and+leisure|14419152/c_2/2|cat_14419152|Home+gym+equipment|14419293/c_3/3|cat_14419293|Weight+lifting+and+exercise+benches|14419306/Trail/searchtext%3EGYM.htm

My question is, are these any good. I'm weighing up the cost of renewal of gym membership that i may not even be able to go to unless its a sunday against the price of a bench and some other materials.

The fact that I could wake up and go in next door and do a work out and head to work is very appealing.

what are other peoples expereince? any advice?
Whats the bare minimal equipment I would need?
What sort of budget should I be spending?

Any thoughts/comments and criticisms would be great.

Will

rubadub

To be blunt it looks like a rickety bag of crap. I could have the use of a bench which looks like that and I do not bother, its a cheap ass shoddy york one and I never liked using it (I did not buy it). It actually looks more stable that that one with its single post at the feet end.

I would look on www.irish-lifting.com for a power rack if you can afford it. Also look in buyandsell and adverts.ie there was a good deal going about a week or so ago on buyandsell, sturdy looking bench and squat rack, doorway removable chinup bar, about 40kg of weights + 7ft bar, the lot for €140 and looked like new.

All I have at home is barbells, dumbbells, dip belt, chinup bar, gymnastic rings, ropes on the chinup bar and a few other things. I never liked benching, that cheapo bench put me off for life! but also it is safer to do other exercises without a spotter, e.g. weighted dips, ring flyes, weighted pushups.

OREGATO

rubadub wrote: »

To be blunt it looks like a rickety bag of crap. I could have the use of a bench which looks like that and I do not bother, its a cheap ass shoddy york one and I never liked using it (I did not buy it). It actually looks more stable that that one with its single post at the feet end.

I would look on www.irish-lifting.com for a power rack if you can afford it. Also look in buyandsell and adverts.ie there was a good deal going about a week or so ago on buyandsell, sturdy looking bench and squat rack, doorway removable chinup bar, about 40kg of weights + 7ft bar, the lot for €140 and looked like new.

All I have at home is barbells, dumbbells, dip belt, chinup bar, gymnastic rings, ropes on the chinup bar and a few other things. I never liked benching, that cheapo bench put me off for life! but also it is safer to do other exercises without a spotter, e.g. weighted dips, ring flyes, weighted pushups.

Hi Rubadub, thanks for the advice, for me, I'm not a pro weight lifter, just looking for an effective way to lose a few pounds around my waist.

As long as the bench holds my weight and isn't dangerous, I think this will suffice for my needs? I.e. If I wanted a car to drive to work, I would purchase something small and second hand, looks and performance wouldn't matter, whereas if I was a pro racing driver, I would invest a hell of a lot more money into it.

There is a york one in the argos catalogue for 140 which is the same as the one i posted above but is made by york. But, in your post above, you seem to think that york is a bad make, what makes should I look out for?

Could anyone recommend me a good setup, the equivilent to what I quoted in my first post and I'll do a comparison.

Thanks

rubadub

OREGATO wrote: »

Hi Rubadub, thanks for the advice, for me, I'm not a pro weight lifter, just looking for an effective way to lose a few pounds around my waist.

I'm am the exact same!

OREGATO wrote: »

As long as the bench holds my weight and isn't dangerous, I think this will suffice for my needs? I.e. If I wanted a car to drive to work, I would purchase something small and second hand.

I know what you are saying and I am of the same mindset to a degree. However I would have a minimum spend and want value for money. In work lads said I was mad to spend over €600 on a bike, but it has lasted years and gave more pleasurable commute. I just do not believe you will get a decent stable set for €100, well not new, and others here would vouch that they ended up upgrading their original cheap shoddy bench after a year or so. The whole bench wobbled and I did not feel confident using it, I really see it as a false economy.

You mention danger and working out alone without a spotter can be dangerous, I think I had 2 times where I was trapped under a bar at home, luckily with low enough weight -with a proper power rack you have no issue as there are bars it would rest on.

You can get spotter bars for the bench too, the €140 one in buy and sell came with them too. But remember a bench is by no means essential, esp. if you are just looking to lose a few lb. I would sooner get a quality chinup bar, dip belt, gymnastic rings and a barbell/dumbbell set. If I had the room & money I might get a power-rack.

OREGATO

rubadub wrote: »

I'm am the exact same!

I know what you are saying and I am of the same mindset to a degree. However I would have a minimum spend and want value for money. In work lads said I was mad to spend over €600 on a bike, but it has lasted years and gave more pleasurable commute. I just do not believe you will get a decent stable set for €100, well not new, and others here would vouch that they ended up upgrading their original cheap shoddy bench after a year or so. The whole bench wobbled and I did not feel confident using it, I really see it as a false economy.

You mention danger and working out alone without a spotter can be dangerous, I think I had 2 times where I was trapped under a bar at home, luckily with low enough weight -with a proper power rack you have no issue as there are bars it would rest on.

You can get spotter bars for the bench too, the €140 one in buy and sell came with them too. But remember a bench is by no means essential, esp. if you are just looking to lose a few lb. I would sooner get a quality chinup bar, dip belt, gymnastic rings and a barbell/dumbbell set. If I had the room & money I might get a power-rack.

thanks for the advice again rubadub.

I've gone and purchased a york bench from Argos, the one for 189, quality wise, it feels really solid and good, no wobbles or anything (yet) pretty handy to put together and the bolts/nuts etc seem very good quality.