Enough is enough - help me with HOME GYM?

[helpfindrahrah]

Spent the day researching gyms. None of them are a/ near b/ have a creche or c/ cheap! Think for the money id pay to say.. David Lloyd for a month - i could get some gym equipment and design my own home gym.

Question is this - what items would you say would be the best buys?
So far I'm thinking 1/ exercise bike 2/ trampette (might be spelled wrong!) and 3/ selection of small weights.

What item/ items would you say gave the best results and are essential?

Thanks for your help.

I love rowing machines! Concept Two are the best but £££££££££££. Look on eBay, Gumtree, or try to buy an old one from a gym.

Exercise bikes are fine and cheap, but they don't burn THAT many calories. Rowing burns more.

You actually don't need any equipment to get a good all over body workout. Look on google or utube at "body weight workouts" where you use your own body weight to exercise. What about a DVD you could do at home? The Jillian Michaels ones are always very good if you're a beginner.

If you absolutely what to buy something invest in a TRX. They give amazing results!

What's a TRX?
I saw some rowing machines that looked fab but wanted a second opinion. I thought I could just sit on an exercise bike , watch TV and peddle away without too much effort to be honest ... It'd be better than just sitting here eating.

Thanks for all your help! I'm excited.

A few weights, an exercise ball and some dvds would be sufficient I think. There are so many exercises such as squats, lunges, planks that will work well without the expense of large pieces of gym equipment eg bikes. You can hold weights to make squats etc more challenging.

You can get mini bikes that are just pedals on a little stand so you sit on a chair or sofa and use it. Takes up hardly any room and pretty cheap which is why I'm getting one.

As a rower, I would advise against a rowing machine, purely because the technique is quite hard to get right - I rarely see anyone on one who hasn't been a rower and who is doing it correctly. Doing it incorrectly can shag your back and the ergo because it leads to chain bounce. If you want a piece of cardio equipment I'd go crosstrainer, stair master, bike or treadmill.

With the weights, don't go too light. Better effects from heavy weight, low rep, than vice versa. However, also agree that you can do a lot with own body weight, especially if you're not used to exercising.

Thanks everyone. I've got an exercise bike and a trampette and some weights for now! I start tomorrow. My little gym looks pretty cool.

Dp is banging on about a medicine ball for us both to do some workouts. We also have a punch bag, which is great fun.

I 2nd the weights idea. Instead of spending loads on kit I'd invest in a few sessions with a personal trainer, a good one will use mainly free weights and body weight exercises. Make sure you have good technique with them and then buy some weights and copy the exercises they give you at home, increasing the weight or reps as they get easier.
The shred does seem to be effective but be sure you have good squat technique before trying it or you will ruin your knees!