For those that are avidly into the sport and fitness regimen of Crossfit, a garage gym is more than ideal. It provides you with a great deal of convenience as well as the perfect method of avoiding crowds. Most would love to have their own, but have no idea of what basic equipment they will need in order to achieve this. The following will provide you with precisely what you need for a basic garage Crossfit gym and why.
You will need to keep in mind that it will take a bit of money upfront to get your personal Crossfit gym up and running. Additionally, you will need to focus on acquiring the proper gear from the start. This is done for safety reasons as well as a preventative measure. There is no need for you to put yourself in a position to rebuy equipment a few weeks or months down the line. Do not believe that you will truly save money by purchasing a cheaper option now. You will only be forced to buy the proper equipment later while nursing an injury.
Olympic Barbell
This is an obvious front-runner in regards to the list of equipment that is needed for a garage Crossfit gym. It is imperative that you avoid purchasing a cheap bar. You should expect to pay a minimum of $200 for a quality car. If you attempt to purchase a lower quality bar you WILL break a sleeve, end up with flaked chromed pieces on the floor and/or the bar will bend.
The standard for a men’s Olympic barbell is 44.0925 pounds (20kg) and 33.0693 pounds (15kg) for women. The diameter of the bar shaft needs to be 25mm as opposed to the 28 to 29mm that are found on a standard men’s bar. Another major component of a bar to consider is knurling. For the sake of Crossfit and Olympic lifting, you will want to avoid bars that outfitted with center knurling. Center knurling is more suited for power lifting and if it is used for Crossfit you can end up cut up fairly badly while executing high rep clean and jerks.
Additionally, you will need to look for bars with a tensile strength of greater than 150,000PSI. You will also want to get either a snap ring sleeve or end cap design. Do NOT purchase a bar with a hex bolt sticking from the sleeve.
Bumper Plates
Once you have found the proper barbell, you will need weights. Due to the influx of interest in the realm of Crossfit, the cost of bumper plates has been reduced quite considerably. Even with that being said, it is best to keep your search focused on reputable brands, such as the following: HI-Temp, OFW, Vulcan ad Rogue. Also, keep in mind that high-end competition brands (Ivanko and Eleiko) are very nice, but are overkill for home use and they are attached to hefty price tags.
The most cost effective way to begin is to purchase bumper plates in sets. The smallest set that is available totals 160 pounds and includes a pair of the following:
10’s
25’s
45’s
It is important to plan ahead when buying sets. Do not simply go out and purchase what you are able to lift today. This method will merely leave you ordering pairs sooner than your budget may like, and possibly have to put your workout regimen on hold while awaiting delivery. Additionally, you will need to NOT forget that bumpers for the 2.5 and 5 pound plates will not be found and will need to be purchased in steel.
Power Rack/Pull-Up Bar
You can get a set-up with a pull-bar in a handful of differing ways. The first is to buy, or build, a wall-mounted or ceiling-mounted pull-up bar. Another method is to purchase certain squat stands that have a pull-up bar with it. Finally, you can simply purchase a power rack. It is recommended, that if you can afford it, that you purchase a power rack. With the rack, there is nothing that you cannot do safely within your garage gym.
Whichever option that you choose, keep in mind that it will need to be able to accommodate for chin-ups as well as pull-ups and back work.
Battle Rope and/or Jump Rope
For double unders a jump rope is a requirement. This is a very inexpensive item that you will need for your garage Crossfit gym. A good quality jump rope can be bought for a mere $10, and a speed rope can be yours for an average of $20. A battle rope is optional, but it will give you the most intense cardio workout.
Gymnastics Rings
Gymnastic rings are needed for the development of upper body strength. They are needed in Crossfit for various movements that include the following:
Muscle ups
Front levers
Dip rings
Ring rows
The rings that you choose can be constructed of metal, plastic or wood. Whichever you choose is in accordance with your own personal preference.
Kettlebells
Kettlebells are quite a large part of the Crossfit regimen. For you home gym, you will want to acquire at least a small selection of kettlebells that you are able to swing, snatch ad clean. Keep in mind that a full set can be costly, but you do not need that many in the beginning. You can easily acquire the full set over time, as your budget allows. It is recommended that you begin with a set that you are comfortable with and then add as your strength increases.
When choosing your kettlebells, you will need to ensure the following:
They are NOT coated with epoxy. This will cause chipping and flaking.
There is NO casting or molding seam on the handle. This aspect will expressly DESTROY your hands during the course of a workout.
The handle opening is ideal for your respective hands. They are available in a variety of opening sizes.
Squat Box/Plyometric Box
Plyo boxes are versatile and are not extremely expensive. This is a piece of equipment that can also be a simple and cheap DIY project if you are working under budget constraints. Plyo boxes have heights that vary from 12 inches to 24 inches and are available as follows:
Wood
Metal
Adjustable
Angled
Slam Ball/Medicine Ball
This is a piece of equipment that has a number of uses, although primarily, you will use it for wallballs. Do note that Dynamax is the optimal brand for medicine balls. This is the brand that is seen being used during the Crossfit Games. They are a bit expensive, but they are highly durable.
In Conclusion
The above simply gives you the basics so that you can begin to workout at home. Feel free to add components according to the programming that you follow.
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