So you’re getting a little bit round in the stomach area, now you’re asking yourself what’s the Best Home Gym Equipment To Lose Belly Fat. Don’t worry we’re here to help!
You have probably seen numerous adverts on television or on websites that have phrases such as ‘lose belly fat with this weird trick’ or ‘do this to lose belly fat’. Unfortunately this is all garbage.
You can’t ‘spot reduce’ fat, read that again if you need to! as sad as it is to say, this does not work.
To lose belly fat, you will need to achieve a calorie deficit either through changes in what you eat or increased activity.
Once you do reduce the calories you consume, you will lose weight and it then entirely depends on your own body where that is from. Some folks will lose it from their belly and others might lose it from their face or butt, it really depends on the individual.
The great part is that you can definitely strengthen and sculpt areas of your body through lifting weights and even cardio.
It should be pointed out that a lot of people achieve their goals by simply eating fewer calories and adding some walking as exercise. For those that want to exercise at home the best home gym equipment is what you can afford at the time, however we have compiled this list to help give you an idea of some of the best home gym equipment to lose that ‘belly fat’.
Best Home Gym Equipment To Lose Belly Fat: Cardio Equipment
So many people automatically think of cardio when thinking about losing belly fat, this is often before even considering the food they eat.
Jump Rope
The humble jump rope is cheap and readily available at most sports stores. You also don’t need a lot of room and you can do it almost anywhere. Best of all, fighters swear by jump rope being one of the best exercises in the battle of belly fat.
Wearing shoes helps reduce some of the impact and if possible using gym flooring or astro turf can help further reduce the impact. It’s a great cardiovascular exercise once you get the hang of it and get the rhythm down it’s almost addictive. You might like to try a beaded rope to help with getting the rhythm when first starting out.
Expect to pay anywhere between $5 to $200+, a good quality weighted speed rope can be found for around $30.
Nike has a great article on ‘how to find the right length jump rope‘ for yourself.
Punching Bag
Website: Everlast Puching Bags
Everyone should have access to a punching bag, they’re absolutely brilliant for stress relief, cardiovascular exercise and honing your striking and kicking technique.
There’s a bit of set up required for most boxing bags, you will need either a solid anchor point to mount a swivel to hang the bag or use a dedicated stand. Be really mindful that attaching boxing bags to your home can be very noisey from the vibrations.
You should use wraps to protect your wrists and gloves to protect your hands.
Synthetic heavy bags can start at $65 and go all the way up to $800+ for full cowhide leather bags. Don’t forget you will need a swivel or a stand to hold it. Also allow for hand wraps and heavy bag gloves which will be an additional $40 to $150 depending on how fancy you get.
Stationary Bike
Website: NordicTrack
Low impact and easy to get some miles in while watching tv, they don’t take up lots of space and often have wheels so they can be rolled away when not in use.
There’s plenty of styles out there but if you don’t find a regular bike seat particularly comfortable, you might want to look at one with a wide flat seat or even a recumbent style bike.
These can set you back $200 to $2500+ depending on what you’re looking for in terms of bells and whistles.
Treadmill
Website: NordicTrack
If walking or jogging is your thing but you can’t get out because of the heat, rain or snow, a treadmill can offer you year round access in the safety of your own home gym.
Treadmills do take up a fair amount of floor space, some have the option to lift the deck vertically, allowing some extra room around the unit when not in use. Having a dedicated area, with a tv or outside view can help with motivation and act as deterrent to use it as a coat rack.
Cost can vary significantly between types of treadmill, a manual unit is typically the most basic and the cheapest, the exception being some manual runners designed for high intensity sessions. Motorised treadmills are more expensive but usually come with far more features such as, cushioned decks, deck incline/decline and even LED screens.
You could pay anywhere between $350 to $3000+, work out what you need and like by trying a few at a local sports store. Most people find that around the $1500 mark is the sweet spot. If you’re a bit on the heavier side it might be worth paying a bit extra for something in a light commercial or commercial range, you know, until you lose some belly fat.
Elliptical
Website: Sole Fitness
Great for people with bad knees an elliptical will give you an excellent cardiovascular workout without the high impact on your joints.
Much like a treadmill, elliptical machines take up a good amount of floor space. Before purchasing, check your overall height while standing on the elliptical and make sure your head won’t touch the ceiling in your home gym.
Some ellipticals do have a power incline feature where the resistance is increased for the user. You can also find version with LED screens and even bluetooth speakers.
An elliptical can set you back anywhere between $350 to $3000+, it really does just depend on which features you would like and if you need something a little more ‘heavy duty’.
Best Home Gym Equipment To Lose Belly Fat: Strength training equipment
Kettlebells
Kettlebells are not so beginner friendly but are very versatile once you have some experience or guidance from a professional. Once familiar with kettlebells they offer a great all over exercise, improving overall endurance and strength. There’s a lot of exercises that can be done with one or two kettlebells, so you can start with one of a reasonable weight and progress to two and then higher weights. When using kettlebells repetition ranges are typically higher meaning you will find you can stick with a certain weight for longer.
You don’t need to spend a lot, prices start at $1.50 to $1.80 per pound for your basic kettlebell.
Dumbbells
Dumbbells are a free weight that offer a way to isolate muscle groups easily at home. You can use them as a pair for exercises such as dumbbell flys or individually like in a tricep kickback. There are some exercises that can be done without a bench, but having one really opens your options for exercises.
Getting a good range of dumbbells can get pricey at around $1.80 to $3 per pound, for an individual dumbbell. Remember you will typically purchase dumbbells in pairs, add a bench, a rack to hold the weights and things can really begin to add up.
Olympic Barbell
Website: Marcy
There’s many kinds of barbells but one of the most versatile is the the plain olympic straight bar. These range in widths and thickness, but a good starting point is an 86.75” (2.2m), 1.12” (28.5 mm) thick bar, which normally weigh in at around the 44lbs (20kg) mark.
With an olympic bar movement is focused on what are called compound movements. Compound movements use multiple parts of the body and focus on larger muscle groups.
Exercises such as, squats, deadlifts, bench press and overhead press can all be completed using an olympic barbell.
Some of the advantages of lifting weights include increased strength, lean muscle mass, decreased fat and increased bone strength. Depending on repetition range you can focus on, power or muscle building, this will be determined by your goals.
You can find good quality American made olympic bars starting at $290, often with lifetime warranties. Cheaper bars are out there but they sometimes can oxidise quickly and have lower weight handling abilities. You’re also going to need some bumper plates and barbell collars for your new bar.
Bumper plates
Bumper plates are the best type of plate for performing exercises from the floor, where they can be potentially dropped from a height.
The two main types are a standard and competition type bumper plates. The main difference being, competition plates are thinner and therefore you’re able to load up a bar with more plates.
Bumper plates can be expensive, especially when buying single plates, better value can be found when purchased as a set. Prices can start at $550 for 198lb (90kg) of standard bumper plates up to $1300 for 309lb (140kg) of competition bumper plates.
Adjustable bench
Website: Body-Solid
Flat benches are great but an adjustable bench gives you a few more options for different exercises.
Having a bench enables you to do bench press as well as other exercises such as dumbbell flys, dumbbell rows, incline bench press or flys and plenty of other exercises.
A bench must be able to support the weight of a user as well as the weight they’re lifting. Some cheaper benches don’t have enough support under the seat pad and begin to wobble after some use. Good quality benches have better support under the seat pad and offer better safety and stability, so it’s worth investing a little more for a strong and safe bench.
Be prepare to spend anywhere between $200 and $900, the high end models offering a higher load rating, incline/decline positions and wheels for moving around.
Power rack
Contrary to popular belief, power racks are affordable for a home gym and offer a multitude of uses. Most power racks are suitable for squats, bench press, chin ups and shoulder presses. Some racks have optional extras for lat pulldowns, seated rows and dips.
Squats and bench press can be completed more safely within a power rack by using the safety catches, when adjusted correctly, these insure you don’t get stuck under the barbell if you fail to lift the weight.
Half racks can be a little cheaper than a full rack and still offer safety catches but not all of the full rack capabilities. Check to see what load rating the weight hooks (for holding the barbell) and the safety catches have and see if they meet your needs.
Full racks start at $400 and can go right up to $1500+ depending on which features are added.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, you can have the all the best home gym equipment, but if you’re not consistent with exercise and healthy eating habits, losing that belly fat or building muscle will never be achieved.
