You're trying to get healthy, build muscle, or create the perfect body you always wanted. Maybe you've tried other workouts, but ultimately the best way for you to live the life you want is the CrossFit lifestyle! You're becoming a CrossFitter, but you need some Home Crossfit Gym Ideas to create the motivational and active space you need to do it. We have you covered with these fantastic ideas!
1) Air Bike
Part of the point of CrossFit is that you switch activities frequently. This means that you're going to need a variety of equipment to keep you active throughout your whole workout. One crucial piece you'll need for your cardio exercise is an air bike. You can get one like this from Amazon that feels more like a real bike, because it keeps spinning when you stop pedaling, just like a real bike! It also has an adjustable seat and handlebar, so if multiple people are using the gym, you can adjust it for each person.
2) Battle Ropes
Crossfit is all about realistic workouts that mimic things you’d do in the course of everyday life. Battle ropes are an excellent cardio and strength workout, and they’re more active than just lifting weights. You can get a 30-foot long set with an anchor like this one from Amazon and place it along one of the walls in your gym so that it’ll be out of the way. These ropes are wear-resistant, so you can even use them on a concrete floor.
3) Garage
A garage is an excellent place for a CrossFit gym in particular, so if you don't use your garage very often, it may be the best place to put your gym. Garages usually have higher ceilings and exposed beams, so they have plenty of places to mount hanging equipment like gymnastic rings or pull-up bars. The height is also great for cardio workouts like jumping rope or climbing equipment and other tall gym equipment, making it a more versatile space.
4) Flex Timer
If you have a set routine, you'll need a way to time it. This Flex timer is ideal for Crossfit workouts in particular, because you can customize the timer based on your workout. Unlike some workout styles, you'll need to plan your exercises several times since you'll be switching activities often. Try mounting this to the wall and set up the Bluetooth so you can run it right from your phone. It'll even connect to Bluetooth speakers and announce the time for you!
5) Solid, High-Density Mat
When you're picking your gym mat, you’ll probably want one solid mat with somewhat thinner but high-density material. This way, you can easily switch between cardio and weight workouts and still have mats that work for both. Sometimes, a thick floor covering can be uncomfortable for a cardio workout, and mats that piece together can come apart during a high-intensity cardio workout. This mat from Amazon is a solid piece, and it's thinner but denser for an effective workout.
6) Medicine Ball
Medicine balls are versatile pieces of equipment that you can use for a variety of workouts, and they build strength in a way that closely mimics real-life movements. The most significant problem people run into when they first start working out with a medicine ball is trying to decide what size they need. This article is a great resource for figuring that out. If you're a beginner, you'll probably want a four-pound ball if you're a woman and a six-pound ball if you're a man.
7) Weighted Vest and Sled
One of the best ways to get the most out of your CrossFit workout is to wear a weighted vest. This allows you to do everyday movements, but it increases the intensity of each exercise by adding weight. Vests are excellent because they offer freedom of movement so that you can do your activities while wearing them. The neat thing about this particular set is that it comes with both a sled and weighted vest so that you can use the two together. A sled is a pretty basic piece of CrossFit equipment that's common in a CrossFit home gym.
8) Tablet
Since Crossfit workouts have a variety of equipment and movements, you'll need some way to keep track of your activities. One excellent resource for both planning and tracking your workout is a tablet, like the one on this gym wall by The Sampley Six. You can watch their video to see how they organize their gym with a tablet and a whiteboard. With this setup, you'll have the Whiteboard for a larger and easier-to-read workout plan, but you have easy access to your tablet when you need to plan and make changes.
9) Jump Rope
Jumping rope is a great cardio workout if you have a tall enough ceiling. It's perfect for an outdoor or garage CrossFit gym since jumping rope will be part of many Crossfit workouts. If you have multiple people using your gym, you'll want an adjustable jump rope like this, and of course, an adjustable rope is a safer purchase since you'll know for sure that it's going to be the right size. If you don't have tall enough ceilings, you can still find a good place to hang these and take a portion of your workout outside.
10) DIY Plyometric Box
A plyometric or plyo box is one of your basic CrossFit gym equipment pieces. You can get them in a variety of different sizes to match your workout; most plyo boxes will have three sizes. We liked the idea of building a plyo box yourself, because carpentry is a workout and a valuable skill for a homeowner, but we know that not everybody has the skillset to make such things from scratch. With a few basic tools and a sheet of plywood, though, you can build a plyometric box using these directions.
11) Adjustable Weighted Vest
As we mentioned earlier, weighted vests are valuable tools for CrossFitters since they let you do basic everyday movements with some added weight for increased difficulty. We think it's important to have an adjustable vest like this because you can slowly increase the weight as you get in shape and can handle a heavier vest. This vest from Amazon can go as high as 30 pounds and as low as four, so it’ll be there for you for a long time. It also works for men, women, or children!
12) Gymnastic Rings
You'll need a variety of upper body workouts with various motions, including pushing, pulling, and bodyweight movements. You can use gymnastic rings for a variety of upper body and cardio exercises that mimic real-life movements, just like all of your CrossFit workouts. You can even get one like this from Amazon that comes with carabiners for installation, so all you need to do is find things to hang them on. This set will work either indoors or outside.
13) Motivational Space
Crossfit is one of the most challenging types of exercise, so it's essential to create a gym that motivates you. Otherwise, you'll likely procrastinate and end up working out for shorter periods or skipping workouts altogether. This Box Junkies article is an excellent resource for designing a motivational space, but remember the most important rule; create a space you'll want to spend time in, whether that means adding gym decor or painting it a color that energizes you.
14) High and Low Rings
Variety is a crucial part of a CrossFit workout, so all of your equipment purchases should be designed to give you many options. One easy way to expand your choices is to set up both high and low gymnastic rings, as Austin Malleolo did in his home gym. Doing so adds many potential exercises to your regime since you don't have to make any adjustments and break the flow of your workout if you want to switch from low rings to high rings.
15) Portable Ax-Shaped Trainer
This idea is one of the most unusual workout items we've seen yet, and it's perfect for CrossFit. Crossfit is all about imitating real-life movements instead of artificially training your muscles for activities that you'll never do, so this ax-shaped trainer from Amazon is great for copying the movements and weight distribution that come with using heavy tools. This piece is excellent for cardio, strength training, and an ab workout rolled into one, and you can bring it with you when you travel.
16) Warmup Sticks
Your warmup is one of the most critical aspects of your workout because, without a proper warmup, you increase the risk of injury, and all of your exercises will be more difficult to do. Crossfit is already a heavy and challenging workout, so you don't want to make it any harder. We liked the idea of warmup sticks like the ones in this Simply Sadie Jane home gym. They're cheap and easy since you can just cut them from PVC pipe, as they did.
17) Whiteboard
When you do CrossFit, you'll need to switch between various activities instead of focusing on one type of training for the entire workout, so you might need a way to keep track of all the different exercises you'll be doing. Whiteboards are helpful because you can get a big one like this that's visible from the other side of your gym, and you can easily erase and change your workouts as often as you need to.
18) Collapsible Olympic Barbell
Since you're going to be doing a variety of things during your workout, you'll want to look for ways to fit as many things in your home gym as possible. One way to do this is to get collapsible pieces like this Olympic barbell from Amazon. If you vary your workouts, you can tuck it away when you're not using it and pull it back out when you prep for your next workout. This is also ideal for a small gym if you don't have enough room for all the CrossFit equipment you want.
19) Plywood Board
A plywood board probably doesn't sound like a remarkable idea, but there are a lot of Crossfit exercises that can cause damage to your walls, and if you're in a spare room, you'll want to keep it in nice shape. Attaching a plywood board to the wall like Nicole Marsh did in her gym will protect the wall and make it so you can get the most from your workout without worrying about causing damage. Then, if you ever go to repurpose the room, you can just remove the board with minimal damage to the wall.
20) Multi-Position Workout Bench
Since CrossFit is about variety, having equipment and furniture that's adjustable increases your options and makes it a lot easier to plan an intense and stimulating workout. Instead of getting a flat bench, try a multi-position one like this one from Amazon. With this one, you have six options so you can lie flat, sit up, or even lean back at multiple angles to vary the intensity of the workout as you go. It even folds so that if you're not using it one day, you can replace it with a different piece that you plan to use that day.
21) DIY Weightlifting Platform
Weightlifting is a vital part of any workout, and you'll want to have a designated space for it so you can quickly move from one exercise to another. Since your goal is to work out using everyday movements, building equipment is an excellent exercise while you're setting up the gym. We found a neat tutorial for building your weightlifting platform. You can use these step-by-step instructions from Home Gym Build to make a platform in only a couple of hours and get a mini-workout while you're at it!
22) Rolling Whiteboard
Whiteboards are ideal for planning CrossFit workouts since you can erase and rewrite your workout plans as often as you like, and if you get a giant board like this, you can plan the entire week's workouts ahead of time. Then, make sure to change it up for a proper CrossFit workout! We liked the idea for a rolling board like this one from Amazon because it's freestanding, so you don't have to damage your walls with wall-hanging equipment, and you can turn it to face whatever section of the gym you're in to keep track of your workout better.
23) Focus
Focus is essential in a CrossFit workout because of the intensity of the work. If you let yourself lose focus, you'll probably reduce the intensity and effectiveness of your exercises, so don't waste your time with weak workouts! Instead, remind yourself every day that you need to stay motivated and focused by adding some reminder decor around the room. This piece from Amazon is neat because it has many powerful and motivating words to encourage you to keep at it and not lose focus.
Are you a new CrossFitter or a veteran? CrossFit is a lifestyle, and we want to help you build the right gym for it. Were our ideas helpful? Please let us know in the comments below!
