Gym memberships cost about, on average, about $500 a year. So, investing and having a home gym can save you money over time. If saving money is not an issue, who wants the hassle of getting in the car and driving to a crowded gym where you must wait to use equipment and machines?

Your 45-minute workout ends up taking two hours to complete.

However, a home gym can provide convenience, versatility, and, most significantly, save you time and money. These two pieces of equipment are all you need.

1) Kettlebells

Kettlebells have been a popular fitness tool for centuries. They have become more popular in recent years due to their versatility, convenience, and efficacy. Kettlebells can effectively develop strength, power, and muscular and cardiovascular endurance, all in the same workout.

The only issue with doing the conditioning exercises using kettlebells is that you need some instructional training. However, you only need 4-5 classes to learn how to do the exercises. When it comes to the kettlebell, the technique is essential to prevent injury. The money you spend on the instruction will last you a lifetime. So, it is a good investment.

Benefits of Training with Kettlebells

Training with kettlebells offers many unique benefits, unlike traditional resistance weight training. However, it provides higher results and more!

One of the most significant benefits of using kettlebells is learning to use your breath and entire body to develop and improve strength, power, and cardiovascular endurance. Because of the dynamic movement from kettlebell exercises, it requires constant core stability and the engagement of your stabilizing muscles to maintain proper form and posture.

Kettlebells also provide a wide range of exercises, allowing for increased variety and intensity. For example, you can mix a cardio exercise like the swing and a strength exercise like bent over rows. This offers a great way to target different muscles and add a mixture of strength and conditioning to your routine.

As a result, doing a workout with a kettlebell is far from boring.

Sample Kettlebell Exercises

Swings/ Snatches/Cleans/ Shoulder Presses/ Bent Over Rows/ Lat Pull Overs/ Lunges/ Squats Deadlifts/ Bicep Curl/ Triceps Extensions/ Chest Press/ ETC.

2) Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are a great way to break through plateaus in your exercise routine and take your workouts to a new level. Resistance bands can do it all, develop strength, agility, explosiveness, speed, and flexibility.

Resistance Band Benefits

The first significant benefit of using resistance bands is their versatility. Unlike dumbbells, resistance bands can be packed away easily and used anywhere. And you can simply adjust and accommodate resistance instantly by grabbing more or less of the band.

For example, if you are doing back rows, you can grip the band closer to the anchor point, making it harder to pull. And after some reps, you can instantly create slack on the band without stopping your exercise and change the resistance and intensity to continue your row.

Secondly, resistance bands are great for adding resistance to stretching and range of motion exercises to increase flexibility and joint stability. Specific exercises like resistance band lunges are designed to develop glute strength and quad flexibility and strengthen weak stabilizing muscles while improving hip mobility all in the same exercise.

Additionally, for athletes, you can do specific types of training like complex, speed, and explosive training. Bands are excellent for many dynamic exercises that help to improve coordination and reaction times. For example, you can incorporate exercises requiring speed and accuracy with resistance bands because resistance bands demand control. If you jump to the side, the band will pull you back to the start position. Therefore, you need to control the resistance as you land laterally.

Using resistance Bands, you can do a whole strength circuit.

• Lat Pulldowns/Seated and Bent Over Back Rows
• Chest Press/Resisted Pushups
• Shoulder Presses/Front, Rear, and Lateral Raises
• Deadlifts/Lunges/Squats
• Bicep Curls/Triceps Pulldowns and Kickbacks
• Abdominal Planks / Oblique Rotations/ Chops

Using resistance bands allows you to create any movement- anytime and anywhere. All you need is an anchor point to wrap the band around. You can use your feet, the sofa, and even your door. Go to the playground and watch your creativity explode by doing different exercises.

The resistance band level is appropriate for all skill levels. They’re great for travel, require no space for storage, and won’t break your bank account.

Like the kettlebell, with resistance bands, you can fuse strength and cardio into one workout. And you can combine kettlebell and resistance band training together too.

Furthermore, one of my favorite things to do with resistance bands is to use two simultaneously to produce different lines of force. For example, one band pulling up and another pulling from the side makes your muscles work more and enhance your strength.

You can have an awesome in-home or portable gym with these two pieces of equipment. In addition, I love to combine resistance bands and kettlebells in the same workout for strength endurance conditioning.

Weightlifting equipment can take up a lot of space and be expensive. However, kettlebells and resistance bands are compact, cost-effective options for those looking to incorporate strength training into their routine or have an in-home gym.