The Budget-Friendly Home Gym

Stability Ball

A stability ball is the foundation of your home gym. Although it is commonly used for ab workouts, most people don’t realize that a stability ball makes a great weight bench. You can sit on it and do shoulder or arm exercises or use it to support your shoulders to do chest exercises. You can also support one knee and perform tricep extensions or lat rows. (Caution: Get used to balancing on it first before adding weights and check the manual for your ball for the maximum weight allowed for safety.), Search online and on YouTube for stability ball workouts. The balls come in several sizes (the taller you are, the larger ball you’ll need) and can be purchased inexpensively at discount or sporting goods stores.

Stretch Cords

Dumbbells are expensive and take up a lot of space, but a set of stretch cords can provide similar strength training benefits at a fraction of the cost and can be stored in a drawer or closet. For maximum versatility, purchase stretch cords as part of kit that includes handles that hook to cords of varied thicknesses. This allows you to use more than one cord at a time for added resistance as you get stronger. You can also double the cords or wrap them around your feet to increase resistance. Look for kits that include a donut-shaped attachment that can be closed in a door to anchor the cords for various exercises such as lat pulldowns or seated rows. Stretch cords are portable and are great for travel. Be sure to inspect them before each use to ensure there are no tears that may cause the cords to snap.