'What would I do if I could start over' is a fun thought experiment I like to mosey down periodically. This takes into account injury history, current strength and size levels given where I'm at now, and the time investment I've spent driving to and from gyms. Much like my great possession purge of 2019, this experiment forces me to reevaluate the choices I've made and what equipment I really need.
If some random stranger ever sees this, please don't take this as dogma. I only got to where I was by trying a lot of shit and fucking up a million times along the way. Your journey and goals may be very different than mine. All of the words below are powered on the wings of hindsight.
1. Invest in a home gym.
Between 2020 and 2023, I've dropped about $3000 on equipment I will own forever. Some of that equipment (armor fitness sled, the strap) was both not usable and a large chunk of this budget. Even so, my gym memberships from 2009-2019 ran about $30/month.
30*12months*10yrs = $3600.
Surface level this is almost the same amount of money, but it's not even close. Every gym I've ever been to created a fight for equipment, parking spots, and included a lengthy drive for stuff I did not and would never own.
In the next couple of bullets I'll dilute the $3000 I spent event further. A home gym is a long term cheaper alternative for equipment that is free 24/7.
2. Don't buy protein powder.
I'd like to say 'dont but supplements period' but that would be a bit disingenuous. Food should be the primary driver of your protein. It's too easy to fall into the trap of using whey to replace a good meal.
Supplements I do like and take daily:
- magnesium glycinate
- zinc (no isotope preference)
- creatine
3. But Olympic rings first.
This runs under the assumption that you have places to hang them. Alternatively an initial investment of a sturdy Pullup bar followed by rings works as well.
If all you cared about was a build upper body, you can stop here. Even without adding weight, the amount of variation you can add to basic movements means you will never run out of progressions or skills to try for.
Ring cost: $30/set.
Suggested investment: 1 pair if you are not lazy. 3 pairs of you are lazy (note: I am a lazy fuck and like my rings preset for pullups, dips, and pushups without having to reset them. This is not necessary but I've got the disposable cash to manage).
4. But sandbags second.
This one was a surprise to me. I'm a recent shill for sandbags so a lot of this energy is newbie joy.
Sandbags check a ton of boxes. They build real world stable strength, can double as a non dangerous squatting tool, are great for carries, and also are great for safe dynamic pulls. Due to their lack of stability, they are not optimal if you're looking to build max strength or size. For my goals, they are absolutely perfect. I'd rather be the guy who can any day throw a 200lb sandbag on his shoulders half a dozen times than the dude who can deadlift 400lbs for reps.
The sandbags themselves aren't cheap (if you buy the nicer strongman bags), but the sand inside them is literally cheap as dirt. Quick side by side given the market today on iron weights versus sand.
Iron 100lbs * $2/lb = $200.
Sand 100lbs * $0.10/lb = $10.
A barbell might only be $150 but getting the weights for what you need will still carry a hefty investment. The major downside to sandbags is also my favorite upside. Unlike barbells, changing weight is a pain in the ass. The shill is talking loudly here, but one of the coolest things about old time strongmen is they did not have access to adjustable barbells like we have today. All of their barbells and implements were fixed weight. It's all they had to work with. What happens when you get so strong with the same weight that it's stupid? You find creative ways to bring the intensity back up and the reps back down until you get better at that variation as well. Sandbags aren't necessarily in the same league because at the end of the day you CAN still adjust them within their carry limit. However, my favorite use of them is to use a weight until it'l feels too light to be challenging anymore.
Sandbag cost: $100-$200 per bag for cerebus bags. You can also build your own for cheap using old bags and bag liners.
Sand cost: $5/50lbs.
5. Buy kettlebells third.
This can be a single bell, a single adjustable bell, or multiple bells. Unless you plan on being a pure kettlebell lifter, don't stress too much on what to get.
I definitely stressed over cast iron versus competition. Then adjustable versus regular. In the end, they're all good for different things. If the bell is too light, lift it more or find different ways to lift it that make it more difficult. See my fixed weight ramble in the sandbag section.
Price is wildly different depending on what you want. If I could redo this, I would find the cheapest 16kg, 20kg, and 24kg bells on sale and call it a day.
6. Buy a Nordic stick fourth.
Nordic hamstring curls are the fucking bomb. There are a crap ton of items on the market that range from 300-1000 to assist with glute ham raises or Nordic curls, but I've found the Nordic stick to work just fine for cheap.
Nordic curls are great for hamstring strength and size wrapped in a bodyweight movement. I'm wrapping in bands to this sale as you will almost certainly need them to make the movement easier when first starting.
Nordic stick coat: $30
Bands (rogue - 2 blue, 2 orange): $50
7. Buy a barbell and weights last.
This route obviously won't work if your goal is max strength or size. So again, take with grains of salt.
For me, barbells serve very limited usage. They still reign king for most people, but this isn't a list for most people.
I mainly use barbells for the following:
- pin squats
- pendlay rows, one arm rows
- shoulder rollouts (stretch)
I love what I have, but if I could go back in time, a barbell (and rack) would have been the last on my list. Another reason for this placement is I had it stuck in my head for YEARS that I would be unable to make any type of progress without both a bar and a rack. When I finally got both I told my wife it was fucking game time. Little did I know I would end up barely using said rack in lieu for everything else on this list.
Another big driver away from racks and barbells is I work from home. When you are home all day everyday you get stir crazy as fuck. For my mental health, I need daily exercise outside in the sun. Working out in my rack does not support that need.
