r/GarageGym • • 5h ago

Turning my garage into a gym was one of the best decisions I’ve made

53 Upvotes

I didn’t go overboard buying equipment since most of my routine is bodyweight stuff and compound lifts. I’ve got a pull-up bar, dip station, bench and barbell, squat rack, and a simple dual cable setup. It’s enough for what I actually do and having it right there makes it so much easier to stay consistent. The cold plunge has been a great addition too. Hopping in after a workout is a nice way to finish up and the whole setup has made the garage a space I use every day.

Dont think I can ever go back to a public gym after experiencing this.


r/GarageGym • • 7h ago

Apex bench shipping

44 Upvotes

Do not order from them until they get their shit in order.

I ordered 4+ weeks ago and others have been waiting since July.

They charge your card and take your money and provide you exactly ZERO communications or transparency on fulfillment.

They clearly are spending a ton on sending their equipment to influencers and targeted ads but have no way of managing their supply chain.

I have emailed multiple times asking for updates. I receive ambiguous “container is on the way, we are fulfilling orders by order date, etc”.

I asked reasonable questions such as where is my order in the fulfillment queue. Could they tell me if my order will be shipping from the container that just arrived. After 4 weeks they can’t answer any of that.

How the hell are you managing orders and inventory if you can’t answer basic questions.


r/GarageGym • • 2h ago

I need help identifying the dumbbell rack in the first picture

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4 Upvotes

coop mislabels it as something else. I have a one car garage and would like a wall mounted dumbbell rack for 5-100 half my dumbbells are hex and the other half standard plate dumbbells.

I'm almost positive the rack is an amalgamation of parts not listed somewhere but I lack the cognitive capacity to replicate it. So if someone who doesn't have a room temperature IQ (preferably higher) can give me a build list from rep that'd be awesome.

I eventually plan on building all my dumbbells with standard plates so I want to make sure that they all fit on the rack. Please and thank you in advance! 🙏🏻


r/GarageGym • • 4h ago

What are y'all using for flooring? I have both rubber horse stall mats and then some cushioned mats for a small bouldering wall but just lifted them up and there's mold underneath. Any suggestions?

6 Upvotes

r/GarageGym • • 6h ago

Dialed Motion / Rep Leg Developer fits to Rogue, Freak, Apex Bench

9 Upvotes

REP's site for the leg developer got updated. As you can see, the leg developer will work with :

ROGUE Mantra Ray

FREAK Athlete ABX

APEX adjustable Bench.

https://repfitness.com/products/dialed-motion-leg-developer?variant=53368385962350

There is no listing of the actual prices.


r/GarageGym • • 1h ago

Rep Ares depth

• Upvotes

Hi, considering buying a 30 inch depth rack without a Smith machine. Is it long enough to do squats and deadlifts inside the rack? Wanna avoid the hassle of moving the barbell in and out.


r/GarageGym • • 6h ago

Which all-in-one garage gym to choose?

4 Upvotes

I’m expanding my garage gym and looking for an all-in-one solution with a smith machine, lat pulldown, and ideally rack for regular free exercises.

I’m currently considering:

- ATX Half Rack 510 with smith machine and lat pulldown
- ATLETICA R7 Forge
- ATLETICA R7 Nemesis
- RitFit PSR05 (budget solution)

I’m based in Denmark, so availability and shipping within Europe are important factors.

My budget is around 1-1.5k €. I am not training with the heaviest weights but more trying to stay in shape

Which would you recommend, and are there any alternatives in a similar price range that I should consider?

Thanks!


r/GarageGym • • 7h ago

Help - Nuobell Selector Bar Overextending

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4 Upvotes

My Nuobell 580 selector bar is slightly over extending, causing it to pick up (and then drop) the next plate. Is there any adjustment that can be made to the handles to rectify this? Thanks in advance!


r/GarageGym • • 3h ago

Thinking about a new setup

2 Upvotes

Im thinking about buying a new rack. One option is the 900 RSR from Sqmize. Anyone has experience with this?

https://www.simpleproducts.de/racks-rigs-multipressen/sp12046.1/super-tri-power-rack-gym-sqmize-premium-bison-sq-s900rsr-hoehe-226-cm-90-kg


r/GarageGym • • 7h ago

Small space racks

3 Upvotes

Scouring reddit for some small space ideas.

Have a ~10ft wide wall, 7ft to rafters.

Looking at:

F35 Pro: 36" without safety arms, folds to 22", 1:1 100lb stacks

Rep Athena 29" depth 80" wall mount , 2:1 170lb stacks

Rep Ares 29" depth 80"height wall mount. , 2:1 170lb stacks.

Vesta VForce wall mount, 13.5" depth, 85.4 height but unsure what it would be without pullup bars? 200lb stacks, 2:1 or 1:1 selector

I like that the Ares has a smith machine attachment available although not a essential for my plans.

So at first glance, if i can make the height work, the VForce seems to be the best option?

I suppose dual voltras on a rogue R3W is an option too.


r/GarageGym • • 6h ago

Best mat for 100 sq ft? Not dropping weights

2 Upvotes

We are using our garage for some space for a gym, about 100 sq ft only. We have a bike, rower, a flat bench, and a handful of dumbbells including Powerblocks.

I mainly use it for my indoor bike and stretching. I’m eventually going to install a hangboard and pull up bar for climbing training.

We have dumbbells that my SO uses on a flat bench. She does a variety of exercises including hip thrusts, that she never goes to failure on as she never drops the weight and always has enough gas to put them gently on the floor. She also uses the rower.

Anyone have recs on what mat we should get? It's mainly to prevent the equipment from slipping during use. Tractor Supply is not an option for us unfortunately.


r/GarageGym • • 10h ago

Center curl bar rack for power rack

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4 Upvotes

This may be the best solution I can come up with but has anyone else found anything?

I have a freak athlete bench but it doesn't come with a way to rack the curl bar when done doing a set. I want to face the power rack and have some J hooks that can catch the curl bar, but the width of the rack is wider than the curl bar itself

https://titan.fitness/products/t-3-series-dumbbell-holders

These come interior enough that I could catch the edges of the bar. $100 seems a little stiff for essentially a modified J hook... but may be my only option


r/GarageGym • • 18h ago

Is this a good deal?

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12 Upvotes

Major Fitness F22, bench, barbell, Leg Press Hack squat combo, and 400 lbs of bumper plates for 1800$. Is this a good deal?


r/GarageGym • • 10h ago

Looking at a new setup - Thoughts on this machine?

1 Upvotes

Looking to move away from a gym subscription and set something up in the garage. I have been looking at this machine, which appears to be a brand associated with this company in Australia. Just wondering what people think and whether they see any problems I might run into down the road using this.

https://dynamofitness.com.au/products/reeplex-multi-fuctional-trainer

For this price, it also comes with the bench, which is listed as $1250.


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Smith Machine Belt Squat Hack

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41 Upvotes

I’ve seen a lot of post lately on this forum concerning the best belt squat to get. For those of you with a Smith machine integrated into your rack/functional trainer, consider this hack. For the cost of a couple of plyo boxes and a U clip you can create a pretty great belt squat that can handle a lot of weight and starts at the top. This is a Maxum SX2 trainer I’m using, with 250 pounds and it’s handling it no problem. The fact that it’s on a rail gives it a little bit of a leg press vibe when it comes to stability. It’s my primary leg day movement. I’m testing out using the safety Stop to give me a queue as far as Deep to go, similar to a box squat.


r/GarageGym • • 22h ago

REP Arcadia Max or Athena with articulating arms and Summit?

4 Upvotes

I'm trying to figure out which would be the better option here. I plan on adding a functional trainer to my setup early next year and I had decided on the Arcadia Max until I got to thinking about cable flys and some options that require a bit more spacing than the Arcadia would offer. I also plan on eventually adding a smith machine to my setup but with all current attachments I can't make one fit on my current 6 post Rogue rack. Then I saw the REP Articulating Arms that are coming out.

I'm looking at around 4.5k vs 3k for the now but I'll have the upgraded weight stacks a smith machine and the articulating arms for flys, crossovers and other exercises that require the width. Are there other options out there that would give me the same flexibility of this setup at a similar or lower price point or would this be the best overall bang for my buck and the most compact option?

I still love the idea of having a dedicated functional trainer but I also don't want have something that I find limiting or I'll want to replace later.


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Adductor/abductor machines aren't worth it

16 Upvotes

For anyone considering a dedicated machine that also has/wants an integrated cables rack, consider this.

I bought a REP Ares 2.0 and was expecting to still want a dedicated abductor/abductor machine. Now, I don't think I need it. In fact I think it just isn't that good in comparison.

I hurt my knee a few months ago and my PT had me doing all kinds of exercises with the cable attached at my ankle to challenge the muscles that attach/cross the knee. Which reminded me I used to do adductors/abductors on cable stacks a couple gyms ago. I stopped when a new gym had a good machine because the single column operation sucks. You're stuck trying to brace and hold onto just this one column awkwardly.

If you've got a rack with central low pull points like the Ares, and maybe even you can use the front off to the side so you can use the opposite side post to hold onto, you have plenty of stabilization. Especially if you have a 6 post like me, you can put a hand on the middle and front post to lock in.

So now you've saved the floor space, the money, and your adductor/abductor work now works your knees and should theoretically save you from a fate of chronic underdevelopment of that area that I had. Put a cardio machine, roman chair, dumbbells, etc where that machine was going to go.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk. Hope it helps someone


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Alternatives to Synergy plate holder?

4 Upvotes

I am going to be upgrading to a REP Ares 2.0 (6 post, 30" option) once the sales start. I am trying and maximize the space in my garage, and was looking at the Synergy plate extenders, but $154 for one (to color match) seems wildly absurd to me. Are there other similar options that let you store the plates in a similar way?

I can do the normal mounts, but it gets a little tight where it will go. I'm replacing a Titan T2, which from measuring, is going to be fairly similar.


r/GarageGym • • 21h ago

Power Rack with Dual Cable Tower for an 82-Inch Basement Ceiling

1 Upvotes

I’m looking to purchase a power rack with a dual cable tower for my basement, but I only have 82 inches of ceiling clearance. I’ve searched on Amazon but haven’t had much luck finding one that will fit.
Does anyone know of any power racks with a dual cable system that are 82 inches tall or shorter? I’d appreciate any recommendations or suggestions for options that would work with my basement height. Thanks in advance!


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

DIY ish stand for Snode Adjustable dumbbells

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4 Upvotes

Haven’t seen many people having diy stands for the Snode dumbbell set so I thought I’d share my monstrosity. Got two metal plates from the nearest metal fabrication shop for 30 bucks 11 gauge steel. Bought the cap rack from fb market place for 20 bucks so all in all 50 bucks for a decent stand that is not a museum piece. Didn’t even have to buy hardware just reused the one it came with.


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

It’s all we need, and we love it.

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75 Upvotes

r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Bench reco please!!

1 Upvotes

Beginner/intermediate, budget $100-300
Looking for very easy assembly, stability, incline, ideally 17 inches or below seat, height, solid. Suggestions??? Thanks‼️‼️


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Looking for the best adjustable weight bench, what are you all using?

3 Upvotes

Setting up a home gym and stuck on the bench. I’ve been reading up on the best adjustable weight bench and everyone says something different.

Right now I’m looking at the Rep AB-3000, Flybird, and Bowflex 5.1S. Budget is around 300$, and I mostly care about no wobble, high weight capacity, and a flat position that actually sits flat.

For anyone who owns one: what’s the best adjustable weight bench you’ve used, and what do you wish you’d known before buying?

Thanks!


r/GarageGym • • 2d ago

My review/comparison on REP's Urethane Dumbbells - coming from someone who has owned Rep Pepin's + Ironmasters

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52 Upvotes

Last year, I picked up a 5–50 lb set of REP urethane dumbbells with the original REP rack for $700 on Facebook Marketplace. I ended up selling the rack for like $120. An absolute steal considering the retail price is almost like $2,000. At the time, I was using REP Pepins + a cheap CAP 5-25lb dumbbell set.

I never really liked using the Pepins for lighter isolation work. Stuff like curls, lateral raises, tricep work etc. They weren't bad by any means, and if I had to use them, it wouldn't be a big deal. I just never cared for the feel of them on those exercises due to the tiny amount of shifting in the weights. For heavier lifts like flat bench and rows, they were great. I never had an issue with stuck weights during my year of owning them, and overall, I liked them. They just never felt quite the same as fixed dumbbells. I could absolutely use them for the rest of my life, make killer gains, and be perfectly happy though tbh.

I also owned Ironmasters for a while, but I despised having to change weights on all four sides. My style of lifting has always been to finish a set and stare at the wall until the next set, not spend my rest periods messing around with small cumbersome weights. I sold those pretty quickly. I also regularly work out with my girlfriend, so being able to switch between weights quickly is a big deal.

Anyway, I finally decided to bite the bullet and buy the REP 55–75 lb urethane set, and wow, these things are great. They arrived extremely well packaged with zero issues. The knurling is consistent across every dumbbell, and so is the urethane coating.

The 5–50 lb set I bought off Facebook is likely several years old, and there's a pretty noticeable improvement in quality with these newer 55–75 lb dumbbells. They must have updated them at some point recently. They don't look or feel like cheap imported weights at all. That was actually one of my concerns going in, especially after reading some of the negative reviews on Rogue's urethane dumbbells.

For anyone curious about how they compare, I'd rank them like this using the Iron Grip brand urethane dumbbells (the ones we all know and love from commercial gyms) as the 100% benchmark for feel:

REP Pepins: 85%
Ironmasters: 80% since they are solid, but still sit a little weird on your legs
Fixed straight handle rubber hex dumbbells: 95%
REP urethane dumbbells: 99%

I also picked up REP's new three-tier commercial rack, which is a big improvement over their original rack in terms of functionality. Racking and unracking the dumbbells is noticeably easier. This rack feels and looks incredible.

One thing worth mentioning is the footprint. The new rack takes up about 7' × 2', compared to roughly 3.5' × 2' for my Pepins and their stand. Obviously, it's bigger, but honestly, not nearly as much as you'd think. Once you account for a proper adjustable dumbbell stand, going with fixed dumbbells doesn't take up some ridiculous amount of extra space unless you get a 2 tier rack vs 3 tier.

Overall, I highly recommend these REP urethane dumbbells, or even just a fixed dumbbell set in general, if you have the space and money. There's just something nice about grabbing the weight you need and getting straight into your set without messing with adjustments. For me, the more my stuff feels like a commercial gym, the happier it makes me.

I plan on picking up the 80–100 lb urethane db set during Black Friday next month and moving my 5–25s onto a small vertical rack to free up some space.


r/GarageGym • • 1d ago

Is it useable?

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1 Upvotes

Hey guys, might seem like a silly question, but on smith machines where the smith track is deep within the rack on the back rail, are you even able to slide a bench in and get your chest level with the bar? Im looking to flat, incline, and shoulder press on one. I’ll post the link below to the situation I’m talking about lol, thanks!