Making it mean and lean - Martha Lourey-Bird

Daily Telegraph, Sydney 

30 Jun 2012, by No author available 

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Making it mean and lean 

Setting aside a suitable space for a home gym will give you a better chance of sticking to your goals, writes Chelsea Clark 

all made a vow to get fit 

at some point. But how far are 

you willing to go to keep your 

Weve promise of hitting the gym 

How about devoting an entire room of 

your house to a home gym set-up 

With a wide range of quality at-home 

fitness equipment now available, home 

gyms are appealing to renovators. 

But before you kit out the spare room 

with treadmills, steppers and dumbbells, 

fitness experts warn you have to be sure 

you will make full use of the new set-up. 

"To get fit, you have to actually use all 

your shiny new equipment," says fitness 

expert and trainer Martha Lourey-Bird. 

"In my experience, so much fitness 

equipment ends up dusty or in the annual 

garage sale because people have all these 

high hopes. But when push comes to 

shove, they haven't chosen the right 

equipment for their needs or even the 

type of exercise they enjoy. 

"There's no point slaving away on the 

treadmill if what you enjoy is swimming." 

So to get maximum use and enjoyment 

from a gym in your home, consider these 

points before diving in. 

Choose your space carefully 

The first thing to consider, before 

equipment even comes into it, is how 

much space is available for you to use 

as a home gym. 

"Any room can feasibly be used 

but it's a bonus, of course, if you 

have fresh air and natural light," 

says interior designer Bianca Newtor 

from Bianca Newton Interior Design and 

Property Styling. 

Martha says ventilation is the most 

important factor to consider when 

choosing a space for your home gym. 

"Ideally you would use a spare room 

with a big window but, more practically, 

anywhere that is light and bright and not 

full of clutter will work," she says. 

Your motivation is going to be the key 

to the success of your home gym set-up so 

devoting as much space as you can is wise. 

If you plan on using part of a room, 

consider dividing screens or rearranging 

your furniture so your work-out area has 

a specific boundary. 

"Using the space to dump your dirty 

laundry or the kids' toys is not going to 

motivate you at all," Martha says. 

"Make sure you have a devoted workout 

area, no matter how small it might be." 

Selecting your equipment 

The space you choose will also, to some 

extent dictate the type of equipment you 

can have in your home gym. 

But before you head out to buy large 

equipment just because you have a whole 

room to fill, Martha suggests thinking 

about your fitness goals. 

"You have to think about what you 

want to achieve," she says. "If you want 

to develop upper-body strength maybe 

a punching bag is your best bet but, if you 

want to lose weight, then cardio equipment 

is going to be the right choice for you." 

When selecting equipment, you should 

also think about the type of exercise you 

enjoy the most. 

"If you tie yourself down to an




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exercise regimen you don't enjoy, it will 

be difficult to get motivated to exercise at 

all," Martha says. 

If you love the serenity of yoga make 

that the focus of your workout space, but if 

cycling is more your style consider making 

space for a stationary bike. 

How much should you spend 

The other big consideration in choosing 

equipment is, of course, your budget. 

Martha says there is no formula for how 

much to spend on setting up a home gym 

but she does suggest renting or trying out 

bigger pieces of equipment before you buy. 

"Home-gym equipment can be pricey 

so see if you can rent some of your 

bigger pieces first before you commit to 

purchasing them," she says. "It will also 

give you the opportunity to ensure you are 

going to use the equipment regularly." 

Mat Fisher, from home-fitness 

equipment and advisory company 

TechnoGym, says testing out equipment 

at your local gym can be a good starting 

point for choosing gear to suit your needs. 

"Join a no-contract gym for a couple 

of months and try out all the different 

machines, then look for the reputable 

manufacturers who make commercial 

equipment because often they have home 

lines, too," he says. 

He also suggests trying out equipment 

in-store. "Wear your workout gear to visit 

showrooms and retail stores and use the 

gear on a medium setting for more than 

five minutes to really understand the 

long-term experience." 

Many fitness experts advise that when 

selecting large-scale equipment you should 

spend as much as you can afford. 

Mat says TechnoGym have home-fitness 

equipment starting from $110 but ranging 

up to $20,000. 

"It's an old saying, but you do get what 

you pay for," he says. "If you go for the 

cheapest gear you may not enjoy using it 

and it will end up in council pick-up so you 

wasted your money. 

"Cheap equipment will also not 

perform well after some use. Parts 

will wear, upholstery will rip and 

electronics will break down." 

Decorate to stay keen 

So now you have your space 

clear of clutter and your 

shiny new equipment in 

place, how to make sure 

you keep up with your 

new exercise plan 

"Make your gym an 

enjoyable place to be, 

otherwise you will just make 

excuses and never actually 

get in there," Martha 

says. She suggests using 

an uplifting colour 

scheme to keep your 

spirits high when 

you work out. 

"Stick with 

bright, airy 

colours to keep your mood lifted," she says. 

Bianca says neutral tones are also good. 

"A home gym shouldn't feel like a 

painted box," she says. "I think it should be 

kept clean, simple and modern. 

"Most importantly, it should be in 

keeping with the rest of your house or 

apartment. By keeping it clean, you can use 

accessories to introduce colour accents that 

suit your personality, such as through your 

choice in gym towels or yoga mat." 

Bianca and Martha both also suggest 

adding entertainment features such as an 

integrated flat-screen TV and iPod dock 

if the budget allows. Lastly, to keep your 

fitness goals on track, Martha suggests an 

inspiration board. 

"A noticeboard or wall where you can 

stick images or quotes that will keep your 

goals front of mind might also help you 

get there faster and make your gym an 

enjoyable place to be," she says. 

clarkc@dailytelegraph.com.au




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STAY SAFE 

If you have small children, keep your 

gym an off-limits area for them. 

According to Kidsafe NSW, more than 

100 Australian children have been 

seriously injured by treadmills at 

home in the past few years. 

"Most injuries happen when a baby 

or toddler moves to the back of the 

treadmill (where they are out of sight) 

and either touches the moving belt or 

gets their hand caught under it," the 

authority's website states. 

Always keep your treadmill unplugged 

when not in use and store your treadmill 

well away from the reach of children. 

If your home gymnasium set-up is 

difficult to keep closed off, consider 

using a barrier (such as a playpen) to 

keep children away. 

MORE INFORMATION 

Kidsafe NSW kidsafensw.org 

Compan las such as Tactmagym 

- ran pjilyAulliinent ttlx1r, 

,jou. Moat your trahlriq




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'AT'S YOUR wukKOUT STYLE 

Home fitness equipment company 

TechnoGyrn has. developed the 

Aspiration Finder so its clients 

can make the right choices when 

decorating and select the right 

equipment tor their home gyms. 

There ara six major motivators for 

exercise which one suits you 

Fun You enjoy the social aspects of 

wellness. Make sure you have enouoh. 

room in your home gym for friends. 

Colours that keep you motivated 

frichude larights and primary colours 

such as rad. blue and yellow. 

)) Morn-pi Adive and energetic 

exerdSeS suit you beg. Use sriades 

of blue iri your gymnasium to help 

keep lhings on Lack. 

)), Shapae The primary focus of your 

workout is to change your body shape. 

Try resistance-based workouts and 

decorate using purples and maroon to 

keep your5elf rmitivated_ 

) Power You see viellns as a way 

lo improve performance and success 

in life. by yardsticks such as We oric 

status. Try using grey and Qold tones 

in your home gym. 

)) Ball-Ince If you're looking for a way 

to bring mind-and-body equilibrium, 

yoga is a groat choice for your 

v..orkok.rt_ Choose Soft tones of 

5a-green to promote Cairn_ 

).) Sport If you train specifically to 

improve your performance in sport, 

COFOLITS such as yellow and orange 

will increase motivation.




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AORE INFORMATION 

Bianca Newton Interior Design and 

Property Styling ::,,,,anewtOrVOrn.ati 

Martha Lourey-Bird 

Indi 

TechnoGym teCtoKyrnforVau

Making it mean and lean - Martha Lourey-Bird

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