Equipment Ideas

[William Brownley]

I have an O bar and @300 pounds of weight. Not the quality I might like, but.. I have rings, I have dumbells up 50 lbs. I have two kettlebells weighing 18 pounds that can supposedly be taken up to 40@ through adding sand.

Ideas for priority add-ons. Bumper plates 10lbs and 25 lbs.
60 lb dumbells.
Assist bands for pull ups. By the way--how does that work?
Maybe a fifty three pound KB.
C2 when I spot the right deal.

Any different ideas or priorities. the again faster bar? thanks, Bill

[Jerry Berg]

i'd suggest getting the again faster bar, or any pullup bar for that matter. i've seen huge fitness gains by doing pullups as often as I can. The rings are great for dips, muscle ups and pullups, but a bar is perfect for learning to bang out kipped pullups.

the assist bands are looped around a pullup bar for you to put a foot in to provide assistance on the upward motion of a pullup. In addition to that, practice the negative portion of a pullup.

i.e. jump/climb/whatever to the top of a pullup position and slowly lower your self down with controlled resistance. Be careful not to overdo it on these, as you can develop some wicked soreness.

once you master those and can do un-assisted pullups, develop your kip. the way i learned to kip was by going to failure on regular dead hang pullups and then voila, the kipping pullup appeared. it was the only way I could get my chin over the bar. it required a full body muscle recruitment and an explosive hip thrust. instead of relying on only the back and arms. you can find some videos of this in the exercise site.

additionally, you will want to build some parrelletes out of pvc pipe. these are awesome for pushups, L - sits and handstand pushups.

good luck on building your gym!

[Jason Lopez-Ota]

You need a pullup bar.

[Jason Steele]

If money is the issue, get some latex tubing (surgical type), you can make the assist bands that way. You have a bar, so you can simulate rowing (sucks but can be done, did a 10K this way once). Personally I would get the 53# KB, it's the only thing you can't build for cheaper (besides the C2, good luck on that one).

[Ahmik Jones]

I would get bumpers.

A kettlebell is not the best bang for the buck. For most movements, you can use your dumbbells instead of kettlebells and not lose much.

A C2, while a great product, is worth waiting until you find one for less than $300 on craigslist.

Bumpers are the best bang for the buck. They are essential to performing the olympic lifts and some of the power lifts safely. If you do not feel comfortable dropping your weight, you will either not lift as much as you can or end up hurting yourself.

You can get quality recycled rubber bumpers that will last you a lifetime really cheap (around $1.50 a pound delivered). Check the home gym link in my signature for some vendors.

[William Brownley]

The List--based on input from all above:
1. Again faster Bar
2. Bumper Plates--I am sure on 10s and 25s, thinking about 45s.
3. 60 lb DBs
4. Woodys bands and a 20 pack of macMaster minis--for 20.00 worth the experiment.
The above are purchases. To be made--Paralettes and a plyobox, maybe 22-24 inches. Are there any good easy plans for dips, either free standing or attached? Thanks again for all of the input--Bill

[Dennis Barrett]

I got a stack of my wifes old magazines and catalogs. I stood on the bathroom scales and picked up 5# of magazines. I wrapped this vertically and horizontally with duct tape to make a flat bundle. I also made two 10# bundles. This gives me 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25# in combination to put in my backpack for weighted pull ups, push ups, dips and lunge walking.

[Jan Szyndler]

Nice job Dennis...whatever it takes!