Blog post written by Scott Britton
Lockdown more than ever brought to the forefront the need to have accessible fitness. Before the first set of Covid-19 restrictions I never had to consider using my garage as a home gym. Home gyms were also something that I believed only the super-rich had, so I had never actually looked at how to make this an affordable project.
Very quickly the workouts at home of burpees, adding weights to a backpack and going for runs, got super stale, super quick. Whilst there is a never-ending list of movements and workouts that can be done with no equipment, for me, functional fitness is a huge part of my life and career, so I needed to come to a solution.
With the pandemic causing many equipment providers to hike prices up and the second hand market becoming more expensive than gold, it was starting to leave a sour taste in my mouth. I needed to find a brand who would help me decide what I actually needed, not just what they could sell me and most importantly, that I could afford it.
With many of my friends owning BLK BOX equipment, I decided to reach out to their sales team. I sent photos and measurements of my garage and then had a call to share my training program, my ideal kit list and my budget. After having just one phone call with the sales team, my initial kit list was reduced, which meant my budget dropped and I even had a range of options to choose from for each piece of kit.
FLOORING
The flooring in my garage was 1930s concrete, smashed to pieces from the abuse it was put through during my training. The team at BLK BOX calculated how much flooring I would need and suggested the Anti Slip tiles as I could easily install myself and remove if the garage wasn't going to stay as a gym forever. The flooring has really made the space. The heat it holds, the grip on the floor and huge noise reduction certainly has allowed me to train at any hour of the day (or night) without bothering the neighbours.
If I won the lottery, I would have happily bought everything from the BLK BOX catalogue but unfortunately, I had to be realistic with what I could afford and get the most out of. The sales team (who all train themselves) helped massively, suggesting equipment that would work well with my training program and fitness routine.
BUMPERS AND BARBELLS
I finalised my list to include the incredible Belfast Bar along with 150kg set of HD Bumpers. The reason why I went with the HD bumpers was because they offer a dead stop bounce when dropping. With a reasonably small space to work with, and I couldn’t afford to be taking chunks out of the walls from weights bouncing around! They also look incredible and as a fan of a black and white colour scheme, they fit in perfectly.
D-BALLS
For more functional fitness workouts and functional movements, I went for a 50kg D-Ball, which is perfect for strongman training, core work and helped me with lower back recovery exercises, as I had more time to focus on that over lockdown.
3 IN 1 WOODEN PLYO
I also picked a Wooden Plyo Box which is the perfect piece of kit for home workouts and is really stable. The bare wood design also matches the wood of my garage doors and beams.
A set of Hex Dumbbells and the Utility Flat Bench made up everything I needed for my home gym. My training combines elements from my powerlifting days and with such a narrow space to work with, the bench was the perfect fit to be able to stand vertically and move away when needed.
The set up looks incredible and truly became a mini fitness box. The feeling of opening the doors at home and taking my body and mind away from the world has been an incredible help through this crazy time.
The entire BLK BOX team were incredibly supportive and offered advice from the first contact. I was worried that a garage wasn't as important as a huge gym being built but I was treated exactly the same.
DELIVERY
Delivery was perfect, it all arrived flat packed and with incredible care right outside my front door. No more having to squeeze a barbell and plates in the back of my car after e-Bay purchases.
From a 1930s garage that has been home to spiders and gardening off-cuts to now being my primary training location, all black, white and beautiful wood. It is amazing to see the transformation and I couldn't be more impressed with the quality of equipment and the whole team at BLK BOX and am very grateful for their honesty and guidance.
