While searching for a piece of home gym equipment to give to my hubby, I stumbled upon a unit that was within my budget, and was also a space saver because it folds. This was an important feature because I wanted him to have a bench to do crunches and light weight training, so we could save the expense of the monthly gym fees, but I didn’t want to convert our spare bedroom into a fully equipped gym.
The compromise we worked out was that he could have one small piece of home gym equipment, like a bench and a set of weights and dumbbells, but that they must be able to be stored in the closet when my mom comes to visit and needs to use the bedroom. The question was: what home gym machines were affordable and small enough to be able to perform this switcharoo trick? The answer was a nifty unit I found called the Body-Solid Powerline Weight Bench, which is a folding bench that has seven positions, is fully adjustable, and costs just under $170. Powerline had other models, but the one I chose was the PFID125W Multi-Bench because it was one of the cheapest that folded and was adjustable.
Other Compact Home Gym Machines
While I was looking for the ideal piece of home gym equipment, I found some other ones that were practical too, like the Bowflex designs, one of which is priced at just $149. It’s also an adjustable bench, although it only has 4 positions, (which is one reason I paid a little more for the 7 position Powerline model).
Anyway, after I bought the Body-Solid bench, I discovered that there was another really good choice called the Weider Pro 230 Weight Bench. Why didn’t I buy this model. Mostly because I didn’t see it when I ordered from Powerline home gym machines, but I think it would have been a good choice because it only costs about $90 and is adjustable too. In retrospect it might have been the better model to choose because it’s also very compact and has multiple position options. It’s a slant board so it helps to build the upper body and also get toned in the mid section, which is where my hubby needs the help.
Discreet, Hide-able Home Gym Equipment
I’m sure there are other women, who are not into body building but want to give a good gift to their husband or boyfriend who likes to workout, and are as lost as I was before doing some research. So, for all you ladies out there who want to help your man create a space that’s versatile where he can workout without taking up half the house, I suggest looking at some of the home gym machines by Weider and Powerline, especially the adjustable benches.
These are not going to be massive and intrusive pieces of home gym equipment that you can’t discreetly hide in a large closet or convert into a corner seat in a guest room if you must. And best of all, if you choose some of the ones I found that are under $200, you save enough to treat yourself to a set of small 1 lb dumbbells and join him once in a while in an upper arm workout, which we can all use from time to time.