Home exercise machine for all muscle groups: tips for choosing

The content of the article:

Often people cannot find free time to visit the fitness center, but they want to put their body in order. In such a situation, you can conduct training at home. By properly organizing the training process, you can get excellent results. A lot of simulators are produced and often people face a serious choice, not knowing which sports equipment to prefer. Today we will tell you how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups.

What kind of trainers are there?

All simulators that exist today can be classified according to two parameters: the type of load and functionality. Let's deal with this issue in detail. According to the type of load, simulators are divided into two groups:

  1. Power.
  2. Cardio trainers.
The first group includes sports equipment that allows you to increase strength, endurance, and also gain muscle mass. Strength training helps to increase the speed of metabolic processes, strengthens bone tissue and the articular-ligamentous apparatus. In addition, strength training can be an excellent means of combating excess weight.

Cardio trainers are well known to many people - ellipsoid, treadmill, stepper, exercise bike. Aerobic training has a positive effect on the work of the heart muscle, the respiratory system, accelerates metabolism and increases the rate of utilization of adipose tissues.

Types of strength training equipment


Let's return to power simulators, which can also be divided into highly specialized and multifunctional.

Highly specialized strength training equipment


This type of sports equipment is most often installed in fitness centers. Each simulator is designed to work out a specific muscle group, for example, the press, biceps, back, etc. They are often used by novice athletes who do not have sufficient technique to work with free weights. The fact is that in simulators the trajectory of the movement of a sports equipment is strictly specified, which does not allow making mistakes. However, it is not advisable to install them at home, as it will take a lot of space.

Multifunctional trainers


This type of sports equipment is often referred to as power stations. Such installations combine several power simulators at once and allow you to perform more than three dozen exercises for muscle groups of the whole body. Here are the main elements of multifunctional simulators:
  • School desk for pumping biceps.
  • Bench for bench press in the prone position.
  • Vertical and horizontal traction.
  • Bench for working out the muscles of the abdomen.
  • Block for pumping legs.
Many belt trainers are equipped with computers, which allows you to track various indicators. In addition, intermediate options for simulators between highly specialized and multifunctional ones can be found on sale. Say, with the help of the upper block, you can pump your legs, triceps and back.

How to choose the right home exercise machine for all muscle groups?


First of all, you need to decide on the answers to several questions:
  • What financial resources do you have?
  • How many people will use the simulator?
  • What are your goals for training - weight gain or weight loss.
  • How much free space can you allocate for the installation of sports equipment?
When you answer the above questions, it will immediately become clear what you need to look for. Today, a fairly large number of different simulators are presented in stores and the price range is large. Surely you can find equipment for the allocated budget. But it should be remembered that high-quality sports equipment cannot be cheap. If other members of your family also plan to train, then you can choose a power multi station that allows several people to perform exercises at once.

The best manufacturers of sports equipment


If you are interested in how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups, then you should get acquainted with the leading manufacturers in this area:
  1. Kettler- a German company founded in the middle of the last century and firmly holding a leading position all this time. First of all, Kettler exercise bikes are very successful, but things are a little worse with power stations.
  2. Cybex- American manufacturer, in the assortment of which you can find a large number of different types of sports equipment.
  3. Horizon- one of the most popular brands that produce products for home use.
  4. Diadora- a company from Italy, whose products are characterized by high quality and attractive cost.

What criteria should be considered when choosing a home exercise machine for all muscle groups?


It's time to answer in detail the question of how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups and move on to practical recommendations. First, we recommend that you read the manufacturer's instructions. High-quality simulators are characterized by the following parameters:
  • Welded frame made of high strength steel.
  • Wear resistant coating.
  • Equipped with aircraft quality cables.
  • Wear-resistant material for backrests and seat cushions.
When choosing exercise equipment, you should not focus only on the brand or appearance of the equipment. You should try the simulator in operation and make sure that everything suits you. And now let's look at the main parameters that you should pay attention to if you want to know how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups.

All simulators can be divided into three price categories:

  • 1st category- the cost of equipment is in the range from 25 to 650 thousand rubles.
  • 3rd category- the price of equipment exceeds 150 thousand rubles.
It is quite obvious that entry-level simulators are in the first price category. You can train effectively on it, but the quality of such equipment is not the highest. We do not recommend paying attention to the simulators of this class or choosing very carefully.

The second category contains devices that meet most of the requirements. They will not only be effective, but will last for many years. The last group contains exercise equipment that will definitely be a great choice. However, their cost may not be to everyone's liking.

The best cardio equipment for home use


We have only answered the question of how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups? However, multifunctional simulators are not always necessary. For example, for most girls, a kario simulator will be enough, and strength training can be done with dumbbells. The main goal of training for women is to improve the appearance of the figure, and not to gain the maximum amount of muscle mass. Let's talk about which cardio machine you can buy for home workouts.

exercise bike


This is one of the most popular types of sports equipment, characterized by attractive cost and small dimensions. Today, manufacturers produce three main types of exercise bikes:
  1. Shoe- resistance is created due to the brake pads pressed against the flywheel.
  2. Belt- the load depends on the degree of tension of the belt that transmits the movement to the flywheel.
  3. Magnetic- it is necessary to connect to the electrical network to ensure the operation of electromagnets, which regulate the load level.
In addition, special simulators are produced for people suffering from varicose veins or having back problems. Their design has a horizontal position and the person rotates the pedals while lying on his back. It is exercise bikes that can be considered the safest for people with a large body weight. In addition, their installation will require no more than two square meters of free space. However, there are several disadvantages that you should be aware of when choosing an exercise bike:
  1. The equipment cannot be folded and hidden in a closet.
  2. Belts and pads quickly wear out and fail.
  3. Belt and shoe type exercise bikes do not have sufficient smoothness, which can cause discomfort during training.

Treadmill


Jogging and walking are excellent means of combating excess weight. If in the warm season such training is best done outdoors, then in winter and late autumn you may need a treadmill. This type of sports equipment can be equipped with a mechanical or electric drive. It is quite obvious that the first type has the most attractive cost, and its dimensions are small, and after training, the simulator can be hidden under the bed.

Electric treadmills are more functional and most often equipped with a computer. With it, you can control various parameters and set the training program. If you decide to buy this type of treadmill, be sure to pay attention to the engine power. If your body weight exceeds 80 kilos, then the power of the power plant should be 1.5–2.7 horsepower. An equally important parameter is the speed characteristics of the simulator:

  1. If you plan to do only walking, then you should stop at the choice of a simulator with a belt speed of about 10 kilometers per hour.
  2. If running training is planned, then the speed characteristics should be higher - from 13 to 16 kilometers per hour.
Be sure to pay attention to the dimensions of the running belt. Its width should be from 50 to 60 centimeters, and a length of about one and a half meters.

stepper


This simulator is designed to simulate climbing stairs. The simplest simulator is a mini-stepper, which is a pedal, and also equipped with step and time counters. To control the load, hydraulic cylinders or a flywheel are used. In more expensive models, there is a pulse counter and pre-installed training programs. Advanced types of steppers are equipped with handrails, which is useful in those moments when you start to feel tired.

The most modern and expensive models are equipped with hand levers. As a result, you can work out not only the legs, but also the back and arms. Among the main advantages of the stepper, you can specify its dimensions. In fact, this is the smallest of all simulators. However, it also has one fairly significant drawback - it loads the knee joints. This suggests that when working on a stepper, it is necessary to correctly select the level of load in order to minimize the risk of injury.

For more information on how to choose a home exercise machine for all muscle groups, see the video below: