Transformations: Setting Up Your Outdoor Home Gym

Outdoor structures are so diverse! On our blog, in the past, we’ve featured a few creative uses for outdoor structures, including home offices, potting rooms, and chicken coops. This month, we introduce another idea: the home gym. It’s a like a permanent gym membership!

Maybe your house doesn’t have enough space for your equipment, or perhaps you just want a sanctuary separate from your living quarters that allows you to get out of the house—even if it’s just a few yards away.

The investment of this on-site outdoor gym will vary. For instance, you might already have an outdoor structure on the property that you can transform into a workout space. Or, perhaps, you already own a few pieces of exercise equipment. The size of the shed may vary, too—but make sure you get one spacious enough for the type of workouts you typically do. Either way, this is a project that can pay off if you’re committed to your fitness routine as gym memberships can be pricey!

You also have many options for designing your outdoor shed—you can certainly leave things bare bones, or you can completely finish the shed by adding siding, flooring, windows, storage, and then painting and decorating.

If living a healthier lifestyle—mind and body—is important to you, but you don’t necessarily want machines, you can still create a retreat where you can do yoga, meditate, or aerobics.

Other considerations: While electricity is not a necessity, you may wish to run power to your outdoor gym for several reasons including air conditioning to keep you cool or to hook up a device to view workout videos (a TV/DVD player, computer, or internet-ready TV—in which case you may also need wi-fi access).

Setting up an outdoor gym in a shed or other outdoor structure can be an exciting project, and there’s an option to fit varying budgets. Most of all, this type of retreat will encourage healthy habits right at home!