5 Must-Have Fitness Tools for Home Workout

Why on earth would you need fitness tools for home workout when you can easily go to a gym?

Well, not everyone likes to go to the gym for working out. For some, the distance and commute could be a problem. Some others might not feel comfortable shelling out the extra money every month on a fitness program at a gym. And then there are always some who just don't like working out at the gym!

Take me for example.

I have a full-fledged gym in my apartment society. It is completely free to use for the residents. Still, I don't like using it. Ever since I moved to this place in 2011, I have tried so many times to start going to that gym regularly, but, nope. I just can't do it for more than a couple of days.

Why?

1. The gym in my society is poorly maintained.
2. There is no trainer to explain how to use all those "heavy machines". (If I do something wrong, I could seriously injure myself, right? I mean, those are big machines!)
3. It has poor ventilation and gets real stuffy.
4. We can use it only for fixed timings during the day, which are not convenient for me.
5. I keep running into people I know, and I know mostly everyone, being a neighborhood shop-owner! So the social-interactions become unavoidable and distracting.
6. I hate the music they play. Plus, it is too loud.

That is why, I prefer to workout at home.

There is a lot you can do at home for fitness, without investing in heavy exercise machines or even treadmills. You can design your own home workout program with any combination of simple warm up P.T. (like we did in school), aerobics, yoga (including Surya Namaskar, which is exceptionally good for the back if you work long hours at the computer), light weights, calisthenics, dancing, skipping. You can mix & match from the above and keep it interesting.

5 Must-Have Fitness Tools for Home Workout

Based on my personal experience, I will highly recommend the following 5 fitness tools to complement and assist in your home workout program.

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through those links, I will receive a small commission, at no extra cost to you. (Many thanks, if you choose to support me this way.)

1. Digital Weighing/Bathroom Scale

   It really helps to be able to monitor your body-weight regularly at home. Both me and my sister (in Delhi) have been using the Health Sense Personal Body Weight Bathroom Scales, without any issues, for years now. Some of the main features of Health Sense Personal Weighing Scales are:

   • Ultra light-weight
   • Excellent LCD visibility
   • Accurate up to nearest 100g
   • Can toggle between kg and lb
   • LCD display stays for a couple of seconds after you get off
   
   
   

   While I have the Ulta-Lite PS 126 Digital model, hers is a smiliar, although slightly older model. There are other newer versions also available now. You can check out the entire collection of Health Sense Personal Body-weighing Scales at Amazon.
   
   

2. Yoga Mat

   There are so many yoga mats available these days, and some really cheap ones too, that making a choice was difficult and confusing for me initially. Then I happened to attend an aerobics class in my building and had to borrow someone's extra mat. That helped me figure out what to look for when buying a yoga mat.

   • It should be anti-skid/anti-slip, i.e. the mat should not slip on the floor, AND your hands and feet should not slip on the mat.
   • It shouldn't smell. (The one I borrowed smelled awful!)
   • It should be thick enough to provide enough cushion to your body.
   
   
   

   This Bold Fit Pro-Grip 6mm all-purpose Yoga Mat for men and women from Amazon is highly recommended for yoga, pilates and meditation. Though it seems to be among the pricier yoga mats on amazon, it not only meets the above requirements, but is also tear-resistant and eco-friendly. Plus, it is a full 6 feet by 2 feet, AND available in three different color options, including the standard black. You can check out its full specifications and reviews on the link above.
   
   

3. Dumbbells

   There are a lot of cheap PVC Vinyl dumbbell sets on amazon for women, but I realized they're mostly filled with sand or some such. Not very lasting. I like to buy things once and use them for years. So I zeroed-in on the Aurion Set of 2 Chrome Dumbbell with Soft Padded Cushion Handles. They are sleek and have cushion grips, so you don't need to wear gloves.

   

   But then a young relative, who is heavily into gymming and strength training workout, advised me to go for rubber-coated ones, as I was a beginner and there was a risk of damaging the floor in case I dropped the dumbbells. So we settled on the Cockatoo Hexa Steel Dumbbell Set.

   

   You can check out both on amazon. Both have average rating above 4.5 out of 5. And both have multiple size options, starting from pairs of 2KG and above.
   
   

4. Ankle Weights

   During my personal training, I realized I had very weak ankles and shins. So, instead of walking and putting my entire body-weight on them for long stretches of time, I decided to do raised-leg rotation exercises while lying down. And ankle weights can add extra resistance to this exercise routine, helping to build the required muscle strength.

   

   After a lot of research and reading the customer reviews and the questions answered by the sellers, I settled on the Sportneer Ankle Weights. These are adjustable ankle/wrist weight straps, starting from pairs of 0.9KG each to 2.3KG each, available in a variety of colors. At the time of writing this article, they have over 13 thousand reviews, with an average rating of 4+ stars.

   

   But if, like me, you want to START with something less than 0.9KG on each ankle, then I first recommend the Cosco Ankle Weights. They come in fixed weight of 0.5KG each, have 800+ user reviews currently, and an average rating of 4+ stars out of 5. I thought I'd start with these first, and then move to the heavier Sportneer ones after a few months.
   
   

5. Fitness Tracker

   So my sister swears by Fitbit. She was earlier using a sleek model, kinda similar to the Fitbit Alta HR, which has an activity tracker, sleep tracker, continuous heart-rate monitor, call & notification alert, idle alert, and battery life up to 7 days. But it was pricey at the time - over INR 10K. She used it happily enough for years, and then switched to a Unisex SmartWatch instead, with a big squarish display.

   

   I wanted something cheaper. So, after much research, I decided to go with a Mi Smart Band instead. When I purchased mine, Mi Band 3 was the latest. It had all of the above mentioned features, plus, it was splash resistant and had a better battery life. Also, since I have a Mi phone, it made it easier to sync. (Although it is apparently compatible with other Android phones too.) I'm still using it without any problems. Bought a Mi Band 4 also later for Dad, and even that is working fine. Currently, though, you will find even newer models -- Mi Smart Band 5 and Mi Smart Band 6. Both recognize and track many more Sport Modes and activities, and have other advance features, like Stress Monitoring and Women Health Tracking.

   Well, I primarily use my activity tracker for its pedometer functionality, sleep tracker and the timer, but you can opt to set alarms, use the stop-watch feature, auto-detect other fitness activities, as well as choose to receive mobile notifications and alerts on them. So, depending on your budget and features required, (and the look too, of course!) you can choose the one that fits best for you. Check out their detailed reviews on amazon, and have a look at the questions other users have asked.

These are my 5 Must-Have Fitness Tools for Home Workout. You can buy and use many other fitness tools at home. In fact, if you have the resources and the space, you can even own a personal home gym. But I'm still at the beginners' level. So I wrote this article from that point of view. Too many things at once, right at the beginning, can be overwhelming. That is why I'm recommending only the most basic and most essential fitness products for working out at home.

Which of these fitness tools do you use for home workout?
What other fitness products do you recommend?

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