Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

This is something I really need advice on.

When you say, "Home gym" most people think of... small, spring-and-pulley systems, promoted on bad TV commercials from the 1990s.

What if you want to get set up to really do powerlifting exercises at home?

I have the space, and the budget doesn't matter much, because of the time and money I would save in contrast to gym fees. However...

It is hard to overcome concerns about putting a hole in the floor (or, indeed, a hole in the ceiling).

Has anyone else dealt with this? I realize that it is something that must have its own sub-culture, websites, or youtube channels associated with it --but I haven't seen anything of the kind.

The other factor is ordering the stuff to be delivered: so far, in Europe, I really haven't found good options for the steel basics. It would be entirely necessary to pay a service that was willing to deliver door-to-door. So, if anyone has advice for Europe in general, or France in specific, that would be even more useful.

Well. There are several website available on the web that can help you to find best services. Even you can search on Google and you will get several results.

Hey!
I have an olympic barbell with 145Kg worth of weight on the second floor of my house, no problems at all I could easily add more weight without damadging my floor but when I'm not using it I'm make sure that the plates are evenly distributed across the room (just a precaution). I use a camping mat as a little platform just to absorb that little bit of shock from slamming down deadlifts, all I need now are some decent squat stands and a bench but I use chairs as makeshift stands at the moment.. Anyway let me know how it goes

I have to admit, this is exactly what I was assuming I'd do:

"I use a camping mat..."

Currently, I've only seen metal/steel weights for sale here, but if I could get ahold of the type of solid vinyl weights that I've seen in some gyms, that would make the worst case scenario (of the bar clattering to the floor from a height) easier to manage.

All of the weights I've seen for sale here are made in China --and are expensive for that reason, as they've evidently paying for freight by the kilo. This is one of the few classes of goods that is not cheaper when shipped long distances from the workshops of East Asia (it is also interesting that made-in-Europe bicycles have remained competitively priced, vs. made-in-Asia).

The best way to avoid high delivery costs is to order stuff through amazon

I work out at home and I am a power lifter. I bought the bench press with weights, sold as a complete set (300 pounds). Then, to get more weights, I bought another set (300 pounds) and sold the bench! Now I have 600 pounds of weights, 2 straight bars, and a bench! Cheap. I can bench, dead lift, squat, bent over rows, & shoulder press.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Sadly, the equipment available on Amazon.com is really garbage here (in France).

I'm sorry to come back to the forum and just sounds like I'm whining and complaining all the time...

:-/

I'll open another forum topic just stating a simple question about ordering weights/equipment in Europe, to see if anyone has specific suggestions.

Some of the stuff is poor quality, some of it is a rip-off, and in some cases the company hadn't really thought through the implications of their own policies, resulting in a sort of unintentional rip-off (e.g., if you charge a fee per 10 kilograms, expecting that people are just ordering furniture... it adds up to a lot for a stack of lifting equipment).

I wouldn't worry too much about going through the floor. Have you been to Walmart lately? A lot of the people there are easily 400-600lbs and you don't hear about them going through their floors.

I have this: http://www.fitnessboutique.fr/musculati ... _160B.html

It was 90€ lower when I bough it last year. To look elsewhere if it's in promo..
Good value for money I think (especially at 159€). Easy to assemble. Basic finishes even so.
Low delivery cost, only 7.95€

Try https://www.strengthshop.de

Excellent...

The prices at http://www.fitnessboutique.fr definitely seem reasonable.

...and a better option than carrying the weights home from the store myself...



Thanks very much for writing back with suggestions.

I just put together the start of my own home gym. Thankfully it started with the help of a co-worker who gave me a Weider Club 500 rack and about 270 lbs of weight for free! I thought this was great, as it got me out of paying my monthly dues at the gym and didn't have to stand around waiting for the one rack to open up.

About 2 weeks later I dropped the money and purchased anR3, utility bench and Beater Bar all from Rogue Fitness. The total came to about $1000, but I will be saving much more in the $120/month I was paying for a family membership at the local gym. I bolted the power rack in the garage. In the future I will be building my own power lifting platform using plywood and a heavy rubber stall mat. Don't have the room right now for it, but working out at home is great! Not to mention much more convenient.

Here in Europe, the basic problem is that EVERYTHING IS MADE IN CHINA...

...and stacks of heavy weights do not export cheaply over long distances...

...whereas, obviously, electronics and plastic shoes do.

In terms of the real disc-weights, everything here is eye-wateringly expensive.

I've ended up with a curly bar that I'm satisfied with, and a pseudo-Olympic bar that I'm pseudo-satisfied with...

...but I'm still looking around for more of the actual discs.

Hey, I eat fruit imported from South America (at low, low prices) but solid steel (or pig-iron, etc.) is still expensive around here. Interestingly, too, I haven't seen vinyl (and/or recycled plastic) disc-weights for sale (those seemed to be increasingly fashionable in the U.S. and Canada?).