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A full-scale free weight home gym in a six-tatami room

A full-scale free weight home gym in a six-tatami room

[A space-saving, authentic home gym that is popular among powerlifters]
 
In the West, home gyms are often seen using a fairly large space such as a garage or basement, but in Japan, where housing conditions are more severe than in the West, it is probably rare to find a home with a large garage or basement.
Recently, it seems that there has been a rapid increase in the number of space-saving home gyms in Japan, made by converting rooms of around four-and-a-half to eight-tatami mats in size.
Some people may be concerned about the space and strength of the floor when it comes to setting up a gym in a room in their home, but if you install space-efficient equipment and properly reinforce the floor, it is entirely possible to do serious free weight training in a home gym that you have converted into a room.
In fact, I (Manager Kamino) practiced in a home gym that I converted from a six-tatami room in my house for five years and three months from December 2011 to March 2017, and during that period I also competed in the Asian and World Powerlifting Championships.
On this page, I would like to write about how to create a home gym where you can do serious free weight training at home.
[Selection of training equipment]
Before you set up your home gym, you need to choose your training equipment.
To do free weight training, you will first need the basic components of a rack, barbell, plates, and bench, each of which comes in the following types:
Once you purchase professional training equipment, it can be used for decades, so it is important to choose the best equipment based on your budget and purpose.
rack
 
Racks are generally
・Half rack
・Squat stand
・Power rack
・Combo rack
You can choose from the above four types. For more information about racks, please refer to the Half Rack, Squat Stand, Power Rack, and Combo Rack pages for their respective advantages and disadvantages .
barbell
 
Barbells come in Olympic and standard shafts, each with the following characteristics:
 
・Olympic shaft
Sleeve diameter 50mm
Built-in bearings reduce strain on the wrist
Can be fitted with competition plates
expensive
・Standard shaft
Sleeve diameter 28mm
No built-in bearings, so it puts a lot of strain on the wrist
Competition plates cannot be attached.
Inexpensive
There are many different types of Olympic shafts, each with different uses, materials, and surface treatments, so it is important to choose one that suits your purpose.
For more information about Olympic shafts, please refer to Olympic Shaft Basics .
plate
 
There are also different types of plates depending on their uses, as shown below.
 
・Steel plate
Metal plates for non-competitive use. There is a certain degree of weight variation, but most are inexpensive and easy to hold.
・Powerlifting competition plates
This steel plate was designed for competitive training. It is difficult to hold, but it is highly precise and thin, making it ideal for competitive powerlifting training.
・Coating plate
Non-competitive rubber plates have a certain degree of weight variation and are less quiet and shock-resistant, but most have handles for easy holding.
・Bumper plate
The rubber plate is designed for competitive practice, has high weight precision, is quiet and impact resistant.
It is also important to choose the plate according to your purpose.
For more information about plates, please refer to Basic Information about Plates .
bench
 
There are the following types of training benches:
 
・Flat bench
Bench with non-adjustable angle
・Adjustable bench
Angle adjustable bench
 
Flat benches cannot be adjusted to the desired angle, but they are often inexpensive and lightweight, and there are also types specifically designed for use with bench presses and types that can be stored upright.
Adjustable benches tend to be expensive and heavy because they have a built-in angle adjustment mechanism, but you can perform exercises with the backrest angled or upright, which can increase the variety of your training.
[Size of room needed to build a gym]
 
halfrack06
If the ROGUE half rack and flat bench in the photo above are installed in a 6 tatami mat or 4.5 tatami mat room, the size will be as shown in the figure below.
homegym01
If you have a space of at least six tatami mats, it would be ideal as you would have plenty of space around the equipment.
It is not impossible to create a full-fledged home gym in a space of just 4.5 tatami mats, but it will be quite cramped and you will need to be careful not to damage the wall, especially when replacing the plates.
When creating a home gym in a 4.5 tatami mat room, you will need to be creative and choose a compact rack and short barbells .
The space required for a home gym is greatly influenced by the size of the rack. A space-efficient half rack or squat stand will have plenty of room in a six-tatami room, but it may be difficult to fit a large power rack in a six-tatami room.
[Floor strength and reinforcement methods]
In order to ensure the strength of the floor, it will be necessary to check the load-bearing capacity and then take measures such as laying plywood. The load-bearing capacity of a floor will vary greatly depending on whether the building is made of wood or reinforced concrete, but if the building is made of reinforced concrete, there is less chance of there being any problems with load-bearing capacity.
(Please be sure to check with your real estate agent regarding the strength of the floor before installing the equipment, and install the equipment at your own risk.)
If there are no problems with the load-bearing capacity of the floor, after understanding the difference between a straight floor and a double floor as shown below, we can reinforce the floor with plywood or cushioning material and then install the training equipment.
*Straight floor and double floor
Even in buildings made of reinforced concrete, there are two types: a direct floor, where the flooring is laid directly on the concrete, and a double floor, where there is a space between the concrete and the floor.
yuka01
In the case of a bare floor, there should generally be no problems even if you place some heavy objects on top of it, but in the case of a double floor, the raised floor has a load-bearing capacity in addition to the load-bearing capacity of the concrete slab, so please be aware that the installation of equipment may cause the flooring material to warp or sink.
※Floor reinforcement
If you place the rack directly on the floor, problems such as vibration, noise, and damage to the flooring and other materials due to the load being concentrated on one part of the floor can occur.
Therefore, by placing cushioning material or plywood between the floor and the rack, the load can be distributed and vibration and noise can be reduced.
yuka02
By layering cushioning material, plywood, and rubber mats in this way, noise, vibration, and damage to the floor can be reduced.
Furthermore, if you change the top rubber mat to carpet, the feel will be closer to that of an official powerlifting platform.
Although it is a little expensive, a thick rubber chip mat such as the SLDS Platform Joint Rubber Chip Mat has high shock absorption and can distribute the load to a certain extent, so you may be able to get by with just one piece of mat.
SPFRM50MM13
[Photo of the manager actually creating a home gym in a rental apartment]
*Room size
Six tatami mats
*Housing structure
Reinforced concrete construction
*Floor structure
Double floor
※Equipment
(Rack & Bench) Powerline Combo Rack
(Olympic Shaft) ELEIKO Powerlifting Bar
(Plate) IVANKO Easy Grip Plate
(Joint cushions, plywood, rubber mats) Purchase at home improvement stores or online
Total weight of training equipment: approx. 400kg
Six-tatami room
homegym03
First, lay the joint cushion
homegym04
Once the plywood has been installed, training is possible in this state, however we recommend placing a rubber mat on top of it to prevent slipping and reduce noise.
homegym05
Place a rubber mat on top of the plywood
homegym06
Completed
homegym07
I did serious powerlifting training (squatting and bench pressing with heavy weights) in this home gym for 5 years and 3 months.
[Points to note when building a home gym]
 
Damage to floor
If there is significant damage to the floor of a rental property, you may be required to pay a large amount of compensation by the landlord or real estate agent when you move out.
After five years and three months of use in the home gym I built, the double-floored flooring had slightly sunk, but this returned to normal after the equipment was removed, and there were no problems when I moved out.
※noise
When building a home gym in a room in your home, it is important to take measures against noise and vibration.
In my case, I took measures to prevent noise, such as returning the barbell slowly and using rubber or urethane on the parts of the barbell that come into contact with the body, so I never received any complaints from my neighbors.
*Deadlift
I did not do deadlifts in this home gym because it is difficult to completely eliminate noise and vibration when lifting, and there is a risk of the barbell falling if the weight is close to the limit.
I still find it difficult to perform deadlifts at full strength in a home gym built in a room in a house, especially an apartment building.

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