My Home Gym...

I hate gyms. They're invariably filled with mirrors, treadmills and other equipment of dubious merit. Except for one small corner. There the shiny wooden floor gives way to worn rubber. In place of the leotard wearing posers there are gruff men with ripped shorts. Instead of anodised steppers there are proper weights...

I can't be clearer than this; weights are the best route forward. Want to lose fat? Weights. Want to tone up? Weights. Want to beef up? Weights. There is simply no substitute a gut burstingly hard workout with barbell and some plates. None. Then why do I hate the gym?

Despite their genuine advantage over machines, gyms seem to be abandoning free weights with wanton abandon. You queue for ages to use the bench press and then you power through your reps feeling guilty for the queue that's forming. So I kitted out my spare room.

The best combination (that I could afford) was a door mounted pull up bar, an adjustable bench, a squat rack and a barbell. I also bought the bowflex selectech dumbells because they're small. This way I can squat, rack pull and press by moving the pegs and positioning the bech where I need it. I've also bought a rowing machine for cardio and warm ups. I've also got a swiss ball and stretch bands. If I could afford the money and space I'd like a pull down machine, but life's a bitch.