The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM The Home Gym How-To How to set up a no-frills, simple, inexpensive home gym for use with this program IвЂ™m a big fan of working out at home. This system was actually developed on an inexpensive old rusty home gym, and in this guide IвЂ™m going to quickly show you how it was set up, what equipment is necessary to get optimal results, and how to get started piecing together your own inexpensive home gym. This guide assumes you are familiar with gym equipment, and know what looks and feels вЂњrightвЂќ. I am not going to go into deep specifics, but rather just outline the home gym set-up I put together inexpensively (from used sources) that works very well with this program. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 1 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Finding it cheap IвЂ™ll start this off by telling you: I can, with almost completely certainty, guarantee you that there are LOTS of people living nearby you who have good weight equipment theyвЂ™re desperate to get rid of and that you can pick up at ridiculously low prices. A lot of people buy this equipment thinking theyвЂ™re going to use it every dayвЂ¦ then after a week or two, theyвЂ™re done with it completely. ItвЂ™s now just a waste of space to them, and theyвЂ™re just desperate to get rid of it. Beyond even weight equipment, this includes treadmills, which are ideal for Incline Walking sessions. People regret ever buying them and will do anything to off-load them. All the equipment I picked up I got through craigslist.org, but just look for any kind of local classifieds to pick up this stuff. DonвЂ™t even be worried about putting up вЂњWANTEDвЂќ ads, even if theyвЂ™re just pieces of paper tacked to your local gymвЂ™s bulletin board. When people see that someone actually wants to take away their annoying home gym equipment, theyвЂ™ll be ecstatic and contact you pretty quickly. When I wanted to pick up a treadmill, I posted a вЂњwantedвЂќ ad in craigslist and got ten responses on the first day from people desperate to get their treadmills out of storage. In other words, youвЂ™re doing a lot of people favors by taking this stuff away from them, and you should be able to get it all pretty cheap. What kind of weight equipment should you get? Do NOT purchase a Bowflex or other вЂњall in oneвЂќ home gym. They are poor quality and will NOT work with this system. Save yourself the hassle! There are only two general вЂњclassificationsвЂќ of weight equipment you should be looking for: 1. Olympic 2. Standard http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 2 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM I recommend getting Olympic weight equipment (benches, weights, bars, etc) because it is more common and what I used to develop this system. вЂњOlympicвЂќ weights (and equipment, like the 45 pound Olympic bar used for benching/squatting/etc) are those that are most commonly found in gyms across the world, and вЂњStandardвЂќ are far smaller and lighter. Remember, though: you will not be needing lots and lots of weight for this program! The goal in Hollywood Hypertrophy Training is to exhaust your muscles with lighter weights in a very short amount of time, and you will NOT be aiming to set new 1-repetition-maximum records or lifting super heavy weights. So the small collection of plates and weights you get with whatever weight set you pick up will likely be enough on its own, although many people sell used weights fairly inexpensively as well if you do need more. A tour of my home gym So hereвЂ™s a quick tour of my home gym. IвЂ™m going to show you the equipment I bought and that I use, and this should give you a good idea of what will do the trick on this program. (I will also suggest, later in this guide, substitutions for exercises that require вЂњfancierвЂќ equipment that doesnвЂ™t have a place in an inexpensive home gym.) The equipment: Two Olympic-sized benches, with 330 pounds of weights between them. One bench is used for squats and the other for the wide grip neck press. I set them up this way because a) it was cheap to get two, b) I had the room for them, and c) itвЂ™s more convenient. One bench also has a preacher curl station attached to it (which was originally meant for leg presses, I believe). The plates include: two 45 lbs; two 35 lbs; four 25 lbs; four 10 lbs; four 5 lbs; four 2.5 lbs. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 3 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Two adjustable вЂњstandardвЂќ dumbbells with clips. These are just cheap pieces of metal where I can slide on weights and then use a cheap clip to hold them closed. Again, I rarely use dumbbells heavier than 20 pounds on this program, so this is the ideal solution. These came with one of my weight sets, but can be found relatively inexpensively brand new in sporting stores as well. Two curling bars. Mine are both EZ-curl bars (not straight bars) and, to be honest, IвЂ™d prefer straight bars вЂ“ but I took what I got. Most bench sets come with these, and each curling bar I have came with each bench set I picked up. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 4 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Home-made dip bar. IвЂ™ve performed dips stationed between two laundry machines before, IвЂ™ve performed them on two chairsвЂ¦ really any two sturdy surfaces, separated properly, are perfect for dips. In this case, though, I wanted to make my own вЂњadjustable widthвЂќ V-dip bar and made this one with about $60 of PVC pipe. (Instructions are coming soon for this.) If I had extra metal piping laying around, I would have used that instead вЂ“ but buying it new was too expensive. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 5 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Treadmill that has adjustable incline. I got this used for $75 and probably could have gone even cheaper. Any treadmill that a) feels comfortable and b) has adjustable incline will do the trick. I prefer to walk uphill outside for my Incline Walks but I use the treadmill at night and when the weather isnвЂ™t so nice. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 6 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Random weights donated by friends. You know how I mentioned that most people are desperate to get rid of their weight equipment? This goes for your friends as well. When people found out I was putting together a home gym, I kept being offered old equipment they werenвЂ™t using. I got a small collection of random weights and plates that no one wanted this way. Do I use them all the time? Not really. But keep your eyes peeled for this when piecing together your own home gym. Really, most people are absolutely desperate to get rid of their extra equipment. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 7 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Weight belt. This is the kind that has a chain hanging off it that you can sling weights to, and costs about $15 brand new. I use it specifically for donkey calf raises, but it is not absolutely necessary. Pull-up bar. I have old metal piping outside that I use for pull-ups. If I had to buy something, IвЂ™d get an inexpensive doorway pull-up bar. WhatвЂ™s the minimum equipment you need? So hereвЂ™s a quick tour of my home gym. IвЂ™m going to show you the equipment I bought and that I use, and this should give you a good idea of what will do the trick on this program. (I will also suggest, later in this guide, substitutions for exercises that require вЂњfancierвЂќ equipment that doesnвЂ™t have a place in an inexpensive home gym.) The equipment: Two Olympic-sized benches, with 330 pounds of weights between them. One bench is used for squats and the other for the wide grip neck press. I set them up this way because a) it was cheap to get two, b) I had the room for them, and c) itвЂ™s more convenient. One bench also has a preacher curl station attached to it (which was originally meant for leg presses, I believe). The plates include: two 45 lbs; two 35 lbs; four 25 lbs; four 10 lbs; four 5 lbs; four 2.5 lbs. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 8 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Two adjustable вЂњstandardвЂќ dumbbells with clips. These are just cheap pieces of metal where I can slide on weights and then use a cheap clip to hold them closed. Again, I rarely use dumbbells heavier than 20 pounds on this program, so this is the ideal solution. These came with one of my weight sets, but can be found relatively inexpensively brand new in sporting stores as well. Two curling bars. Mine are both EZ-curl bars (not straight bars) and, to be honest, IвЂ™d prefer straight bars вЂ“ but I took what I got. Most bench sets come with these, and each curling bar I have came with each bench set I picked up. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 9 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Home-made dip bar. IвЂ™ve performed dips stationed between two laundry machines before, IвЂ™ve performed them on two chairsвЂ¦ really any two sturdy surfaces, separated properly, are perfect for dips. In this case, though, I wanted to make my own вЂњadjustable widthвЂќ V-dip bar and made this one with about $60 of PVC pipe. (Instructions are coming soon for this.) If I had extra metal piping laying around, I would have used that instead вЂ“ but buying it new was too expensive. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 10 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Treadmill that has adjustable incline. I got this used for $75 and probably could have gone even cheaper. Any treadmill that a) feels comfortable and b) has adjustable incline will do the trick. I prefer to walk uphill outside for my Incline Walks but I use the treadmill at night and when the weather isnвЂ™t so nice. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 11 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Random weights donated by friends. You know how I mentioned that most people are desperate to get rid of their weight equipment? This goes for your friends as well. When people found out I was putting together a home gym, I kept being offered old equipment they werenвЂ™t using. I got a small collection of random weights and plates that no one wanted this way. Do I use them all the time? Not really. But keep your eyes peeled for this when piecing together your own home gym. Really, most people are absolutely desperate to get rid of their extra equipment. http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 12 of 13 The Home Gym How-To | The Hollywood Physique for Men 12/16/11 9:11 AM Weight belt. This is the kind that has a chain hanging off it that you can sling weights to, and costs about $15 brand new. I use it specifically for donkey calf raises, but it is not absolutely necessary. Pull-up bar. I have old metal piping outside that I use for pull-ups. If I had to buy something, IвЂ™d get an inexpensive doorway pull-up bar. Exercise substitutions Some of the exercises in the Visible Muscle Isolation Method require cables and pullies and equipment that I donвЂ™t include in this home gym. So here are the substitutions you should make: Lat pull-downs becomes pull-ups. (These are more difficult than pull-downs, but are largely used to prevent muscle imbalances вЂ“ the lats are not a vital part of this program. If they get too hard, try performing them as вЂњnegativesвЂќ вЂ“ where you jump up and assist yourself to the top level, then lower down as slowly as possible, essentially only performing half the movement.) Low pulley pulls become bent-over rows. Rope pull-downs become skull crushers. All calf movements become donkey calf raises. Edit http://www.hollywoodphysique.com/access/?page_id=2827 Page 13 of 13