Fitness is something even those of us who aren’t gym bunnies are now embracing, especially new technologies like EMS. Now is a great time to create your own fitness space at home complete with inspiring workout equipment and accessories. The key is to evolve your home gym slowly and below are plenty of pretty pieces for you to invest in.
Home Gym Equipment #1: Echelon
With working-from-home now a part of all our lives, Echelon is the ideal solution as it allows you to create a fitness routine that fits into your lifestyle through a range of high-tech products, created to suit all fitness levels and designed to fit a multitude of indoor spaces – including foldable models that work in even the smallest living spaces.
With a diverse range of exercise machines to choose from, an inspiring online community, flexible memberships and a plethora of live and on-demand workout classes with over 75 motivating trainers, Echelon caters to all fitness levels – from the Echelon Smart Connect Bike EX-5s, to the Echelon Stride Auto-Fold Connected Treadmill and Echelon Reflect 50″ Touchscreen Fitness Mirror.
The Echelon Stride Auto-Fold Connected Treadmill is amazing as it can be folded away. Activate the auto-fold feature and watch as the smart treadmill folds to just 10″ tall for easy storage. The machine itself is everything you would expect with an impact-absorbing running deck for performance, 12 levels and a 10 percent incline range. The app is also easy to use, robust and detailed so you can track all your activity.
echelonfit.uk
From £1,599
Image: PENT.
Home Gym Equipment #2: PENT. LOVA Kettlebells
Kettlebells are great for full body exercises because they stimulate the muscles and enable you to increase your strength, build up speed as well as your endurance level at the same time. They also don’t take up too much space. PENT. luxury fitness equipment is so beautifully designed you’d be forgiven for installing it in your home just to admire it! They supplies homes, personal trainers and five-star hotels including Ritz Carlton with their design-led pieces combining wood, leather and metal. The 2020 collection includes the LOVA (they have a penchant for upper case) Kettlebells, a rack of seven weighing from four to 20 kg, handmade from oiled walnut (said to have anti-bacterial properties), bronze or stainless steel.
pentfitness.com
From €3,000
Image: P.volve
Home Gym Equipment #3: P.volve
Knowing that Victoria’s Secret models use P.volve to hone their endless legs gave me mixed feelings about it. Yes, they are gorgeous women, but would such low-impact workouts do enough for a mere 5ft 3 mortal like me who doesn’t live a model life. With studios in New York, LA and Chicago, founder and New York-based personal trainer Stephen Pasterino also designed his resistance-based, high-intensity workouts to be done at home. There’s an online streaming platform of over 200 videos and accompanying equipment, from mats to their branded p. ball, which is tiny enough to fit in even the smallest of flats and surprisingly affordable.
The functional, sometimes minimal movements – many I’ve not done before, some as simple as stepping – can just be a case of moving a few centimetres but you still feel the burn, often in multiple muscle groups. I’ve become hooked on it and did four classes in the first week. Most of the P.volve workouts range from 15-60 minutes in length and you can filter according to fitness or equipment. My only criticism is that the music the instructor works out to is on very low in the background or non-existent. Please P.volve, stream some better sounds to complete the experience!
my.pvolve.com
£17 per month – access 30 days free streaming with the code: ONEPVOLVE
Photo by Body Ballancer®
Home Gym Equipment #4: Body Ballancer®
This amazing home holistic health and beauty spa-quality lymphatic treatment was road tested by our friends at Hoskins Fitness. Using the proven principles of manual lymphatic drainage massage, the Body Ballancer provides a fully automatic and consistently high-quality lymphatic massage that not only targets
several cosmetic beauty gripes but also helps improve our general health and wellbeing.
We set the system to mid strength and the 24 air bags inside started to massage my legs from the bottom up. It worked on my lower body for the next 35 minutes squeezing and compressing my legs and lower back. Over the next couple of week I climbed inside the Body Ballancer to help me recover from days of intense cardio and 20k+ steps per day. Each time I emerged feeling relaxed and less heavy in the legs, like I had just had a deep massage. It also increases circulation and accelerates the removal of waste products and the toxins that impact our body’s immune system function, helping your body to fight off infections and speeding up healing.
bodyballancer.co.uk
From £6,800
Image: Bose
Home Gym Equipment #5: Bose headphones
Quality Bose sound with truly wireless in-ear headphones. They were road tested to the max and these SoundSport Free wireless headphones stayed in, no matter what. Not only that but they also last for 5 hours, enough for the longest workout or even a marathon. Of course they sound good but they are also comfortable and practical with a microphone built into the right ear bud so if you are bored with music, you can chat to pals on the phone.
bose.co.uk
£179.95
Image: Powerplate
Home Gym Equipment #6: Power Plate Dual Sphere
Be honest, who diligently warms up or cools down when working out at home? Perhaps a good-looking gadget would help. From the makers of Power Plate, the Dual Sphere is one of their newer targeted vibration products (no, not that sort) with a tactile, pleasing to hold contoured shape (like a giant jellybean), for relaxing and soothing hard to reach areas including feet, neck and back. It’s also good for circulation and cramp (my partner eased a painful contraction using it on his foot and leg). The USB charged device has four intensity levels, from gently buzzing to an invigorating oscillation mode, which can seem a bit OTT although it does calm down.
powerplate.com
£99.95
Image: Perff
Home Gym Equipment #7: Perff Fusion Leggings
Sustainable luxe activewear brand Perff Studio creates stylish pieces for men and women. Made from 50% recycled fabrics, the range is almost too good to just wear to work out in. The new collection includes Fusion Leggings, which feature a geometric pattern typically found on Portuguese pavements and laser cut panels. They are deeply comfortable no matter how much you stretch and pose while providing a sense of being held in (great while you tone up). There’s also a matching bra top. Available in black and white sizes XS–L. Perff Studio is offering 25% off during lockdown. Perffect.
perff.com
£110
Image: Hock Shop
Home Gym Equipment #8: LUV AQVA Exercise Ball
Given that German luxury fitness equipment maker HOCK Design recently produced a pair of 18 karat gold dumbbells worth €95,000 – presumably to be stored in a safe, not a gym – this pared-back exercise ball is something of a contrast. Designed for posture optimisation – now more of us are working from home this is important – this is still a premium product that’s appealing in itself, just less flashy, made from heavy-duty waterproof and UV-resistant fabric so you can take it out to the garden or balcony. Available from the Conran Shop.
conranshop.co.uk
£200
Image: Ohelo
Home Gym Equipment #9: Ohelo Yellow Bee Water Bottle
Reusable water bottles are nothing new. Most of us have one that we take to the office or gym, happily helping keep plastic out of the ocean and landfill as we hydrate. In a saturated market it’s hard for most brands to stand out, but the socially conscious British designers at Ohelo have achieved this with their range of good-looking bottles and tumblers. The 500ml Bee range comes in a cheerfully bright yellow Bee, my favourite, as well as black, silver and white. The honeycomb design is laser etched so it won’t fade, and it keeps drinks hot for up to 12 hours, as well as cold. Matching tumblers with leak-proof lids you can sip through keep 400ml of coffee or tea hot for up to six hours – almost a working day.
All products are lead-free, reusable and recyclable, 5% of profits are donated to charitable organisations.
ohelobottle.com
£29
Image: FaceGym
Home Gym Equipment #10: FaceGym Private Training & Training Sticks
Now it’s time to exercise the muscles in your face. Founded by ex-beauty journalist Inge Theron, FaceGym studios are now across the UK (and New York and LA) doling workouts which include warm up, cardio, strength and cool down to firm and sculpt your skin. While studios remain closed, online training sessions are bookable at £45 for 45 minutes. I had a fun session with Kaitlyn in New York, face slathered in oil, learning how to plump and lift sagging skin and nose-to-mouth lines with thoroughly effective knuckling and sweeping techniques. After, my skin looked fresh and healthy plus I laughed a lot (you pull some very strange expressions as you progress through the workout). I’m hooked. Book through FaceGym.com for a private Zoom link.
They also sell gadgets and products to accompany the workout. The latest product is the Training Stick, a bit like a giant lip balm with ramped up active ingredients which break down and release causing a slight tingling as the skin heats up during the workout. Sweep it over the forehead, cheeks, nose and chin then cleanse as usual after.
facegym.com
£38.50
Home Gym Equipment #11: POST WORK OUT HACKS
The work out is done. You are feeling energised. Here are some post work out ideas to keep your home gym body at its peak.
Image: RecovaPro
Home Gym Equipment #12: RecovaPro Lite
Boasting an impressive maximum 2800 percussions per minute, the five speed Recovapro Lite shows how size really doesn’t matter. Coming in at just 700 grams, this whisper quiet mini Recovapro model is great for use at home after the gym and the battery lasts for over 3 hours.
recovapro.co.uk
£139
Image: Dagsmejan
Home Gym Equipment #13: Dagsmejan Recovery Sleepwear
So we have found the new secret weapon for a truly regenerative sleep. This rather sexy and super comfortable sleepwear range features Tshirts and shorts that help muscles recover faster from the gym and sport. We spend a third of our lives sleeping and sleep plays a critical role in athletic performance. The brand new Recovery Sleepwear features NATTRECOVER™, a fabric technology that is scientifically proven to help muscles recover faster.
But how does it work?! Well, the responsive minerals used in NATTRECOVER™ recycle excess body heat which is released naturally during sleep, transforming it into far infrared energy and redirecting it back towards the body. This increases the level of oxygen and nutrients in the blood reaching muscles and tissues, aiding and enhancing the body’s regeneration process and enhancing muscle recovery power. Wow.
dagsmejan.com
£79
Image: VonShef
Home Gym Equipment #14: VonShef Stainless Steel Juicer
This rather powerful juicer has an 800W motor which powers through whole fruits and vegetables, giving you the maximum amount of juice and nutrition. There is also an extra-wide feeding tube at the top so you can easily process larger fruits and vegetables without the need for too much chopping, even a pineapple! There are so many juice combinations but celery, carrot, orange, lemon, kale, grapefruit and pineapple really hit the spot.
vonshef.com
£49.99
Image: Votary
Home Gym Equipment #15: Votary Seedlings
You feed your body well so feed your skin in the same way. Clean pre-workout skin means keeping pores free from makeup and product as you sweat. Post-workout routines should involve non-chemical products to replace lost moisture. Votary’s all-natural, vegan and cruelty-free Super Seed range is an edible-sounding, comforting-smelling mix of seed oils including chia, raspberry and broccoli in the nourishing cleanser and pumpkin and hemp in the calming, hydrating facial oil. The day cream is packed with hyaluronic acid, blueberry and pomegranate while the Superboost night drops have calming CBD and anti-ageing rosemary leaf extract. Seedlings also has a collection of mini versions complete with fluffy white face cloth and soft bag, perfect for taking to the gym, whether at home or not.
votary.co.uk
£95
Image: Zoetic
Home Gym Equipment #16: Zoetic CBD massage oils
Relax muscles, ease the mind and melt away post work out tightness with a massage. There are three massage oils in the range: Eucalyptus and Lavender, Juniper Berry and Black Pepper & Grapefruit and Patchouli. The essential oils used in these are of excellent quality and ultimately the CBD element of the oil helps promote recovery of muscles and improve well-being.
zoetic.com
£18.75
Featured image courtesy of PENT.