Strength Training Equipment

1. The bread and butter of most effective strength training regimens is usually considered to be the bench press, row, squat and deadlift. While these are all performed with dumbbells or barbells, focusing on them entirely quickly puts a cap on your progress because your body needs to be surprised with new exercises. The key to certain results is to using different equipment.

2. Some of the less appreciated items in the gym used to be the kettle bells and medicine balls. Lately, though, these are seeing a great increase in popularity, as people are recognizing that they need variety in their strength training. Combined with inflatable exercise balls, you can get a full body strength workout without ever touching traditional weight equipment.

3. For those interested in a space-efficient home gym, we recommend nothing more than a weight bench and plenty of dumbbells. These can be arranged neatly in a corner when not in use and, with the proper knowledge, can provide surprising variety in your workout. An occasional trip to a well-equipped gym will be necessary for serious lifters, but for many, dumbbells are enough.

4. The recent popularity of the kettle bell and medicine ball has much to do with the trend toward 'core' workouts. Spend some time with dumbbells for those high profile muscles like pecs and biceps, but don't neglect more practical, and ultimately more important, muscles. Large biceps and delts aren't going to keep your back from slipping out of place.

5. Because the medicine ball and kettle bell are foreign to many people who don't venture into the depths of the weight training area of their gym, they are often sold with complementary DVDs to exhibit proper use. Keep an eye out for these special offers, as they could come in handy once you grow tired of doing the few exercises you've seen performed.

6. Since the days of massive weight machines that require their own room are long gone, we're now seeing a rise in popularity of the power tower. This is a common sense device that has about an 8-square-foot footprint but offers great variety in lower and upper body workouts; dips, pull ups, crunches, and leg lifts. When combined with medicine balls or kettle bells, you can really amp up the resistance.

7. If you are thinking about going with a weight bench, consider one without a bench press barbell holder. This gets in the way of many exercises, takes up more space, and doesn't provide much functionality. Dumbbell presses are preferred by many serious trainers, anyway. What you really want are several available angles for both the seat and back section, preferably both inclines and declines.

8. Above, we may have spoken disparagingly of large home gyms that require their own room. However, if you have a room you are willing to commit to exercise, then your options have increased dramatically. Names like Powertec, Bowflex, and Wieder are all great places to start when looking for the best in home gym exercise equipment.