What would you do if all the gyms across the nation closed and you had to find a new way to stay FIT? If you are like me, you couldn’t have dreamed up a scenario in which this could possibly happen. However, now we know it’s possible and who knows what the future holds.

Several years ago my wife and I decided to build a gym in our garage. We had recently had our first kid and suddenly realized that our schedules as new parents left less margin for daily trips to our beloved Crossfit box. Although we continued to attend our box and my wife ended up getting her Crossfit level 1 certificate to become a part-time trainer, we knew that our days of attending the gym 4-5 times per week were coming to an end.

We began thinking about building a gym in our garage so we could workout from home to fill in the gaps of when we couldn’t make it to the gym. We had no idea at that time that we would be building the home gym that would serve as our main fitness facility for years to come. Our home gym became one of the greatest investments in our personal fitness and it provided a resource that we could share with our friends for years to come.

Out of necessity, right now might be the perfect time to build your own home gym. When we decided to bite the bullet and purchase some equipment, this is what we started with.

• Barbell
• Squat stand
• Flat bench
• Bumper plates
• Pull-up bar
• Stall mats
• Concept 2 rower

It doesn’t take much to get started and over the years we’ve added more equipment to keep things interesting and I encourage you to do the same. For inspiration, check out the photos below and start building your own home gym to fit your needs and reach your goals no matter what obstacles life throws your way.