The BIGGEST mistake garage gym owners make and how to fix it

If you’ve got a garage gym, there’s probably at least one thing you’ve purchased that you consider a mistake to some degree. We’re here today to talk about the *biggest* mistakes you can make in your garage gym and how to fix them.

The biggest mistake we often see is this: gear before goals.

We know that the Garage Gym Revolution is upon us. A LOT of people are parking in their driveways, in the street, and cleaning out their garages to stick amazing garage gyms into. Then, they need the gear: the squat rack, the barbell, the weights, the dumbbells, this, that, and the other.

You might need all of that, but you might not.

This is what we call gear before goals.

Now, let’s fix it.

We’ve got to be honest. PK kind of stole this framework from Simon Sinek’s “Start with Why.” What Sinek says is that when you’re doing something, don’t start with what you’re doing. Instead, start with the core, or why, you’re doing it. Find the why, then broaden to how, and then again to what you should actually be doing.

1. Start with your goals.

We know you want a garage gym, but why? There are all sorts of different reasons, and your why might change over time.

When PK started his own garage gym when he was 25, he wanted to learn about strength and conditioning, and do CrossFit in his own garage gym. He wanted to get better at CrossFit, and the other athletic things in his life.

Now that he’s 41, his goals have changed a bit. He’s no longer looking to get better at CrossFit, but he’s still looking to get better at soccer and other athletics, along with being able to run, jump, climb, and keep up with his beautiful daughters for years to come.

2. Then, move on to your “how.” For us, the “how” is programming.

You’re going to reach your goals by following programming specific to the outcome you’re looking for. PK follows Atomic Athlete’s programming. They’re located in Austin, so you can go to their gym and get their programming, but you can also follow along online in your own garage gym. PK loves Atomic’s programming because it’s a very holistic approach to fitness. He’s not only looking to get strong, or fast, or beef up his endurance. He’s looking to get good at a whole basket of different things, and that’s why he’s chosen his programming.

Your goals might be different than PK’s, but we suggest looking into Starting Strength, Street Parking, or Atomic Athlete among others to find the program that fits your needs. We also suggest looking into some powerlifting programming to really hone in on your goals and how you can reach them.

3. Now comes the what: the gear.

Once you’ve established your goals, and you’ve found the programming to fit those goals, you should start looking into gear you’ll need to reach your goals.

PK started with a solid squat rack, and owns multiple barbells for different lifts because his programming happens to be very barbell centric. He’s got some dumbbells (but maybe less than some people might have), a few kettlebells, a rower, a treadmill, and things like that.

He doesn’t have a functional trainer, a monolift, or a lot of things that he considers to be esoteric that others with different goals might actually want or need. They don’t fit into his goals or programming, so he doesn’t own those. But, it’s totally okay if you do and if those things help you reach your goals.

A lot of people make the mistake of putting gear before goals, and that just ends up with a heap of unused, cobweb-covered gear in your garage that frankly, was a waste of money. We’d advise you to flip that around, and look at goals before gear. Once you’ve gotten those goals lined out, find your perfect programming, and then find the gear.

It’s the biggest mistake we see people making when building out your garage gym, but it can always be fixed. You’ve just got to flip your thinking and your garage gym focus around sometimes.

If you’re looking for a community of like minded people and somewhere to run your ideas before you buy your gear, check out our private Facebook group, Garage Gym Revolution. We’ve grown this community to be positive, encouraging, and the perfect place to be as a Garage Gym Revolutioner. 

Have questions about the right gear or programming for you and your goals? We’re here to help! Send us an email at team@fringesport.com, send a message in our chat, or give us a call. We’d be happy to help guide you through your garage gym journey.

Don’t forget to like, comment, and subscribe to our YouTube channel and our newsletter for updates, sale notifications, and more awesome content.

As always, lift heavy, lift happy :)