My husband had been asking me what I wanted for my birthday (MAY 22 IN CASE YOU DIDN’T KNOW) and my mind each time would draw a complete blank. As I get older I really don’t care about my birthday as much. My only request was a slice of my favorite chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake…haha! BUT, this past week I did think of something I really wanted to do that would be a great treat for me. I just completed the 12-week BBG 1.0 workout program which required a lot of dedication and hard work (especially after having a baby!), so I’m pretty proud of that. I completed the workouts in my designated “workout area” in our basement and I used what I had on hand: 3, 12, and 15 lb weights, an exercise mat, and our stairs as an aerobic step. Because I finished the first 12 week series and I have no plans of stopping, I decided it was time to update my exercise area and make it look like a real home gym! So that was my birthday treat this year: a home gym update.

Here are the things I added:

1. 8 lb dumb bells. I was so desperate for these! I had a 3 lb set (too light) and a 12 lb set (too heavy)…I needed the Goldilocks of dumb bells. 8 lbs is perfect.
2. A medicine ball. A lot of exercises involve a medicine ball, which I thought I was doing fine without until I worked out in the fully equipped hotel gym during our recent Florida vacation. I fell in love with the medicine ball. I got an 8 lb one and I hope that’s a good weight. It was hard to decided between 8 or 10.
3. Multipurpose Exercise Mat. I have a really fantastic foam mat that is perfect for ab exercises and push ups, but it would be shredded from mountain climbers and burpees, so I usually do those on our basement floor. Problem is, the floor is super slippery and I felt like I was on the verge of breaking my face daily. Enter this awesome exercise mat I read about in a fitness blog. I think it’s to use under exercise equipment so it doesn’t slide, but it’s actually perfect for cardio workouts too. It’s much bigger than the average mat, so you have plenty of room to jump around on it.
4. Bookshelf. My exercise bike is one of my favorite things in my gym, but it doesn’t have a cup holder or a spot to put my phone. This bookshelf is the perfect height for me to put my things while I workout. It can also house my shoes, weights on the bottom shelf, and some decor to make the space pretty.
5. Mirrors. This is totally the poor man’s home gym mirror wall! I just wanted something to check my form in and two of these cheapies nailed to the wall work fine. Maybe I’ll update to something better one day but for now this is OK.

So that’s my home gym update for less than $130! One day I’ll add a workout bench or one of those aerobic step things to do tricep dips and step-up moves on, but I’m leaving that for a later date. The knob sticking out of the brick wall was already there, so I tossed over it my jump rope and colorful exercise bands.