Hey, fitness types!

[General Zod]

So I've started looking into a pull-up bar that I can use to build some upper body strength at home without spending a whole lot of dough or fucking up my doorframe with mounting brackets, but it looks like some of the stuff I'm looking at on Amazon is of either dubious quality or way too expensive.

Not really looking to spend more than $50 on it, so I'm wondering if anyone here has any recommendations. So far I'm looking at stuff like this http://www.amazon.com/Pellor-Doorway-Ch ... 39&sr=8-97

which should ideally be rated for 200lbs or more. (I weigh about 190 right now.) So yeah, anyone got any recommendations? Besides going out to an actual gym because monthly memberships suck.

[aerius]

2 words: Ghetto Workout. The street is your gym, and it's all free.

[MKSheppard]

Eat the money and get a pool/gym membership.

[General Zod]

Eat the money and get a pool/gym membership.

All of the gyms around here suck or cost too much so . . . that's not going to happen.

[Mr Bean]

All of the gyms around here suck or cost too much so . . . that's not going to happen.

Find a YMCA, they are gyms you'll pay 40$ a month or less for access to lots of equipment and if your not exactly overflowing with money you can try for a sponsorship or charity membership were you'll have to pay nothing or 5$ a month for membership.

[spaceviking]

Home equipment is not that expensive either. Buy a bench press, squat stand, barbells and some weight and you can get a pretty good workout.

[Havok]

What exactly "sucks" about the gyms around you.

Do they have heavy things to lift and a some contraptions to walk and run on? If they do, they are fine.

[Havok]

And you guys can laugh at the video aerius posted, but the guys in the video have better form, control and technique than half of the trainers I ever worked with.

[General Zod]

What exactly "sucks" about the gyms around you.

Do they have heavy things to lift and a some contraptions to walk and run on? If they do, they are fine.

Mostly the fact that I actually have to go downtown to use them. I try and avoid doing that as much as possible. Also membership fees.

[Havok]

You mean you would have to exercise to go exercise? Preposterous.

[madd0ct0r]

Nah- he means he get's fed up of being stared at by guys bigger then he is en route.

exercising with mates is a hell of a lot more fun though, especially because you can chivvy each other along on bad days.

but as for the OP>

I've a big friend who uses one similar to the one you posted.

I recently bought one of those ones that hooks through a doorframe, with your weight supposedly bracing it. I broke it.

[General Zod]

Nah- he means he get's fed up of being stared at by guys bigger then he is en route.

exercising with mates is a hell of a lot more fun though, especially because you can chivvy each other along on bad days.

but as for the OP>

I've a big friend who uses one similar to the one you posted.

I recently bought one of those ones that hooks through a doorframe, with your weight supposedly bracing it. I broke it.

no, i'm fed up of being hassled by homeless people

i already ride a bike to and from work every day as it is

have i mentioned how much i hate denver? :v

[YT300000]

Well, you're definitely on the right track with a pull-up bar, it's really the only piece of equipment you need to have a good full work-out routine. Lower body would involve squats or deadlifts with chairs, cinderblocks, whatever you have lying around. Core exercises require no equipment: sit-ups, lying leg raises, bicycles, you have loads of options. A very general upper-body plan will involve both pushing and pulling movements in three main planes: above your head, straight down, and in front of you.

Pushing is easy - above your head, you can pick up the aforementioned items and do shoulder presses, in front you can do push-ups, and below you can do dips between a pair of chairs or boxes or whatnot. You can throw in some tricep push-ups or other exercises too - the point is that presses are generally easy to do with body weight.

Pulling is not so easy - you can pick up those items to do upright rows, bent-over rows, shrugs and so on, but there's really no exercise which lets you pull yourself up/weight down without a bar (or cable). The pull-up is such a fundamental exercise, that there's really nothing which can replace it, and it's the only gap in this otherwise equipment-free routine. A pull-up bar can also let you do body-weight rows, upright leg raises, twisting leg raises, all kinds of stuff.

So, back on track... the cheapest way to install a pull-up bar in your house is to build it yourself. If you don't want to put it in a door frame or attach it to the beams in your basement, a staircase makes for an ideal spot. Go to your local hardware store and buy a 2" thick dowel, cutting it to fit snugly between your walls. Find the studs in your staircase, and cut the ends off some 2x4's to use as mounting brackets. Use your hole cutter drill attachment to bore a 2" hole all the way through either bracket, and stick one on either end of your dowel. Put at least 4 long screws between each bracket and your wall studs, and another screw through the side of the bracket into the dowel to prevent rotation. It'll flex a bit more than a metal bar, but can easily take your weight, and should only set you back the cost of a dowel and an hour of your time.

[General Zod]

Well, you're definitely on the right track with a pull-up bar, it's really the only piece of equipment you need to have a good full work-out routine. Lower body would involve squats or deadlifts with chairs, cinderblocks, whatever you have lying around. Core exercises require no equipment: sit-ups, lying leg raises, bicycles, you have loads of options. A very general upper-body plan will involve both pushing and pulling movements in three main planes: above your head, straight down, and in front of you.

Pushing is easy - above your head, you can pick up the aforementioned items and do shoulder presses, in front you can do push-ups, and below you can do dips between a pair of chairs or boxes or whatnot. You can throw in some tricep push-ups or other exercises too - the point is that presses are generally easy to do with body weight.

Pulling is not so easy - you can pick up those items to do upright rows, bent-over rows, shrugs and so on, but there's really no exercise which lets you pull yourself up/weight down without a bar (or cable). The pull-up is such a fundamental exercise, that there's really nothing which can replace it, and it's the only gap in this otherwise equipment-free routine. A pull-up bar can also let you do body-weight rows, upright leg raises, twisting leg raises, all kinds of stuff.

So, back on track... the cheapest way to install a pull-up bar in your house is to build it yourself. If you don't want to put it in a door frame or attach it to the beams in your basement, a staircase makes for an ideal spot. Go to your local hardware store and buy a 2" thick dowel, cutting it to fit snugly between your walls. Find the studs in your staircase, and cut the ends off some 2x4's to use as mounting brackets. Use your hole cutter drill attachment to bore a 2" hole all the way through either bracket, and stick one on either end of your dowel. Put at least 4 long screws between each bracket and your wall studs, and another screw through the side of the bracket into the dowel to prevent rotation. It'll flex a bit more than a metal bar, but can easily take your weight, and should only set you back the cost of a dowel and an hour of your time.

Well. That sounds like a lot more money than I want to spend, and I don't have most of those things. I live in a 4 story apartment building so any sort of major changes to the structure would be frowned upon.

[Crown]

If you're dead set on a home work out then the minimum amount of gear you will need in my opinion are; a bench & 2 (variable) dumbells.

With these you can hit all the major body groups. From your calves to your traps and everything in between. Most of your work out will consist of the high rep variety to exhaust your muscles unless you have a lot of weight you can customise your dumbells with of course.

A pullup bar is necessary for the absolute best back work out, but depending on your fitness level to begin with you might be a way away from being able to do a lot of them anyway.

If you're dead serious about lifting though, then you'll just have to fork out the cash for more equipment or join a gym, there's no real away to avoid that.

As an example, thinking about my work out, more than 80% of it will be using dumbells as either the primary way of doing them or as a suitable alternative to a barbell. The only exercises that I can't use dumbells for are ones that will require machines.

[The Jester]

I strongly recommend reading through this site. It'll detail a lot of techniques for home workouts that will go a long way for working out your entire body while spending minimal amounts on home fitness and avoiding injuries.

As for a pull-up bar, it can be the most difficult piece of equipment to obtain, but it adds a lot of value to the quality of a home workout. I have personal experience with the type of pull-up bar listed in the OP and do not recommend this kind at all. Since they put a lot of pressure on the sides of a door frame, it is likely to cause damage, and the risk of injury due to the fact that you're so close to the maximum weight is not worth the risk. Really, if you can't afford one of the more expensive door-frame pull-up bars, you should look for children's playgrounds, or even a sturdy tree branch somewhere. You may feel self-conscious out in the open when you're out of shape, but the feeling passes quickly when you start seeing your gains. You can also try building pull-up handles in this video that will help if you find a suitable tree branch and it's too thick for your grip.

Since you also weigh a fair amount and you only seem to be starting out, I would strongly recommend focusing on cardio in the beginning. Losing weight will greatly reduce your risks of injury (especially with exercises like pull-ups/chin-ups where you're working against body weight) and improve the quality of your workouts.

[madd0ct0r]

hah. just checked. He's the same weight as me. How tall are you Zod?

intense cycling is hard to beat for weightloss, but yeah, you'll need something for upper body strength. pressups are good. and when i say good, I mean i hate them with a fucking passion, but they do work.

[Stofsk]

I strongly recommend reading through this site. It'll detail a lot of techniques for home workouts that will go a long way for working out your entire body while spending minimal amounts on home fitness and avoiding injuries.

He basically advocates a pull up bar for beginners, doesn't he? Which is pretty good for Zod.

As for a pull-up bar, it can be the most difficult piece of equipment to obtain, but it adds a lot of value to the quality of a home workout. I have personal experience with the type of pull-up bar listed in the OP and do not recommend this kind at all. Since they put a lot of pressure on the sides of a door frame, it is likely to cause damage, and the risk of injury due to the fact that you're so close to the maximum weight is not worth the risk.

What kind of damage can a door-frame pull up bar do? I googled this before asking and it doesn't seem like it's all that big of a deal - some suggest putting like a tea towel inbetween the door frame and the pull up bar to prevent damage.

Anyway Zod should focus on cardio at the beginning but also combine that with some proper nutrition. Assuming he hasn't already.

[General Zod]

I strongly recommend reading through this site. It'll detail a lot of techniques for home workouts that will go a long way for working out your entire body while spending minimal amounts on home fitness and avoiding injuries.

He basically advocates a pull up bar for beginners, doesn't he? Which is pretty good for Zod.

As for a pull-up bar, it can be the most difficult piece of equipment to obtain, but it adds a lot of value to the quality of a home workout. I have personal experience with the type of pull-up bar listed in the OP and do not recommend this kind at all. Since they put a lot of pressure on the sides of a door frame, it is likely to cause damage, and the risk of injury due to the fact that you're so close to the maximum weight is not worth the risk.

What kind of damage can a door-frame pull up bar do? I googled this before asking and it doesn't seem like it's all that big of a deal - some suggest putting like a tea towel inbetween the door frame and the pull up bar to prevent damage.

Anyway Zod should focus on cardio at the beginning but also combine that with some proper nutrition. Assuming he hasn't already.

I don't actually need workout advice. I just wanted equipment recommendations; but anyway I settled on something so someone could lock this.

[Joviwan]

I have this: http://www.walmart.com/ip/As-Seen-On-TV ... r/13032424

The weight limit should be fine for you. The only real limitation there is the strength of your doorframe, really. Just be sure to test and measure where you want to put it first--I had to rule out 3 doors in my house because the brace or handles wouldn't fit given the area.

[General Zod]

I have this: http://www.walmart.com/ip/As-Seen-On-TV ... r/13032424

The weight limit should be fine for you. The only real limitation there is the strength of your doorframe, really. Just be sure to test and measure where you want to put it first--I had to rule out 3 doors in my house because the brace or handles wouldn't fit given the area.

I'll keep that in mind as a backup in case the first one fails.

[Phantasee]

I have this one from Wal-Mart. It's been fine, and I weighed 210-215 when I got it. Nothing happened to my door frame.

[Raw Shark]

I strongly recommend reading through this site.

Seconded.

I have this one from Wal-Mart. It's been fine, and I weighed 210-215 when I got it. Nothing happened to my door frame.

Yeah, I know a guy who has that kind and tried it a few times. It's way better on the doorframe and less likely to slip because the multiple points of contact distribute your weight at different angles.

I just use my staircase, though, because it has a protrusion at the right height without modifications. You can probably find something similar if you look around, Zod. I also use the pull-up bar at the free public fitness course a block from my apartment, if I'm outside anyway. Have I mentioned how much I love Denver? ;]

[General Zod]

Yeah, I know a guy who has that kind and tried it a few times. It's way better on the doorframe and less likely to slip because the multiple points of contact distribute your weight at different angles.

I just use my staircase, though, because it has a protrusion at the right height without modifications. You can probably find something similar if you look around, Zod. I also use the pull-up bar at the free public fitness course a block from my apartment, if I'm outside anyway. Have I mentioned how much I love Denver? ;]

Not enough ocean for my liking. If it wasn't for a halfway decent job I'd be elsewhere.

Public fitness courses likely means getting hassled by homeless people for change and I'm basically fed up with that. (Also half-heartedly looking for a new apartment but most of my options are between shit, suck, and bed-bug infested puke hole.)

[madd0ct0r]

I strongly recommend reading through this site.

Seconded.

I have this one from Wal-Mart. It's been fine, and I weighed 210-215 when I got it. Nothing happened to my door frame.

Yeah, I know a guy who has that kind and tried it a few times. It's way better on the doorframe and less likely to slip because the multiple points of contact distribute your weight at different angles.

that's the same type i had, and I broke mine.