Getting gymnastics equipment for your home is a great way to get more practice in, especially when you can’t make it to the gym. While some of the equipment can not only take up a lot of space, it can also be quite expensive.
- Gymnastics Mats
- Foam Shapes
- Balance Beam
- Bar
- Ballet Barres
Considering the cost of the necessary things like lessons, leotards, and other things that you have to have in order to do gymnastics, this can make things like home equipment seem more optional and unaffordable.
However, you can actually get some gymnastics equipment in your home without spending too much on it. There are even some things that you can make yourself, as well as the option of getting them secondhand.
This can drastically cut down on the price that you have to pay. While you may still have to save up a little, spending a few hundred dollars for each of these will be well worth it in the long run for you to train at home.
Gymnastics Mats
When you are getting gymnastic equipment for your home, a good mat should be the first thing that you get. This is one gymnastics item that is not only easy to find but also fairly cheap. They come in a variety of different depths as well as in a variety of lengths and widths.
You may be able to start off with a smallish mat if you only plan on practicing some tumbles and flips on it. However, as you progress into doing more challenging gymnastics skills that require more space, you may need more mat room.
For this reason, some mats are made with a Velcro strap or something similar on them. This way you can get a second mat and securely attach the two of them together so that you can practice on them without them slipping apart at all.
If you get a few of these and attach them end to end, you can even practice a whole tumbling pass if you have the room in your house or yard to do so. The possibilities of the different things that you can practice on your mat are pretty much endless.
Gymnastics mats are great at helping you to avoid bumps and bruises and they are used to cushion your falls should you get other gymnastics equipment such as a beam or a bar. These can have a pretty long life if they are treated well and are properly cared for.
However, these will eventually need to be replaced. At some point, the “cushion” will get flat and will no longer really be able to absorb the impact when you fall on it. At that point, you should get a new one, though you can still sometimes use old gymnastics mats underneath new ones so that you can take your practice outside without getting grass stains on your new mats.
Foam Shapes
There are all kinds, shapes, and sizes of foam forms that you can use to help you work on your gymnastics skills at home. These are things that you are more likely to use in the beginning levels, but some of them are great for warming up and can still be used to help you learn new skills.
As one example of this, a barrel shape can sometimes be just what you need in order to help you work on your back walkover. Practicing your back walkover with the barrel shape under your back can give you the support you need to successfully pull it off.
Then, when you feel that you can do it without the support, you can switch to a smaller barrel that will not touch your back and yet can be there in case you fail and fall. And this is just one of the possible foam shapes that you can get.
Another useful foam shape is wedges with designs that are sometimes called cheese wedges being one of the most popular. These can be used to work on rolls, but you can also practice almost anything else on these too.
Work on your backbends going down to help you at first and then do them going up the incline in order to make them stronger. The same can be used for walkovers and other gymnastics skills. However, that is not all, cheese wedges can be folded up to make a rectangle box which you can use to work some on your vaulting skills.
But these are just two of the different foam shapes that you can choose to get. Over time these may get a little flat, like the gymnastics mats, but they can be well worth the price that you pay for them.
Balance Beams
A balance beam might be a little harder to get under $300, but it is still possible to get one for that price. It is even possible to make one yourself and the design of these is very simple. Since the balance beam is a whole event in gymnastics, it is vital that you get some practice in at home.
These can be as simple as a wooden beam that is raised up off the ground several inches, or it can be something a little more elaborate that lays on the ground but can fold up so that you can put it out of the way if you need to use the space for something else.
Whatever you decide to go with, these can last a really long time depending on what they are made out of. The wooden options in particular tend to not only be cheaper sometimes, but they have a long life as well since the wood does not compress as foam ones can.
On these, you can do anything that you want to do on a balance beam at your gym. This can be a great way to make your routine when you get to the higher levels, letting you test the flow of the different skills that you want to put in.
Bar
A bar is one of the more expensive options for gymnastics equipment that you can add to your home. Like the balance beam though, it is also an event in gymnastics and one that could use all of the practice on it that you can get.
While it is unlikely that you have a roof that is high enough to be able to do rotations while being fully stretched out, you can still practice things like tap swings. Whatever you practice on your bars, you should always make sure that you have a mat underneath in order to catch you if you slip.
Finally, having bars are also one of the best ways for you to break in a new set of gymnastics grips. This can help you training at the gym to be more productive.
Ballet Barres
While you might not think of a piece of ballet equipment for gymnastics, you should know that many gymnasts also take at least a few ballet classes. But this is not the only reason why you should get one of these.
Ballet barres are good to warm up with and they are also good for stretching and doing the splits while standing on one foot by placing your other foot on the barre. There are a few other exercises that are good to do with the barre as well.
Some gymnastics barres can be placed in the middle of the floor, allowing you to be on whichever side you want, while others need to be attached securely to a wall. In some cases, if the barre is stable enough you should be able to practice holding your handstands on the bar.
This can be a great way to prepare to do handstands on a bar for the uneven bar event, especially if you have a wall nearby so that you can make sure that your form is right. Just make sure before you try this that it is sturdy enough to support your weight and that you have a mat there if you fall.
