How to choose the best home gym flooring

While you may not be very concerned about flooring for your home gym, you have to know that flooring can make a huge difference not only for your floor but also for your joints, ligaments and bones.

With all the various flooring options available out there, it may be difficult to identify the best one without thoroughly researching all the alternatives. This is why we took the time to gather all the needed information and put it down in an accessible manner, so you can decide easier which flooring suits your home gym best.

However, before seeing which the alternatives are, let us take a sneak peak into the aspects you should consider before investing in flooring for home gyms.

What to look for in home gym flooring

1. Softness

While you may be tempted to think the softer the flooring is, the safest workouts are, this is not exactly correct. If your home gym is designed for weight lifting and stability exercises, soft flooring can compromise the results and put enormous stress on your joints, resulting in injuries.

On the other hand, if you are more into Pilates and Yoga sessions or plan to use the home gym mostly for martial arts and cardio workouts, then soft flooring is what you need. So the rule says:

Soft flooring should be used for exercises involving contact with the ground;
Firm or hard flooring should be used for strength and weight lifting routines;

2. Traction

This is extremely important if you plan to use your home gym for strength workouts as lifting weights on a slippery surface can result in serious injuries. Can you imagine slipping while lifting or squatting with 200 lbs? That could surely kill you, so it is more than important to check the flooring’s traction before buying it.

You can opt for smooth rubber textures, crosscut textures resembling those found in trucks’ bumpers or any texture that is non-slip and durable.

3. Maintenance

Costs with maintenance should be as low as possible as having to pay more for maintenance than mounting is surely not a desirable. Make sure the material you choose is easy to clean up, resistant in time and affordable enough for you to replace it quickly in case of damage.

4. Price

Does investing in the most expensive alternative on the market guarantee you will get the best home gym flooring? Not necessarily, so why would you want to pay a fortune for something that could be damaged so easily? Instead of going for the most expensive one, opt for mid-priced flooring that is also easy to take care of, so you will not have to spend enormous amounts of money in the end.

The best home gym flooring

There are several types and subtypes of flooring for home gyms, but these are the three main types or materials used in workout rooms:

Rubber flooring, it has the advantage of being durable, flexible and tough enough for ensuring safe workouts. Quality rubber flooring absorbs shocks, reduces stress on joints and bones and soaks up the shock when dropping a heavy weight, protecting your floor from severe damage. Not to mention it also has an excellent traction, the non-slip surface of this type of flooring being most of the times dual sided, therefore, tougher and more resistant to accidents. However, make sure to avoid recycled rubber flooring, as this usually emits an unpleasant odor when used in a small room or enclosed area.

Carpet flooring, as long as it is low-pile, can be a good alternative for home gyms. However, high pile carpets make it difficult for the fitness machines to remain in the proper position, perfectly flat, so they increase the risk of injury while working out. More solid carpets are still soft enough to be durable and resistant for intense workouts and heavy machines, and they provide enough traction for absorbing shocks and preventing slipping. To ease the mounting process, you can opt for carpet squares, which are easier to replace as well, in a case of damage.

Laminate flooring, very popular due to their resistance, durability and accessible price. Quality, appealing and easy to maintain, this alternative provides a great continuity, ensuring a stable support for the fitness machines and reducing the risk of injury. However, cheaper models are not always that good so if you opt for this laminate flooring, make sure to invest in a high-end product, preferably designed for high-traffic areas.

Deciding which of these alternatives is the best home gym flooring for your workout room is, in the end, a matter of personal taste, budget and your fitness goals. We hope that our brief overview will help you to make the best decision.

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