Can You Put a Home Gym on the Second Floor? Making a gym room at home safe for weight!
Yup! People make full-fledged gyms on the top floor without any issues, so a gym with 300-400 kg of weight should not be a problem at all.
Now if you have a house like mine, which has a bad foundation, then you should be careful.
Definitely not a 300+ kG gym on a floor that does not have much foundation underneath.
You need to be careful when you put heavy gym weights or equipment on the floor because they are heavy and can damage the floor.
You should consider the house engineering structure first.
In India, we mostly make houses out of concrete, so making a second-floor gym is easy. But do not randomly drop weights on the floor. Ever. If you have the habit of dropping them, then install thick rubber gym mats. Also, for dropping heavy weights from doing deadlifts, get those thick crash pads as well.
So, if you use a home gym, then you should always be extra careful about placing the weights.
Just spread them out on the floor and not on a single corner.
There are many benefits to working out at home.
It’s cost-effective, you don’t have to commute, you’re not as likely to get injured, and you can have access to the exercises that you want.
Having a home gym can help you achieve your fitness goals.
Some people even see it as a luxury and others as a necessity.
But for us, we need it, and we need to be able to reach the gym and start working out quickly.
[Can you put home gym on carpet?]
Can You Put a Home Gym on the Second Floor? Top considerations!
You can put a home gym on the second floor of your house, but there are some important things to take into account.
- Be sure to consider the height of the room, you don’t want to put in a gym that is so high it’s difficult to use.
- You might want to have a larger door than the typical Indian construction standards.
- Think about how much weight you’ll be storing and whether your current ceiling height can support it.
Definitely, it will be tough to store a lot of weight on the second floor unless the building permits it.
Consider if you are going to be a pro or already a pro, then you would have a lot of weight and heavy weight lifting equipment as well.
A proper commercial gym is the best option for a pro.
[Why are squat racks are expensive]
Also, make sure to have good ventilation in order to avoid over-exposure to harmful toxins.
Pick your gym equipment
If you’re only using cardio machines or all-in-one home gyms, you don’t need to worry about floor capacity or placement – just make sure you have enough space for comfortable use.
Treadmill workouts do not shake the ground much or are not too heavy for concrete floors of apartment buildings as well.
However, if you’re training with lots of free weights, you’ll want to consider getting some drop or silencer pads for your weights to avoid disturbing your downstairs neighbors.
A thick pad will also prevent your floor from getting damaged. You can also build up a squat/Deadlift platform as well.
But If you’re only doing cardio or if you’re using an all-in-one home gym, then you don’t need to worry about building structure, plywood flooring, etc.
However, if you are training with weights, you’ll want to follow the above guidelines for placement and make sure that you have some kind of drop or silencer pads for your weights.
This will help to protect your floors and keep the noise down.
Weight of gym pieces of equipment
When it comes to where to place your gym equipment, the weight of the equipment is important to consider.
You want to make sure you have enough space to safely use the equipment and that it is in a spot where you will be able to easily reach it.
Additionally, you can add an extra mat or layer of rubber flooring beneath the equipment to help absorb vibration and noise.
Something like treadmill mats should work.
A typical Olympic lifer might have 200 kgs of free weights, 4-6 types of barbells, and a power rack.
This means you should consider the weight capacity of the floor and place your weights equipment throughout the room.
However, to do some serious training, you would need a master bedroom to set everything in.
Floor capacity
In India most of the floors are made from concrete, thus 200 kgs of weight should be fine or even more. But I would suggest you discuss the load capacity with the builder and then build your home gym.
Get gym mats as floor support material.
Thick rubber gym mats have better build quality and should absorb impact from the weights and machines easily.
Safety First
When it comes to installing a home gym, safety is always a big concern.
If you choose to put your home gym on the second floor of your house, it is important to be aware of the possible risks.
One such risk is that the structural integrity of your home may be compromised, which could lead to extensive and expensive damage.
Additionally, the noise from exercises done in the home gym will be amplified downstairs, which may not be desirable for other members of your household.
Especially if you are living in an apartment, then the neighbors will complain.
And I am sure they won’t shut up after seeing your muscle gains.
Finally, it can be costly and dangerous to fix the damage that may occur when putting a home gym on the second floor of your house.
The First Question to Ask What Type of Lifting Are You Doing?
You can be a CrossFitters, Olympic lifters or powerlifters or just someone like me who likes to say fit.
If you are like me, then you can easily make a gym on the second floor. Cement-made Indian houses are strong enough for a gym.
It is important to know which type of lifting you are doing in order to create a safe home weight room.
For Olympic lifters and Powerlifters, you will need thick rubber mats, cushions and a lot of consideration.
Useful Gym Equipment for The Second Floor
Dumbbells
Dumbbells are an easy and versatile piece of equipment to add to your home gym.
They should be spread out on a dumbbell rack, rather than being stacked in one spot, so you can grab them easily for each exercise.
If you have a second-floor gym, adjustable dumbbells are a good option because they allow you to customize the weight and resistance for each exercise.
These adjustable options work great for single-person use.
All cardio machines
All cardio machines, such as treadmills, ellipticals, and gym bikes, can be safely used on the second floor of your home.
They are often all low-noise and lightweight, making them perfect for use in a shared space.
Keep in mind that treadmills will shake the floor more than other machines, but the modern curved-deck style of treadmill significantly reduces foot pounding.
However, always use padding underneath them to reduce shaking and noise.
Barbells And Power Racks
Barbells are a great way to get strength and muscle mass. And power racks are a piece of good gym equipment to use safely.
However, if you are not careful, they can lead to serious injury. Make sure you use the correct weight for your level of fitness, and always set the barbell down gently when finished using it.
If you are not putting down the barbell gently, then you will surely wake up the people downstairs.
One Tip for Making a Small Gym Floor Plan
Buy the single most important item that you can get first. For me, it will be a squat rack with landmine and pull-up bar attachments. Then I will get a decent amount of weights and barbells.
I am assuming that the budget is around 45k INR at least.
If you want more budget suggestions, check out this blog on making home gym on a budget.
Or check this article on the best exercise equipment for small spaces!
Once you are done with the main home gym piece of the puzzle then you should start building up the rest of the room.
This was making the floor plan for your second-floor small gym can be done efficiently.
