Good flooring for working out?

[judegirl]

First post here!

My husband and I have been working out with Cathe, The Firm, and now Christi Taylor as well as Jari Love for several years. Last fall we moved our workouts to the garage and purchased some black rubber mat flooring from Target. It comes in big squares that interlock like a puzzle, and it's been nice for shock absorption, but the pieces don't want to stay together, so we've basically got a big gap somewhere no matter what we do. This flooring is also not great for things like pivots, since feet don't slide too easily on it.

What I'm wondering is, do any of you work out on a concrete type floor, and if so, what type of mat or flooring do you put down on top? We did a little research online and found lots of options, but no reviews and we want to get some advice before going ahead with something. Our main goals for the flooring are that it provide shock absorption, that it stay together (if it comes in pieces and we "lock" it together), and that it allows shoes to slide fairly easily. Basically I'm looking for whatever would be closest to working out on a gym floor, like in a step class.

Any ideas? Thanks!

 

[Rose11]

Welcome to the Cathe forums!

A lot of ladies here use puzzle mats too. I don't use anything (I know it's really bad to do that so I mostly do low impact cardio). I think what you'll find are different versions of puzzle mats unless you want to go all out and have a Taraflex type floor which is the one they use at most gyms. Cathe uses this type of flooring too. This of course would be an investment.

Links:

http://taraflex.com/

http://taraflex.com/fitness/fitness.html (they show a picture of Cathe's crew in that link. That's from the Intensity Series.)

 

[judegirl]

Thanks for the info! Just by looking at that taraflex site, I get the feeling it would probably cost quite a bit more than we'd be willing to spend, especially since we're renters and aren't here permanently. I guess we'll just have to find another version of the puzzle mats that actually stay together the way they were meant to without pulling apart.

 

[fitnancy]

I've had the same problem with my puzzle mats coming apart. DH actually taped them together for me, using lots of duct tape on the bottom. It stays together now, and you can't see the tape. HTH

 

[FitGirl-ATX]

Hi there,

I don't know if you have an Academy Sports in your area, but that is where I got my interlocking puzzle mats from. They are very thick and durable (made by Rawlings). I'll look up the exact dimensions and name when I get home. I use them on my 1-car garage concrete floor, which is my home gym. They really take a beating and keep on ticking. I've dropped everything from weights to kettlebells on them, and they still hold up great. I've had mine for about 3.5 years. It cost me about $150 to do the majority of my garage workout space.


Your friend in fitness,
FitGirl-ATX

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"I am only competing with the me I have yet to be..."

 

[rmrmr]

I am having the same problem. The mats used to stay together and know I have to make sure the gap isn't where I'm stepping. I've thought about putting another layer of the puzzle mats on top of what I have now. I'm not sure if that will work or not. The other option I'm looking for is that padded material used in manufacturing plants or where people will be standing and working all day. If I find what I'm talking about I'll post it here for you to.

Diana

 

[judegirl]

I like that duct tape idea. We'll give that a try before going out and buying another solution, although it sounds like there are a couple of other options out there, which is great. I'm glad to know we aren't the only ones having this problem

 

[amyg]

I've also laid a big piece of no-slip stuff that you put under rugs beneath my puzzle mats. It works great; I move my mats every workout, though, so having the extra step is too much for me and I just slide around, myself. :+

 

[judegirl]

So we went out and bought extra-sturdy duct tape as well as no-slip stuff and taped it all to the bottom and now the sliding and coming apart problems both seem to be fixed. Thanks for all the tips!