My living room is my workout area, so, yeah, I kind of have to make it work. My bookcases have baskets of bands in them. My weights are tucked under a desk in another room. You don't even want to know what all I have stowed in my poor dog's feeding area, which is also a pantry/laundry room. Well, I used to keep my exercise mat hidden behind a chair. That mat wasn't thick enough for my knees when I started getting into yoga, so I bought another. Then, I needed a heavy duty rubber mat for HIIT, because my shoes were scuffing my floor. Then, my chiropractor gave me a roller for my back, but it was too short, so I bought another, and it was too hard. Now, I have Cathe's, and it's just right. Unfortunately, my hubby likes the hard rollers, so I can't get rid of them. Anyways, you get the picture. I keep accumulating cylindrical shaped exercise equipment that I don't have room to store, and I need to be able to get out when it's time to use them quickly. I tried a big plastic bin, and put everything on it's end in there for a while, but then my collection grew... Any suggestions? The bin I have is no longer large enough, and it is stuck in the corner of my dining room with my stability ball balanced precariously on top of the mats and rollers. It looks awful, and one of my dogs is not terrified of the ball, because when he bumps the bin, the ball "attacks" him. I have no choice but to keep an uncluttered house, as I have a adult son with disabilities (including blindness), so I've got to get my "toys" back to being organized again. The wall mounted mat organizers aren't an option. My one free wall is used for my son's P.T. Any members that had the same problem and found a solution?
Suggestions for mats & rollers?
- Thread starter Braille
- Start date
Debinmi
Cathlete
Braille, I don't have this problem ... we store our rolled mats & foam rollers on the top shelf of a closet. Maybe a mat/towel organizer installed on the back or front of a closet or bedroom or bathroom door? Or on the side wall of a closet? People often don't think of vertical/hanging storage space .... Or a under-the-bed or sofa tray or plastic storage container... there are some large ones out there, some with wheels even.
Lady Vol Fan
Cathlete
I like Debinmi's suggestions of under the couch storage bins. And looking at the storage on the wall area...can you install shelves for the mats? Maybe a coatrack with a shelf for the rollers on top with hooks underneath for mesh bags to hold the yoga mats?
Without knowing your living area size or current seating, my suggestions may hit a flat note but I'll offer them in case they might trigger some other idea.
Can you get a storage ottoman with a lift lid that doubles as a seat and replace some other chair?
Also they sell soft storage bags meant for table leaves that could hold some items and perhaps fit better under the couch than a bin.
I used to have very limited space, too in a small home and stuff was squirreled away from basement to bedroom closet. Pulling it out and putting it all away was a pain... worthwhile..but still a headache. I feel your pain
Without knowing your living area size or current seating, my suggestions may hit a flat note but I'll offer them in case they might trigger some other idea.
Can you get a storage ottoman with a lift lid that doubles as a seat and replace some other chair?
Also they sell soft storage bags meant for table leaves that could hold some items and perhaps fit better under the couch than a bin.
I used to have very limited space, too in a small home and stuff was squirreled away from basement to bedroom closet. Pulling it out and putting it all away was a pain... worthwhile..but still a headache. I feel your pain
All good ideas, but couch and furniture all sit too close to the floor (Roomba doesn't even fit under it), no wall space, and the one closet in the whole house is upstairs and stuffed with 3 people's clothes. Big house, but not the best design. We already have a decorative trunk that doubles (or triples) as a table/footstool that we have workout gear hidden away in. We also have a chaise lounge with a storage compartment under the seat. We even replaced our beds with the ones with drawers underneath. We have stuff hidden all over the place in our house. I was hoping to think of something for the living room, but I don't think it's doable. I hate storing stuff in the pantry/laundry, because I get tired of hauling everything so far just to get set up for a workout - plus, it is also where the dog's food, toys, etc. are, and I hate taking anymore space away from them, but I might have to consider it. I could probably put some more shelves in there. I'm just kind of short, and if I go any higher with shelves, I'll get a workout in having to get a stool out and climb up and down it with equipment before I even start a workout. lol
Lady Vol Fan
Cathlete
I am sorry...I was hoping one of the suggestions might trigger an alternative.
I guess different furniture that allows for underneath storage is out of the question?
I guess different furniture that allows for underneath storage is out of the question?
ashaw
Cathlete
I would love to have a larger area to workout. I try to store barbell plates, etc in my closet and pull them out as needed. At least my closet does have shelving where I can put excess DVD's, my high step topper fits perfectly in one of them and I have pull out baskets where I put bands and tubing. My foam roller which I started using in 2012 after going to a PT/chiropractor program called Airrosti is in the corner of my room. I would love to try to move the bed in my room to give me more floor space, but that would involve moving the TV to a different wall, which might also cause the bed to block one of the closet doors. Years ago, when my husband would be out playing golf, I'd workout in the living room, but that meant dragging a lot of equipment from one room to the other. I quit doing that years ago, because having the extra space wasn't worth the hassle of moving so much equipment - step, risers, weights, tubing, mat. Having a small wagon or cart would work, but then again, you have to have room for that too.
I've heard of people using old shipping containers that they put in their yard and convert to a home gym. One I saw a clip of was 2 x 20ft containers with one of the long side walls of each removed and the two joined together to make a wider space, I think it works out to be nearly 16 ft in width and approx. 19ft in length. Although this would be quite an investment and you would need the yard space.
I was thinking about doing up under my house as a proper workout area. The previous owners had already dug out under there as they were thinking of putting in a rumpus room and moving the laundry down there. However, after the recent floods and Cyclone we have had here in Auckland, New Zealand, I've gone off the idea. While I didn't get flooded, I did get some water coming through which left some puddles. Luckily everything stored under there is on pallets, so nothing was damaged. My Neighbours 2 doors up from me had water enter their rumpus room and cause some damage. I don't want to risk any damage to my equipment. As well as weights, step, fit tower, treadmill, etc., I also have some expensive Pilates equipment including my Balanced Body Allegro Reformer that I purchased some years ago off my Pilates instructor. This can't be easily replaced as they have to be purchased out of Australia and it's rare for second-hand ones to be available in NZ. So, I will just have to make do with my current space for now.
I was thinking about doing up under my house as a proper workout area. The previous owners had already dug out under there as they were thinking of putting in a rumpus room and moving the laundry down there. However, after the recent floods and Cyclone we have had here in Auckland, New Zealand, I've gone off the idea. While I didn't get flooded, I did get some water coming through which left some puddles. Luckily everything stored under there is on pallets, so nothing was damaged. My Neighbours 2 doors up from me had water enter their rumpus room and cause some damage. I don't want to risk any damage to my equipment. As well as weights, step, fit tower, treadmill, etc., I also have some expensive Pilates equipment including my Balanced Body Allegro Reformer that I purchased some years ago off my Pilates instructor. This can't be easily replaced as they have to be purchased out of Australia and it's rare for second-hand ones to be available in NZ. So, I will just have to make do with my current space for now.
Actually, we've been looking for awhile now. We have owned 3 homes (not all at once), so we're not looking forward to moving. Every time we've moved, we've claimed it was our last time. Because of my son's special needs, we can't have homes with real open floor plans, so older homes work better for us. Older homes also tend to have the larger bedrooms and living rooms that we like as well as the separate dining room. We like small towns, because they tend to be safer and my son really likes people. People in small towns often take the time to get to know him, which he likes. Every time we've moved, we've managed to meet these requirements, but we've had to give up other things that were really important to us (lots of closets, home being on an acreage, a basement, ranch style home, etc.). So, we keep ending up in homes that work well enough to get by, but... they just don't work well. It takes us 5 to 7 years to find a home that's good enough. This time we want the home that we've always wanted. We're not "settling" again. So, it's going to take a long time. Land in our area is expensive, so building isn't an option. Anyways, we're hoping that we'll eventually stumble across something.So ... maybe a new house?! Just kidding ....
We have a 3 car garage, but my husband won't clean it! He has it totally trashed out. I don't allow his "hoarding" habits in the house, but I can't seem to get our garage under control. lol
Well, I can't change my son's chair out for anything too different, because he has to have a specific height and style for his disabilities. I'm limited on couch length (any longer & it will block the front door if I don't kick the elliptical out of the living room. Our couch is less than a year old, so I hate to replace it so soon, but if I find one that has space underneath it, I might be able to talk my husband in to it. He's a big guy, and this couch really sags when he sits on it. It's already become quite uncomfortable. I might see what I can find. We don't have a lot of furniture in our living room, because we need the space for working out.
Wow, that sounds like a project. We live in a 4-season state, so I'd have to heat and cool it. I don't think I could do 2 containers, because I'd need it to not take up too much of the dog's backyard. But if it was just my workout area (my hubby uses different equipment than I do), that might be big enough for me, my stuff, and my workouts. 20' is definitely longer than what I have to work with now. I'll need to measure my current workout space and see if 8' would be enough. It would be for my strength training. I'm not sure about the cardio. I have to move some of my furniture in my living room to some of the step workouts, and that's with me kind of modifying some of the steps to make them take up less room. I wonder if those are tall enough? I guess I've only seen them in movies. I'm going to have to do some research. Our fuse box in the house is full, but I think our garage has it's own. I'll have to ask my hubby, because I'd need a TV & DVD. Hmmm... I might end up with a she shed (like Debinmi suggested after all). lol Probably going to be way out of my price range, but I'm going to check it out. It's worth a shot. Thanks Hazlady. If the price is too high, but I mention it to my hubby, he might get scared that I'm going to spend a bunch of money and get motivated to give me part of the garage. lol If it's not too expensive... I'll have my own space! Plus, I don't know what it takes to move those things, but if we happen to find a new home, maybe it could go with me. I'm so glad you had the water issue before you invested time and money in a room under your house. We have a sump pump in our small basement, and when the electric went out during a storm (a few years ago), it didn't work. It's too short down there to work out, but we don't have much storage room in the house, so we had things stored there - up off the ground. We ended up losing some things to water damage. The water level rose faster than we could bail before the power came back on. Not fun.
If the price is too high, but I mention it to my hubby, he might get scared that I'm going to spend a bunch of money and get motivated to give me part of the garage. lol If it's not too expensive... I'll have my own space! Plus, I don't know what it takes to move those things, but if we happen to find a new home, maybe it could go with me. I'm so glad you had the water issue before you invested time and money in a room under your house. We have a sump pump in our small basement, and when the electric went out during a storm (a few years ago), it didn't work. It's too short down there to work out, but we don't have much storage room in the house, so we had things stored there - up off the ground. We ended up losing some things to water damage. The water level rose faster than we could bail before the power came back on. Not fun.
Debinmi
Cathlete
As I read this suggestion, I thought this might be your best option. You could close off one bay with a simple wall & door (could put in windows maybe), insulate it well & if it's not already heated, put in a heater. There's probably already electric there. Wallboard is not that expensive. Our neighbor did this to his garage for a party/entertainment area. You could spend some fun hours designing the workout area of your dreams! And if the outside storage unit is big enough, you could reclaim the other bays for your vehicles. Win win win!