How to choose the right gym equipment depending on your goals

You’ve joined the gym, and here you are… walking through the aisles of heavy gym equipment marked with different handles, knobs, cables and pulleys, and you’ve no idea where to start. You feel a little intimidated…

Sounds familiar? Trust us, we’ve all been there! That’s why we’ve created a cheat sheet for you to give you a little  guidance and help you get started with your fitness journey.

Best equipment to use to burn fat and lose weight

The most effective cardio machines for burning fat are treadmills, stair climbers, elliptical machines, rowing machines and indoor cycles.

Suggestion – HIIT workouts – intense interval training

HIIT workouts are great if you don’t have much time and can be done on a wide range of cardio exercise machines, battle ropes as well as on mats if you prefer to do exercises such as burpees, sit ups and press ups.

We would also suggest changing your workout routine at least every 4 weeks to make it more challenging and engaging (so that you don’t get bored). 

Perhaps, consider adding some juicy fat burners into your workout routine like battle ropes! Battle ropes are amazing! Not only are they a powerful fat burner but also a great tool to improve your condition. You’ll train your muscles in your upper back, arms, abs and glutes. Work your legs by incorporating jumps, lunges and squats.

Example: treadmill – you can do 30 seconds of a treadmill sprints followed with a 20 second rest (walking), and then repeat this for as many times as you wish. If you’re a beginner, we would suggest doing 30 sec work and 60 sec rest (walking).

Best equipment to use to build your booty

Many women have always taken pride in well-developed glutes, the trend has seen a massive rise in recent years, thanks to Kardashians and Instagram influencer Tammy Hembrow.

Suggestion: our absolute favourite booty builder is the legendary leg press machine! It is awesome, especially if you’re struggling with a back pain or knee pain and squatting is not an option.

Example: put your feet wide and high on the board. This should help you to load more in your hamstrings and glutes. Focus on doing very slow movements so that you feel the load in your glutes the most. However, be careful not to go too low and never lock out your knees straight when leg pressing as it can cause a knee injury.

Best equipment to use to tone your arms

Our favourite biceps growing, and sculpting equipment is the cable biceps bar. It is especially  great for beginners who don’t feel confident enough to work out with dumbbells and barbells. The exercise provides an alternative to the dumbbell or barbell curl as it offers a little more stability during the lift, which should bring a few more regional muscles into play.

Example: adjust the weight and while facing the cable machine’s pulley system, grip the bar with your palms facing down. Next, take a step backward while keeping your back straight. Your elbows should remain close to your body throughout the movement. Simply raise and lower the bar from having your arms down straight to bringing them up to your chest. The slower you raise and lower the bar, the greater the burn and the quicker you’ll see results.

Best equipment to use to shape your legs

Squats are king and good things come to those who squat. Squat exercises are one of the best exercises to sculpt your legs. If you have any back problems, you can exclude any weights from your exercise routine. However, if you want to increase intensity you can add some free weights, dumbbells or barbell and up the burn.

Example: if you’re a beginner we would suggest starting with a set of 15 to 20 squats a day. Once you get comfortable with your exercise routine and you want to raise to the next level, we would suggest adding heavier weights to see better results.

Best equipment to use to build your abs

Medicine ball is one of our best friends at FitKit UK. After the kettlebell, of course! 

Firstly, you can use it anywhere. You can travel with it. You can watch your favourite TV program while performing abs exercises with a medicine ball! There are so many exercises you can do with a medicine ball to build your six-pack including Russian twist, medicine ball plank, medicine ball crunch, medicine ball mountain climber, medicine ball toe toucher and much more.

Example: sit with your knees bent holding medicine ball in your chest. Lean back slightly at a 45-degree angle on the floor, engaging your core. Rotate the medicine ball from left to right keeping the ball at your chest.

Best equipment to use to build your back

Focus on a lat pulldown machine. Honestly, it’s great! It’s ideal tool to create a powerful looking V- taper for men and for women it’s a great tool to develop and define a sleek and contoured figure and slimmer waistline.

Suggestion:there are so many exercise variations you can work on. If you’re a beginner, we would suggest starting with a light weight. Don’t forget to adjust the bar, your seat high and the knee pad. Perform the pulldown slowly and with control. 

Example: grasp the bar with a wide grip with an overhand, knuckles up grip. Pull the bar down until it’s approximately level with the chin. Exhale on down motion. Aim to keep your upper torso fixed. Keep your feet flat on the floor and engage your abs as you pull. Squeeze the shoulder blades together while maintaining square shoulders. From the bottom position with the bar close to your chin, slowly return the bar to the starting position while controlling its gradual ascent. Don’t let it crash into the weight plates. Repeat the movement until you’ve done up to 12 repetitions in a set. Rest, then continue with your sets.

Sculpting your shoulders

If you’re a beginner, we would suggest starting with a shoulder press machine so that you can get used to lifting. Shoulder press machines have a much lower risk of injury and are also often used for rehabilitation purposes. 

Example: keep your core tight and your back straight while you’re in a seated position in the shoulder press machine. Look straight ahead and hold on to the handles. Slowly, press the handles up above your head and bring handles back down but do not let the weight stack touch. Repeat the movement. Note, please do not lock out your elbows.

Our suggestion is always listening to your body. Make sure that exercises don’t hurt you or feel uncomfortable. Remember to keep safe especially if you’re incorporating weights into your exercise routine.

As always, please drop us a comment or get in touch with us if you have any questions!