Whether you’re a top celebrity with 2000 square feet of space, a fitness enthusiast with a favorite modality or a casual exerciser with some room to spare, here are some tips that will save you a lot of trouble as you plan, design, build and maintain your in-home fitness environment:

Space If you don’t have enough, don’t do it! However, "enough" is likely far less than you might anticipate. Your fitness level and the specific exercises you enjoy are key considerations where space is concerned. For instance, those with solid training experience can get the most out of a simple bench, barbell and dumbbell set up. On the other hand, those with less experience may need the benefits of a multi-station machine or functional training device that supports and ensures proper form and technique. These more-sophisticated products typically require a bit more space, in order to get the most out of them.

Freedom to Move It’s critical to look beyond the specific dimensions of the products you choose and consider the importance of functional space around them. The anticipated footprint of any product should also include at least three feet of space around its perimeter to allow you to move comfortably around it and use it in a safe and comfortable fashion. Exercise is about freedom of movement and if you don’t have this freedom of space to maximize the function of the product, you’re asking for trouble.

Function Over Form Just because a product may fold up neatly into a corner or fit under a bed efficiently, doesn’t mean it will be as efficient in delivering an effective workout. With many such products, we sacrifice effect for convenience. the misconception about Home Gym equipment is that as long as the unit itself is small and can be "put away" doesn’t mean that the functional space required to exercise on the equipment itself can be accomplished in the same foot print…Further, once you take it out…does it perform with the same fluidity or ease of use that you would expect from the commercial gym equipment you use at the health club. If your priority is a truly effective workout, convenience should be a secondary consideration.

Comprehensiveness Many individuals are not looking to terminate their club memberships when they set out to develop a home gym space. Often the home gym environment is created to augment their time at the health club. To this point, the primary consideration should be choosing components that are either highly versatile, or that in combination, allow you to achieve a truly comprehensive workout as you would at the health club. There are a number of excellent multi-purpose products and new technologies available that provide an entirely new level of versatility from a single product. For example, Acceleration Training devices offer full body workout capability from products slightly larger than a typical medical scale. On the other hand, good old-fashioned dumbbell set ups can target the entire body with ease.

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