Trends come and go in the garage gym industry and this year at Home Gym Con, it was easy to see quite a few of them. In this episode I cover 6 trends in garage gyms and ask for your help in seeing if they will stick around or not!

Rep Smith Machine: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-smith-machine/

Bells of Steel Smith: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/bos-byob-smith-machine/

Force USA C20 Video: https://youtu.be/NWwsMlPP0Ik

Bells tower: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/bos-single-stack/

Dialed Motion: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/dialed-motion/

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

1:39 Smith Machines

8:27 All-In-One Trainers

15:43 Leg Developers

21:55 Rise of the Machines

33:54 Purpose Built Home Gym Gear

41:15 Smart Devices

48:22 Wrap Up

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

Home Gym Con 2025 wasn't just a place to see cool new garage gym gear. It was also a place to learn about that gear and the industry. In this episode, I review 11 surprising things I learned at this year's convention.

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

1:48 I'm Tall!

3:00 RitFit

6:50 Marketing

10:36 Voltra

20:24 Ancore

22:53 I Need A Gimbal

24:37 Bad Product Releases

29:13 Small Fabricators

33:17 Details Matter

36:48 Pendulum Squats

40:03 We Are Out of Touch

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases

Home Gym Con 2025 in Louisville, KY was a fun, amazing, memorable blur. In this first of 4 Home Gym Con podcast episodes, I review the event overall, talk about what I liked and what should have been different, and lay out my plans for 2026!

https://homegymcon.com

https://www.youtube.com/@UCF-kK-HyM64cSH3H8QeMfMw

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

Instead of overspending on equipment for our home and garage gyms, sometimes, the smart decision is to look for stuff that is "good enough". In this episode I talk about how to find out what is good enough for your gym and what isn't.

American Barbell Grizzly Bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/ab-chewy-bar/

Rep Badlands Bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-badlands-bar/

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases

Home Gym Con is 16 days away and the biggest reason I'm going is to bring you as much coverage as I can. With 125 vendors, I won't be able to cover everything, so in this podcast I review my current content plan and ask you to help in every area!

Home Gym Con: https://homegymcon.com

Vendor List: https://homegymcon.com/vendors/

Rep NightHawk bench: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-nighthawk/

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

0:59 What is Home Gym Con?

3:49 Why I’m going

9:58 2 things I’m not doing

11:12 Brands I’m not covering

14:13 Brands I am covering

28:28 Content plans

32:33 What would you like to see?

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

I've built or helped build quite a few garage gyms in the last 8 years of running GymCrafter and I learn things every time. In this episode I review 10 things I'll do differently next time!

Freedom Fitness Flooring: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/freedom-flooring/

Code GC1 saves you 5%

Walking pad: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/walking-pad/

Code GYMCRAFTER saves you up to 30% off purchases over $279

American Barbell power bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/ab-ss-elite-power-bar/

American Barbell Chewy bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/ab-chewy-bar/

Rep Black Diamond bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-black-diamond/

Rep Badlands bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-badlands-bar/

Rep open trap bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-open-trap-bar/

Bells open trap bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/bos-open-trap-bar/

Rep cambered Swiss bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-cambered-swiss-bar/

Bells Arch Nemesis bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/bos-swiss-bar/

Bare Steel EZ curl bar: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/bare-steel-ez-bar/

Black Widow VHS bar: https://blackwidowtg.com/products/vhs-bar?_pos=1&_sid=74073b561&_ss=r

Freak Athlete Hyper Pro: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/freak-athlete/

Tib Bar Guy Sled Tred: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/tbg-sledtred/

Rep NightHawk: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/rep-nighthawk/

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

2:50 Different flooring

7:01 Paying for installation

7:48 Running electric

9:47 Side mount garage door opener

11:22 Clearing the space first

12:54 A place to walk

19:49 Less barbells

24:06 More specialty bars

28:33 Being more open minded

31:05 Home Gym Con

33:19 Less overthinking

36:19 Wrap up

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

Having a great garage gym is only half the battle. Getting the most out of it is the other half. In this episode I review 8 common ways people miss out on the benefits of their garage gym.

MAPS Anabolic: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/maps-anabolic/

Slant Stack: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/slant-stack/

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

2:16 Letting perfect be the enemy of good

4:58 Trigger sessions

9:17 Micro sessions

15:52 Getting more from what you have

23:30 Learn from others

27:46 Training discipline

30:45 Training smart

33:16 Periodization

36:05 Movement variations

38:09 Implement variation

39:47 Staying focused

45:55 Wrap up

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

If you live in the US and want to avoid tariffs when buying gear for your garage gym, the best way to do that is to buy gear made in the US. In this episode, I give you a brief overview of 22 options to do that!

Rogue: https://www.roguefitness.com

Black Widow: https://blackwidowtg.com

Elite FTS: https://www.elitefts.com

Sorinex: https://www.sorinex.com

American Barbell: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/american-barbell/

Surplus Strength: https://surplusstrength.com

StrayDog Strength: https://straydogstrength.com

Wright Equipment: https://wrightequipment.com

Homegrown Lifting: https://homegrownlifting.com

Weight it Out: https://www.weightitout.us

Intek Strength: https://www.intekstrength.com

The Strength Co.: https://www.thestrength.co

Texas Power Bars: https://texaspowerbars.com

Solid Bar Fitness: https://solidbarfitness.com

Iron Master: https://www.ironmaster.com

PowerBlock: https://powerblock.com

AbMat: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/abmat/

Darko Lifting: https://gymcrafter.com/recommends/darko-lifting/

Belt Fed Strength: https://www.beltfedstrength.com

MicroGainz: https://microgainz.com

Arm Assassin: https://www.armassassinstrengthshop.com

JD Gym Equipped: https://jdgymequipped.com

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

1:40 Is made in the US better?

2:47 Rogue

3:40 Black Widow

4:51 Elite FTS and Sorinex

6:35 American Barbell

8:29 Surplus Strength

9:27 Stray Dog Strength

10:25 Wright Equipment

11:29 Homegrown Lifting

14:03 Weight It Out

16:25 The Strength Co

18:03 Intel

18:52 PowerBlocks

19:35 Iron Master

21:25 Texas Power Bar

22:56 Solid Bar Fitness

24:41 AbMat

27:51 Darko Lifting

29:01 Micro Gainz

29:51 Belt Fed Strength

30:57 Wrap Up

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

Ethic and honesty should matter when deciding where to spend your garage gym dollars... But do they actually end making a difference in the end? How badly does a company need to behave before people stop shopping there? In this episode we take a look at some recent examples and whether or not they've actually made a difference.

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

3:04 Legal disclaimer

3:47 Integrity

5:12 Episode overview

6:10 Rogue vs Kleva

22:53 Force 6 vs. Darko

31:01 Mikolo vs. accurate specs

35:07 BLUSLM vs. MAG

39:20 PRx and redemption

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

Wondering how tariffs may impact your home gym purchases? Want to know what to do about adding new things to your garage gym when tariff related price increases are on the horizon? This is the podcast for you!

Partners & affiliates: GymCrafter.com/partners

Website: GymCrafter.com

Newsletter: GymCrafter.com/Subscribe

Insta: Instagram.com/gymcrafter

Review Guidelines: GymCrafter.com/review-guidelines/

0:00 Intro

3:41 Who is affected?

4:15 Is this all new?

5:08 How to react

7:45 Will people stop buying?

9:10 The “old man” approach

11:19 The news

14:03 How much will prices go up?

17:04 Will they go out of business?

19:00 How long will this last?

19:45 When to buy

20:53 Should you buy now?

24:18 Will companies eat the tariffs?

27:49 Will prices go back down?

30:39 Who will rip off their customers?

33:30 Why domestic prices are also going up

36:51 Who will pay these prices???

39:42 The biggest impact of tariffs

43:29 Buy now?

44:15 Buy domestically?

47:37 Now is the time for used

50:03 The importance of integrity

50:41 Don’t shop angry

51:00 Do you really need it?

51:53 Doing more with what you have

52:53 Being patient

*GymCrafter is viewer-supported. I may earn a commission if you purchase through my links. A huge thank you to anyone who helps out in this way. It's what allows me to continue to make videos like this for you as often as I do!

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases