If you’ve been weight lifting for any length of time, you’ve probably noticed that there are many different barbell weight systems in use. There’s the Olympic weight system, used by most of the international weightlifting teams. Then there’s the domestic/ domestic system, which is slightly different but can still be used by weight lifters in America. Finally, there are home systems, which are designed to help a person get into shape without all of the extra equipment.
A standard barbell weight bench will usually weigh 45 pounds, although there are lots of variation amongst other kinds of benches. In many cases, weightlifting competitions mandate standards for all barbell weights (which are measured by weight plates without the actual weights). This makes the home gym a lot easier to spot check.
If you have limited space available, or even a room with a dedicated area for your home gym, there are some great alternatives. First, many gyms have huge Olympic bars that are attached to the ceiling. These are usually huge, solid oak bars with huge, solid Olympic plates on each end. The problem with this kind of setup is that the plates and bars must be kept close to the wall for safety, which means that the room can’t be very large. These kind of Olympic bars are usually good for a small workout space and won’t hold much weight.
You also have short training bars that you can hang from the ceiling, much like the Olympic bars. These are also pretty easy to spot check, because they have little or no weight on them. Many of these bars have handles on each end so that you can move them around easily. They are very convenient for people who aren’t able to keep all of their equipment close to the wall.
Another option would be to have dumbbells for each set of weights. These are generally much heavier than the Olympic bars, but they hold much more weight, and they can be moved around much easier. Having two kinds of bars can make working out more efficient. However, these heavier weight sets may not hold as many weights, which means that you will be limited by how many exercises you can perform in a given set.
One final option for a home barbell set would be a plate stack. Plate stacks can be obtained in most sports shops, and are very similar to the olympic one. Rather than having several heavy plates on the floor, you only have one. The plates are much smaller and take up less room, meaning that you can do more exercises and lift more weights, without having to leave more than one space on the floor for the weights.