Last updated on September 14th, 2021 at 12:39 pm

Ready to build your Superhero Home Gym?

This is the first of four (to start, at least) Superhero Home Gym Guides I have planned for us.

I’m starting with the $100 mark because I want it to be clear that I do not think you have to spend a ton of money to get a good workout in at home.

Although, spending more gives you more options for your training, and also makes it easier to train with weights other than your bodyweight.

So, when we see our Supguides at different price markers I will make sure to come back here and update this page (AKA: if you’re reading this, they’re not out yet).

For this one there are a couple ways you can get started with your Superhero Home Gym for Under $100, so I’ll actually be giving you the option to choose some different variations.

There is going to be a couple things that are just core pieces of equipment, but then I will also allow you to swap other options in and out depending on the style you prefer.

For example: We can do A LOT of training with both kettlebells and dumbbells, but we don’t necessarily NEED both in our beginner home gym.

That being said: I do have two sets of dumbbells and multiple kettlebells.

For this one we’re going to call it Superhero Home Gym Level One.

That does not mean you can’t personally level up higher using the equipment I will recommend below, but it DOES mean that there are going to be other tiers of home gyms that show up on the site, and this is a great starting point.

Let’s get into it with some of the core equipment.

Superhero Home Gym For Under $100:
The Core Equipment

Our core equipment are going to be the options that are absolutely being used within your home gym.

These are the things that are going to make it possible to keep our home gym under $100 while still being worthy.

And yes, by worthy, I do mean that by the end of this we’re going to be shooting to be worthy of Mjölnir. 

Starting with the first item on our list.

Core Item One: Pull Up Bar

Item number one, if you couldn’t guess it, is a pull-up bar.

This will be something you consistently see within our Superhero Home Gyms, so get used to it.

There are a couple different variations of Pull-Up Bars that I’ve used in my home gyms, but for this one we’re going to have to keep it inexpensive if we want to stay under that $100 marker.

Here are the different pull up bars I personally suggest (and have used in my own home gyms), in order from least expensive to most:

1. Door Frame Pull Up Bar
   • Price Range: $20-$100
2. Wall/Ceiling Mounted Pull Up Bar
   • Price Range: $50-$200
3. Pull Up / Dip Station
   • Price Range: $100-$300+
   • Super Duper Sturdy Recommendation

I will even be keeping these suggestions within each and every one of our Superhero Home Gym Levels just so every member of The SHJ Army who is looking to build their ideal setup can have all the options for this crucial piece of equipment.

That being said, I will be using The Door Frame Pull Up Bar for our Superhero Home Gym Level One Price Tally!

I’m going to say you can EASILY grab one of these for $20-50.

Superhero Home Gym Price Tally: $20-50

Core Item Two: Speed Rope

Alright, let’s be clear on something: my recommendation above is linked to a SPEED rope because that’s the best thing for your home gym. 

You’re going to be a skipping pro, so you’ll want a speed rope.

That being said, if you’re currently not at the speed rope level, then I will also recommend a regular jump rope as well.

Here are my two suggestions:

• Speed Rope
  • For Intermediate – Advanced Skippers
  • Price Range: $5-$20
  • Recommended Rope Price: $7-$10
• Jump Rope
  • For Beginners
  • Price Range $5-$20
  • Recommended Rope Price: $10-$15

Our jump ropes are going to be our go-to cardio tool to step our in-home training up a notch.

Yes, we can obviously go outside and get a nice walk or run in, but a jump rope will be an essential part to keeping the “home” part in our home gym.

When you want to increase the intensity, get in some cardio, burn extra calories, and just be freakin’ cool; you’re going to grab your handy jump rope.

Now get to skippin’.

I wanted to say that so bad.

Superhero Home Gym Price Tally: $25-$75 range

Core Item(s) Three: Kettlebell or Dumbbells

Right off the bat let’s talk about the fact that with either of these two options the price will go up depending on the amount of weight you need to purchase.

That’s one of the reasons I like the versatility of a kettlebell, but even kettlebells have limitations and drawbacks.

That being said, for this Superhero Home Gym, being that we’re shooting for under $100, I’m limited this core item to either ONE kettlebell, or ONE set of dumbbells.

Similar to the pull-up bar recommendations, I will still give you some variations to allow scale up to some better options, but for the most part we’re looking to only spend $25-75 here.

If we leave even more space (in the budget), that’s even better because it’ll allow us to have some room for the optional equipment I mention below.

Here are my recommendations for Kettlebells:

• Basic Kettlebells
  • Price Variable
• Sandbag Kettlebells
  • Price Variable
• Bowflex Adjustable Kettlebell
  • Price Range: $200+

And, dumbbells look pretty similar, with the exception of sandbags!

Here are my recommendations for dumbbells:

• Basic Dumbbells
  • Price Variable
• Bowflex Adjustable Dumbbells
  • Price Range $400+

And, because we’re basing this tally on ONE kettlebell or ONE set of dumbbells, we’re going to have our tally going on those numbers.

Obviously variable, but we’re going to go with a moderate range of $35-75 here.

Superhero Home Gym Price Tally: $60-$150 range

So we’re also going to say we COULD potentially have a leftover $40 or so bucks depending on your choices above.

For that reason, I will be killing the price tally moving forward but continuing on into our optional recommendations.

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Superhero Home Gym For Under $100:
Optional Recommendations

Our core equipment are going to be the options that are absolutely being used within your home gym.

These are the things that are going to make it possible to keep our home gym under $100 while still being worthy.

And yes, by worthy, I do mean that by the end of this we’re going to be shooting to be worthy of Mjölnir. 

Starting with the first item on our list.

Optional Item One: Resistance Bands

Resistance bands are coming in at number one for our optional items for one reason: they are so damn versatile.

You can use them for pull up assistance with your new pull up bar, or use them to enhance and add resistance to hundreds of different workouts.

Want to increase the difficulty in squats?  Want to do some curls?  How about some thrusters?

No problem.  Grab your bands.

We’re even seeing more and more people use resistance bands to increase the tension on weightlifting, so this will consistently be a great option for your home gym; regardless of price range and style.

I would personally recommend a pack of different resistance bands (different resistance/assistance), but it really depends on how much you have left in your Superhero Home Gym piggy bank.

Here are a couple options I recommend:

• Basic 5 Pack
  • Price: $10-$15
• 11 Piece Full Workout Band Set
  • Price: $40-$50

And, of course, you can also search for singular resistance bands and start there, but a basic five pack at $10-15 seems like a great starting price for beginners.

Optional Item Two: Yoga Mat(s)

The next two optional items on the list are very similar.

It really comes down to deciding what kind of home gym you’re looking to have.

Do you want a home gym that you can quickly grab out of a closet?

Or, do you want a home gym that is always there to walk over to?

If your choice is the former, a yoga mat (or two) is probably the best option.

And, if it’s the latter, go ahead and skip ahead to my next recommendation (the next one is what I currently use in my Superhero Home Gym).

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, though, here are a couple yoga mats I’ve personally used and recommend:

• Basic Extra Thick Yoga Mat
  • Price Range: $10-$20
• Basic Yoga Mat
  • Price Range: $10-$20
• Han Solo Yoga Mat
  • Price: $65

Now I understand that last one is literally more than half our budget here, but I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t at the very least make the recommendation and let you know that it exists.

Add it to a wish list if you’re sticking to the original game plan.

Optional Item Three: Gym Mats

I don’t think we can come close to being as cool as having a Han Solo Yoga Mat, BUT, I did my best by trying to pretend Batman is using gym mats in his home gym above.

By the looks of it, he’s not, but use your imagination.

This one is super simple.

Either you want gym mats to be able to perform your bodyweight movements on, and use your new kettlebell or dumbbell set on….or you don’t.

Also, if you’re going into this new Superhero Home Gym with the mindset that you’re going to expand on it over time, then this is a great option.

I personally used ProSource, but I noticed AmazonBasics begin making them as well, so I will link to both.

Here are my two recommendations:

• What I Personally Use
  • (I’m On My Bike Typing This On My Gym Mats)
• Amazon Basics Gym Mats
  • Always a great, inexpensive and trustworthy option.

And if you read that part about the bike, you’ll have to wait for a different level of Superhero Gym for that recommendation! 😛

Optional Item Four: Weighted Vest

This is an option I’m including in this list because there are some weighted vests (and/or body armor sets) that can potentially be within our budget, but if you’re thinking of using any of the budget on optional recommendations, or even slightly more expensive routes in the core recommendations, it’s likely not going to happen for us.

I would say weighted vests USUALLY range from $50-$100, so it’s really a tough one to include, but I did want to leave it just in case you didn’t jump on one or two of the options above and have the budget.

This could also potentially override the kettlebell or dumbbells if you’re really looking to dive headfirst into strictly calisthenics and wanting to neglect any weight training; so that is another reason I decided to add it to this Superhero Home Gym list as well.

But to be clear, that was not me saying you SHOULD buy a vest instead of a kettlebell or set of dumbbells.

This is all based on how you specifically would prefer to train.

Which is the beauty of the versatility of different training styles, and why we focus on adaptability and giving hundreds and hundreds of different options within our Academy.

This is the weighted vest that I currently use at my own home gym.

Optional Item Five: Foam Roller

Last on the list is an inexpensive addition I think everyone should have in their home gym.

While it’s not absolutely necessary, and I could probably say “YES! BUY THIS NOW!” and 99% of you who bought it wouldn’t use it, I still want to recommend not only buying it, but actually using it!

You can add five to ten minutes of foam rolling into your daily routine and suddenly have in increased blood flow, improved movement and range of motion, decreased risk of injury, enhanced recovery and potentially even better results from your training.

But, if that doesn’t sell you on it then there’s probably nothing more I can say.

I did my job by recommending it 😉

This is the foam roller we currently use in my home gym.

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There you have it.

You have now built your Superhero Home Gym with less than $100 spent.

Keep an eye out for our our stages of Superhero Home Gyms.

Until next time,

Mike Romaine

SHJ’s Nick Fury