Originally Posted by
queerpunk
one of the best things i ever had for winter training was a basement with a bike set up on a trainer, rollers right next to it, and a squat lamp next to that.
being able to cut down on the 'overhead' time of setting up, or figuring out how to train - hell, just having a space to do it and feel comfortable doing it - was a huge reduction of the cognitive load of training. i had a space. i could go down there and train; and then come up and make dinner.
I live on a farm, so I have a nice big shed. In a corner I have my first road bike set up permanently on a trainer and a squat cage setup with weights and a bench. It's awesomely convenient being able to just pop up there for a workout. It saves time, and I'm still close to the family, so if perhaps the wife is going to be late or shopping, etc, then the kids can come grab me if there's a problem or sometimes they even come and hang with me while I'm working out. They do have a nasty habit of asking questions just when you're trying to put in a big effort like a sprint interval or in the middle of a set of squats! The only problem I had was when the first winter came and I was having difficulty progressing with the weights. A patio heater fixed that problem.
On the cost side, the weights were a big outlay, but not ridiculously huge. It's only a cheap Chinese gym setup. Everything is fine except I have bent my bar slightly. Buying a good quality bar is on the list, but the one I have is still ok and has been going strong for 4 years now. The weights check out to be correct, no dodginess there. The total outlay for everything including the Kurt Kinetic trainer was less than 2 years worth of gym membership. The fact that I don't have to wait for any equipment is an enormous bonus and the convenience factor that cuts down the total workout time is great.