A garden gym solves two problems that quietly kill a home training habit: the commute to the commercial gym, and the compromise of trying to lift in a shed with a low ceiling and a bouncy floor. Done properly, it's the room that keeps you consistent for the next twenty years.
Ceiling height
Standard shed roofs are typically 2.1–2.2 m internally at the eaves — too low for overhead pressing without clipping the ceiling. Every Arden & Oak garden gym is designed with 2.4 m minimum internal headroom, higher with a pitched roof if you want to press over head plate or drop bars overhead safely.
Floor construction
Dropping a 100 kg deadlift on a standard timber-deck floor will damage the deck and, over time, the joists beneath. The gym-grade floor build-up we specify is:
- Reinforced joist spacing (300–400 mm centres, one grade heavier than habitable rooms)
- 18 mm plywood sub-deck (rather than standard chipboard)
- 8–12 mm high-density rubber matting bonded to the sub-deck
- Optional 20 mm shock-absorbing platform under a dedicated deadlift zone
Ventilation
A hard training session in a small room produces a lot of humidity. Standard trickle vents don't cope. We specify cross-ventilation as standard on every gym build and offer MVHR (mechanical ventilation with heat recovery) for anyone who trains twice a day — the room clears itself between sessions rather than sitting fogged and stale.
Mirrors and rig fixings
Wall-length mirrors and structural fixing points for wall-mounted rigs, resistance bands and gymnastic rings are designed in from day one — properly noggined into the timber-frame wall so they take real load, not screwed into plasterboard as an afterthought.
Sizing your gym
- Basic home gym (rack, bar, DBs, floor space): 4.0 × 3.0 m
- Full functional-fitness room: 4.5 × 3.5 m or 5.0 × 3.0 m
- Strength garage (power rack, deadlift platform, rig, GHD): 5.0 × 4.0 m
- Mixed gym + yoga / stretching zone: 5.0 × 3.5 m — often twin-volume
Extras worth considering
- Sauna corner (typically 1.5 × 1.5 m internally, additional insulation and electrics required)
- Small shower / WC (needs plumbing and drainage; adds around £3–4k)
- Cold plunge — cheaper than a sauna, needs a drained area and a chest freezer conversion
- Underfloor heating for post-workout stretching zones