How to ditch the gym and bring your workout home

SINGAPORE – Married Singaporean couple Othniel Indran and Janet Poh had one main criterion for their first home: It had to have dedicated spaces for each of them.

Ms Poh, a 32-year-old marketing and office manager, sought a study in which to work. Meanwhile, Mr Othniel, a 37-year-old security and operations manager, craved a zone in which to work out.

Anyone who walks into their 1,302 sq ft HDB flat today will see each of their wishes fulfilled. 

While Ms Poh’s study is tucked away next to the master bedroom, Mr Othniel’s home gym is right by the dining room. It is unmissable when you step through the front door into the living room, thanks to its sleek glass walls and moody, dark grey aesthetic. 

Its main feature is a multi-functional Smith machine. This is essentially a barbell attached to a rack, which can move up and down along the vertical plane. It allows users to lift heavy weights without a spotter. The Smith has other functions, including a pull-up bar.

“There isn’t much space in the room to work out in, and I needed a machine that serves as a one-stop shop for me to fully enjoy the workout,” says Mr Othniel, who paid $3,000 for it.

The gym also houses adjustable dumbbells, which were gifted by a friend and go up to 40kg each, as well as resistance bands and yoga mats. There is also a walking pad, which is used by Ms Poh. 

“Sometimes, I just need my own space and time to work out by myself. And because this is in my home, I am able to blast my music and work out at my own pace without anyone rushing me, or having to share my equipment with others,” says Mr Othniel.

Ms Poh admits: “When Othniel came up with this gym idea, I really wasn’t on board with it. It didn’t quite fit the aesthetic I was going for.”

The rest of the home, which she oversaw the design of, follows a warmer and cosier design style. 

“But it’s only fair he gets his own space in our home. Anyway, I can now easily get my daily step count in, thanks to the walking pad,” she says. 

Home is where the gym is

Strength training is more popular than ever in Singapore, while pilates and fitness race Hyrox are among the latest crazes, following in the footsteps of spinning (indoor cycling).

The SingaporeFitness community on message board website Reddit, which has almost 12,000 members, gets some 60,000 visitors weekly. ActiveSG has a website where people can check crowd levels at the national sports club’s gyms before going down.

Unsurprisingly, interest in home gym equipment has also increased, says Mr Poh Shen, co-founder of fitness equipment retailer The Great Company.

“We have observed a broader shift towards wanting fitness to be more accessible, convenient and part of everyday living,” he tells The Straits Times. 

“People view training as part of daily life, rather than something tied only to a commercial gym membership. In Singapore especially, people are also much more conscious of space, noise and aesthetics, so there is stronger demand for equipment that is compact, versatile and easier to integrate into the home.”

The retailer’s offerings encompass a wide range of equipment which can be summed up as space-efficient and technologically driven, says Mr Poh. 

These include adjustable dumbbells, multi-functional trainers, cable machines, walking pads, barbell racks, weight plates and even plyometric boxes that cost $199 to $4,998.

The company’s bestsellers are adjustable dumbbells (from $780) from Swedish brand Nuobell. 

“A single pair easily replaces a whole rack of dumbbells at the gym, because it can adjust from 2kg to 40kg with just a twist of the handle,” says Mr Poh.

It was the company’s first product when it was founded in 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

“Gyms in Singapore were shut down during the circuit breaker, and people were confined to their homes, including us. We wanted to find something functional, space-saving and aesthetically pleasing for our own homes at that point,” says Mr Poh. 

Six years on, the demand for such equipment has only increased, and customers have become even more discerning and deliberate about the workout equipment they are investing in. 

“They are thinking more about what fits their space, what they will realistically use long-term and how to build a set-up that feels sustainable rather than temporary,” says Mr Poh.

Younger adults in their 20s and 30s form a key demographic, especially those who already have an active lifestyle and want more flexibility in how they train. 

Overlapping this demographic are first-time home owners and young families planning gym corners in their new cribs. 

To better serve these customers, the team behind The Great Company also founded Gymflooring.sg, whose services include the installation of gym flooring. Such flooring dampens noise from the workout area, reducing disturbance to neighbours. 

Prices start at $75 a sq m for 15mm-thick rubber tiles, and there are options for different colours or types of sports or workouts. There are selections for flooring that resemble the conventional laminate or vinyl you might find in a bedroom or living room. 

“The flooring can also be installed without adhesive, meaning it can be easily removed if the space needs to be converted to something else, or if the home is sold,” says Mr Poh. 

Getting your home gym right

For those looking to start their own home gym, Mr Tan Chin Koon, a designer and assistant creative manager with design firm Goodman Interior, suggests: “Choose equipment that complements your lifestyle and fits the design of your home, and leave enough clearance for safe movement.” 

In 2024, Mr Tan worked with a Singaporean couple in their 30s to outfit their 900 sq ft Build-To-Order flat with a home gym. They wanted the convenience of exercising at home without needing to travel to a gym. 

“It allowed them to integrate fitness into their daily routine more easily, especially with busy work schedules and family time,” notes Mr Tan.

The equipment and flooring cost around $4,000.

Mr Poh says building a basic home gym set-up is as simple as investing in three or four key items.

“In Singapore homes, especially HDB flats, simpler set-ups usually work better. A lot of people overbuy at the start, but in reality, adjustable dumbbells, a bench and proper flooring already cover most training needs while keeping noise and impact manageable.”

And these need not burn a hole in your pocket. For instance, a pair of adjustable dumbbells with plates that can be added and removed, up to 40kg – similar to a free barbell and weight plates – retails on e-commerce retailer Lazada for as low as $68.50.

“It really comes down to choosing equipment that gives you more flexibility within a small space. You can always build on it later once you know what you’re missing,” Mr Poh adds. For those ready to upgrade their set-ups to more elaborate systems such as multi-functional Smith machines, investing in good-quality flooring is a must.

“Our gym mats, which cost $650, were an important investment that we researched carefully. We wanted to be sure they would be able to handle the impact, just in case a weight plate is accidentally dropped,” says Mr Othniel.