Free Weights Flooring: Everything You Need to Know
The best free weights flooring supports the heaviest weights and sweatiest of strength training sessions. Due to the nature of lifting heavy weights, it can be harmful to your flooring. Barbells, weight racks, and kettlebells can all damage your floor.
Even if you’re careful, it’s hard to lower weights slowly to the floor in a deadlift. It’s common to drop barbells on the floor during free weight sessions. The right flooring keeps your weights and equipment safe while protecting your flooring. Keep reading to find out the best flooring for free weights.
In this article:
- What to Look for in High-Quality Free Weights Flooring
- The Best Flooring for Free Weights and Strength Training
- How Thick Should Your Free Weights Flooring Be?
What to Look for in High-Quality Free Weights Flooring
Creating a dedicated free weights fitness space is a great way to add versatility to your commercial or home gym. Free weight exercises help to strengthen muscles, increase bone density, and improve general well-being. When lifting free weights, you engage more muscles to maintain balance and burn more calories.
Free weights flooring creates a barrier between falling weights and the flooring underneath. Choose high-quality gym flooring designed for heavy lifting. You need a surface with plenty of shock absorption and traction so that users can safely lift weights without slipping or damaging the floor.
Another thing to consider is noise reduction. As you will be dropping weights onto the floor and lifting heavy equipment, think about how much noise it will make. You will likely have neighbours, whether you’re setting up a commercial or home gym. So, it’s important to choose flooring that will dampen noise. Good-quality gym flooring should be easy to maintain, durable, and provide plenty of traction for a safe workout.
The Best Flooring for Free Weights and Strength Training
So, what is the best flooring for free weights and strength training?
The most common answer is to use rubber commercial gym flooring. It looks great, easy to install, and a relatively inexpensive option. Rubber flooring is available in a range of thickness in both rolls and tiles. Rubber is an ideal flooring option for high-traffic areas and spaces where noise bounces off the wall. It’s perfect for free weights, but also suitable for a range of exercises, making it an excellent choice for both commercial, home and garage gyms. It helps to absorb sound, improve the efficacy of a workout, and create a comfortable environment.
Rubber Floor Rolls
One way to install rubber flooring is by using rolls. This is the best option for larger spaces. Due to the larger size of the rolls, they tend to be a lot heavier and therefore harder to install by yourself. Rubber rolls deliver a uniformed look and are available in a range of colours.
In terms of gym flooring thickness, it depends on your environment and how you intend to use the gym. For example, home gyms using free weights should use at least 30mm thick rubber flooring. But if you regularly use heavy weights (over 40kg), you may need additional flooring up to 80mm for protection.
Rubber Floor Tiles
The other option is to use rubber floor tiles. This is a popular option for both home, and commercial gyms as tiles tend to be lighter and easier to install. Rubber floor tiles don’t need to be glued down, but in a commercial setting, it’s a good idea to install any flooring you have permanently. As you don’t have to glue down rubber tiles, they are easy to install and can create flexible workout zones. Find out what works for you and your fitness regime and adjust the tiles as needed until you’re happy.
Rubber floor tiles can be a more economical option and are perfect for designing custom workout zones. You can choose either a standard rubber tile or an interlocking tile. Interlocking tiles have a puzzle style interlocking system. But when fully installed, the tiles have straight edges similar to traditional tiles. If you want a simple yet innovative solution for your flooring, interlocking tiles are a great choice and come in a range of thicknesses.
Using free weight’s can be hazardous to your flooring. When frequently dropping heavy equipment and weights, you need to protect your floor. By using the right material, you not only protect your floor but increase the longevity of your equipment. With plenty of traction, shock absorption, and noise reduction, your free weight flooring should create a versatile and safe fitness environment.
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