Got one at home too.. but wifey say "kesian besi tu" .. huhu..

Anyway here is my home made suspension trainer



The first one.. simple rope with PVC pipe. For door anchor I use kids nylon belt. Outside, I just anchor the rope to tope of swing sets.



Just finished this one this morning. Haven't really tested it yet.



Can be split to preference.

Hahahaha... that's the one major obstacle for me. That's why the first one I just use rope.

Anyway, I got mine at ACE Hardware in Mid Valley (not all ACE or other hardware shops have this in stock). It was at the car accessories aisle near all tie downs with the cam buckle. The one I got is only RM11.00 per pair (the orange coloured one). It is for luggage straps and came with alloy clip hence allowing for adjustable length and stronger than plastic clips. Each straps is 5 metres long and have max load of 200 lbs. I fold each in half length wise and sewn them to make it thicker and more robust. But it was the last pair though. Hopefully they restock soon. Or you can get the straps to your desired length. Still at the same store, as you enter the shop, to your left is like a mini shop in the shop, carrying ACE branded item. Some where in there, at bottom of the rack have the straps either in 1cm or 2 cm width. The straps are in rather flat boxes so you really got to look properly. Priced around RM2 per feet and this one seems of better quality than the luggage straps I bought. I'll get this straps if the orange one tear apart. Except the alloy slip is not available.

The straps for anchor, handle and feet I just bought kids nylon belt at Mydin, pretty cheap if you get them in wholesale bunch maybe about 6-10 belts. I bought separately just for the colours . Good luck in finding those straps for what ever purpose you want them for.

Yeah.. my reason for making the equipment is due to space constraint. I don't have anywhere convenient/safe to leave dumbells around the house with 3 kids trying to immitate what the father does.

On Bulgarian bag..I forgot to mentioned it before. I've also made one using motorcross rear tire tube. weight around 5 kg only. But combine the suspension workout with the bag workout.. man... you can really feel it working your core muscles and your grips. Still have another tube to use, this one came from small car/lorry tires.. this one maybe can make a 10 kgs bag, but at the moment I'm so loving the straps and bodyweight workout that I don't have the time to make one yet. Will post a pic of the bag later.

Just a simple knot at the end of the straps. or you can tie a bunch of cloth or something at the end of it so the straps don't get pull through between the door and the frame. I'm 100 kg and the set up is doing fine (hopefully remains so.. ) Will take pictures later tonight.

As promised hackwire, here is how I anchor to the door..




This is the knot on the anchor straps. A simple knot, nothing special.. its purpose is to make the end bigger than the space between the door and the door frame so the anchor does not slip through.

Here is how to put it on.



I'll be pulling the the straps from the side where the door close, thus all the force from the pulling is spread onto the side frame instead of just on the door latch/knob if I were to pull from the other side.

Once you put the anchor on top, pull the door to close. Then pull the anchor tight until you feel the knot is stuck on the other side.

Here is a picture of how the knot on the anchor get stuck and stop the anchor from slipping through.



Well that's about it. By the way, using separate anchor for each suspension straps and setting them up at about shoulder width apart allow the row/pull up exercise to mimick real pull up better as when you lean back, the hand is straighten at shoulder width apart. If using one anchor only, the hands will be close together as the handles are pulled until it is side by side.. Thus pull up becomes more like rowing.

On another note, here is a picture of my Bulgarian bag.

Was thinking of that too.. but not an option for me, as still renting and the agent and landlord are really against any drilling. So I do mellow down the workout when doing it indoor. I only go all out when outdoor (anchor to top of swing sets) as that is when I do my full workout. At home more of active recovery (except sometimes when getting pump up already, I still go all out too).

For the bag I use scrambler motor tube.. but actually not big enough.. so I just fill an extra portion of the tube and stick it to the main. That's why if you look closely you can see lots of blue duct tape holding those two together. Weight about 5 kilos.

just search for "Suspension trainer or TRX exercise/workout" in youtube.

Agree with you hackwire that most of the exercise using suspension strap can be done without using one or using other things you normally find at the gym.

However, for me it is still practical even though I don't always go to hotels or jungle. At home, I can't put barbell and dumbells when I can easily reach without posing a risk to my 3 small children. But I guess most importantly is that I prefer bodyweight exercise. However I can't do pull ups at all before. Thus, I got the rope/straps and it helps me play with leverage in working up to full pull ups. And now after about 1-2 month I'm halfway there... hehehe.

But yeah, it is not a necessity to have the straps (except for the pull ups for me), it is more of a convenience to have as an aid to my workout routine.

Used to have them laying around and my kid almost crush his foot. So, now my benchpress mini gym, barbell, ezy bar and dumbbell are all in the store now, tuck away from the kids. Would make me some money if I sell them now. But I figure better keep it for later use. As with steel prices going up, it would cause heaps more to repurchase later.

By the way, what's the weight of your bulgarian bag? Must be quite heavy as you used lorry tube. Post a picture of it hackwire.

Fuhh.. red handle.. striking man.. good job hackwire. The sand I collected is damp now. Hopefully once the weather is finer, the sand is dry and I'll make the heavier bag.

harris92, your picture flip left to right is it.. all the ads written terbalik man.. jealous of your home gym.

If you get Men's Fitness (UK Edition) issue Nov 2011, can see gym around the world that use DIY equipment. Got barbell using rough iron rod with car rims/tyre used as the weight plate and also got punching bag that is actually an old refrigerator.

Nice one.... what is it that you use for the bar.. can't really see clearly..

This post has been edited by mareno77: Nov 18 2011, 07:54 PM