Extra bedrooms, garages, and even detached mother-in-law suites make excellent home gym spaces. But, without a mirror, a home gym doesn’t feel as much like a real gym. Having a mirror in your home gym can instantly improve your workouts. They’re low maintenance, they make it easier to check your form, and they add value when you’re using the space for other purposes, too. A gym mirror can often be intimidating but for some athletes—like dancers—mirrors are a non-negotiable part of your home workout space.
If you’re ready to take your home gym to the next level, it’s time to install a mirror. Custom mirrors are often the best fit for a garage gym or other space at home. If you’re prioritizing home projects, a gym is often a great place to start. After your workout space is complete with a giant reflective surface, you might even be more motivated to throw on your gym clothes and pump some iron.
Woman using a modern elliptical machine at home
#1 Mirrors Can Motivate You
Working out in front of a mirror can motivate you to push yourself further and work out for longer states the Bar Method. Seeing your reflection during a workout provides a visual stimulant to focus on. Tracking your own movement and monitoring your form maintains your attention more than an empty wall or a motivational poster you’ve read a hundred times.
As much as we might hate to admit it, we like seeing ourselves in the mirror—that is, when we like what we see. Working out in front of a mirror doesn’t have to make you cringe!
We don’t want to watch ourselves shuffle lazily on a treadmill, but we do want to see a motivated, athletic individual. If you can see what you look like while exercising, you may be more inclined to perform at your peak. Plus, after regularly seeing yourself dripping with sweat during the endorphin rush at the height of a workout, you’ll start to associate your own beet-red face with the satisfaction of physical exercise.
Checking his form in mirror
#2 Mirrors Help You Check Your Form
Mirrors are the best possible tool to check your form says Psychology Today. Even if you have a personal trainer adjusting your form, being able to visually confirm your perfect stance has a variety of benefits:
- You’ll be able to recreate the right form during subsequent workouts when a trainer may not be present. After a while, your body will start to remember proper technique even without a mirror in front of you.
- Maintaining good form is essential to prevent injuries.
- Good form allows you to get the most out of your set by working all of the intended muscle groups for that exercise.
A home gym mirror can be a great addition to your fitness routine and provide many of the same perks a live class would. Mirrors also help you maintain your balance during bodyweight exercises to ensure that your gains are symmetrical.
Mirror in home gym
#3 Mirrors Make Spaces Feel Bigger
Gym Crafter agrees that while mirrors have functional benefits during your workout, they also provide an aesthetic boon to your home gym space: they make the room look and feel bigger than it actually is. If you have the wall space, a workout mirror is such a great solution.
If your home gym is in the smallest room of the house, a mirror visually doubles the size of the room and can encourage greater freedom of movement. It also reflects any sunlight or artificial light to brighten the room, and subsequently, brighten your mood. Exercising in a room that makes you happy—rather than a cramped, dimly lit dungeon—will likely increase the duration and frequency of your workouts.
Mirror leaned against a wall.
#4 Mirrors Provide Versatility
Unless you have a room in your house that’s used as a dedicated gym and nothing else, you’re likely entering the space for various purposes here and there. Mirrors are practical, aesthetic additions for more than just home gyms, so the room can be used for other functions:
- A mirror is the perfect getting-ready space, whether you and your partner do your makeup at the same time before work or you’re inviting friends over for an evening out. If you only have one bathroom, a mirror might just save the day.
- Mirrors can be useful for other hobbies. Singers, for instance, often rehearse in front of a mirror to maintain good posture and practice facial expressions for a performance.
- Mirrors are a compelling visual design element. If you need to temporarily convert your home gym back into a guest bedroom, a mirror will add a nice stylistic touch.
Mirrors aren’t only helpful or appropriate in gyms. Adding a mirror to your home workout space improves the room’s versatility. A mirror might not be a piece of workout equipment that would come to mind first, but it certainly is an excellent investment, especially if you’re into yoga or strength training and proper form.
Turn your bedroom into a home gym with a mirror
#5 Mirrors Provide Physical Reference Points
Some athletes require enhanced awareness of their surrounding space while they work out. Dancers, for instance, need to be aware of how much space they’ve left for the other dancers on stage, even when they’re practicing alone. Boxers can see exactly where their punches would land on their imaginary opponent.
Mirrors allow you to observe the space around you, making you more attuned to the range of your movements. For dancers, gymnasts, contact sports athletes, and countless others, this spatial awareness is crucial to a successful workout.
#6 Mirrors Can Serve as Whiteboards
Unless you have a photographic memory, you likely depend on some written version of your setlist when you work out, especially if you’re a weightlifter.
By writing your setlist on the mirror in front of you, you can leave the distractions at the door, like your cell phone. This will keep you from breaking focus, taking unnecessary breaks between sets, and getting sidetracked by text messages and emails.
Plus, if your home gym doubles as a home office, your mirror can easily become a giant brainstorming surface for presentations, pitches, sketches, and more.
Easy to clean mirror
#7 Mirrors Are Low Maintenance
As far as wall treatments go, mirrors are a low-maintenance and durable material choice:
- Mirrors are easily attached to the wall with high-grade adhesives, preventing them from falling off.
- Mirrors are easily wiped clean with glass cleaner and are stain-resistant.
- Mirrors don’t fade or require touch-ups, unlike paint and wallpaper.
If you do handstands or push-ups against the wall as a part of your workout, you’ll love the utility of a wall mirror. Say goodbye to dirty marks on the wallpaper.
Great home gym with mirrors
#8 Mirrors Add Value to Your Home Gym
As home gyms and home office spaces become increasingly common, more potential homebuyers have these spaces on their list of non-negotiables. If you sell your home in the future, you can always market an extra bedroom as a home gym. But, with a mirror wall, it’s a much more convincing sell.
Dedicated home gyms, office spaces, dens, and craft rooms all increase the value of a home, and a home gym with a mirror wall will almost certainly provide a return on your investment. If you got a little too amped up during that last workout and for some reason, your gym mirror is damaged, it’s definitely a home repair to make before selling.
Glass Guru: Your #1 Source for Home Gym Mirrors
What’s not to like about home gym mirror? They’re practical, aesthetically pleasing, and versatile. Working out in front of a mirror can elevate your workouts and a mirror can aesthetically add a new level of sophistication to your home gym.
If you’re ready to take your home gym to the next level, the experts at Glass Guru can design and install the perfect mirror wall for your workout space. With custom sizing and installation, adding a mirror to your home gym is a breeze. Take the first step towards an elevated home gym experience by requesting a free estimate.
