Recently we made a purchase for a new addition in the home gym, also know as the living room. With us cancelling our gym membership I wanted to purchase some weights so that alongside working on my cardio on the exercise bike I could work on my weights and incorporate them into my workout routine.

With the situations of gyms opening and closing here in the UK finding the weights proved to be a struggle. I started looking around April time and didn't manage to pick any up until September  thanks to places not having any in stock, they certainly were an in demand item during the course of the UK lock downs. I eventually managed to find the Opti Vinyl barbell & dumbbell in the 25kg version available at my local Argos so that purchase was instantly made and I am so glad it was. This cost me just £29.99 and it was certainly a worth while purchase. 

The weight plates and the actual handles are made of a vinyl rather than the cast iron I had previously looked at and honestly they are still great quality. The grip you can get on the barbell is brilliant for what I use it for and I don't have to worry about slipping out of my hands which is definitely a worry I had before making the purchase. The dumbbell handles are great too as the weight plates are sat nicely away from where my grip is meaning they aren't running against my hands as I use them, there is plenty of width for all size hands for it to be comfortable. 

This is a 21 piece set with the bar, 2 no. dumbbell handles, 4 no. spinlocks for holding the weights in place and the rest is made up of weight plates. The heaviest plates are  2.5kg and the others are 1.25kg so this set is perfect for total beginners or those who are slowly trying to increase the weight load they are lifting. For me I have never been able to lift heavy weights so this is the perfect starting point for me. 

At the end of the barbell there is plenty of space for you to progress with the weight you are lifting so you are increasing up to the 25kg maximum load which is great for seeing progress. It is easy enough to add and remove the plates too so during your workout session you aren't going to have to spend ages increasing and decreasing the weight, it is just a nice easy change over. 

When I was a member at the gym I would avoid the weights area at all costs as I didn't want people judging me for not been able to lift much at all so now I can do weighted workouts in the comfort of my own home I am hoping to see progression in what I can lift and in my body. There is no more being uncomfortable or paranoid, I can lift my specific amount and in my own time. It is nice not just doing cardio all the time anymore and actually stepping out of my comfort zone. 

As this is my starting point for weights the £29.99 price tag is perfect for me as I wasn't breaking the bank if I didn't like it and I am in the weight range I needed to kick things off. It is definitely a base point for my progression and I will be happy to replace these when it comes to me needing to be above 25kg but for now these are more than good enough and I believe they will last me a while even when I am out of the 25kg bracket they wont go to waste. 

With it being made out of vinyl the price is cheap which is great this 25kg set was £29.99, the 35kg one is £39.99 and the 50kg one is £49.99. So no matter what weight range you are going to need to have your best weights work out without breaking the bank which is fantastic. 

If you are on the look out for some weights for your home gym definitely don't write this off especially if you are on a budget as they could really surprise you just like they have with me. I am really happy that I picked these up and I can't wait to use them a lot more often on my fitness journey.