With home gyms, protecting the subfloor is of paramount importance. The last thing you want is to put a floorboard through or crack the concrete.

Home gym flooring should be substantial enough to absorb impacts for the activities you perform, so the flooring required for a treadmill is very different to the flooring needed for a free weight zone. Such is the variety of life!

Here are the different types of home gym flooring available:

Solid or sprung?

A home gym floor can be solid or sprung. Solid means the flooring is installed directly on top of the subfloor (such as concrete). Sprung means the floor is built up with boarding, which is the best way to isolate sound and vibration.

Most home gyms go down the solid route because it is cheaper, but you may need to have a sprung floor depending on subfloor condition. A sprung floor is always needed when the subfloor is uneven and damaged. Alternatively, it can be leveled.

Interlocking tiles

Interlocking tiles are made from either EPDM rubber or high-density EVA foam. Foam is only suitable for light activities like yoga zones. For treadmills and weight zones, you need rubber tiles that are 10mm to 15mm thick.

• EPDM rubber: Ideal for heavy activities (e.g. free weights)
• EVA foam: Ideal for light activities (e.g. yoga)

Thicker interlocking tiles are needed for weights heavier than 40kg. We recommend 20mm to 40mm interlocking tiles for very heavy work.

Rubber matting

Rubber matting is thinner than floor tiles, but it offers a seamless look which many people prefer. Also, rubber matting is available in a variety of finishes, including smooth, studded, ribbed and bubble, providing lots of grip underfoot.

We recommend rubber matting as an all-purpose home gym flooring solution. The thickness for a home gym should be 3mm to 6mm.

3mm to 6mm matting is suitable for general use. You can use thicker weight lifting mats for heavy zones, such as an 18mm ring step mat.

Rubber exercise mats

A popular choice in garages with a concrete floor, rubber exercise mats give you a simple home gym without covering the floor up. You just place rubber mats over areas of use, such as treadmills and weight lifting benches.

Rubber mats protect the floor where they are placed, but they offer no protection to naked areas so accidents could damage the floor. As a cheap and easy solution, this idea works but it offers the least protection overall.