DIY Network

Extras: What About My Needs? From "Blueprint for Home Building" episode DBHB-210

In this first segment of the "Indoor and Outdoor Extras" episode, host Jeff Wilson explores some extra living spaces, such as a media room, workshop and how to pick out the perfect home gym.

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	In this week's episode host Jeff Wilson discusses indoor and outdoor extras for your new home.
	The media room is quickly becoming the most popular area of any new home.

Media Room

The idea of having areas in your new house that are exclusive for particular activities is extremely important and any new homeowner. Building your own house allows you the opportunity to add rooms that reflect your personal taste.

One consideration that has become popular is a media room. This could be the getaway to enjoy your favorite music, television shows or movies. What would be the best location for this room? Certainly you want to put it in a quieter area of the home because you don't want interference from children trampling overhead or anything that would decrease the pleasure you would get out of your own media room. Usually if there is a basement that you can put it in that works out best for sound. Another interesting option to put a media room is above the garage because it's totally isolated from the rest of the house.

You definitely want to have it big enough to put your speakers and the big screen in if you want. To get the best quality sound, consider the acoustic qualities of the room that will keep bass levels in an optimum range. Bass is what travels most, which means you may not necessarily hear the movie -- but you are going to hear that bass sound throughout the house. The goal is to trap the bass.

Tip: What you want to do is isolate the room within a room so that it creates an air gap and based on that you won't have as much sound traveling through walls. And then you'll still need to treat the walls on the outside of the room as well as inside the room. Plush carpeting also helps to deaden the sound so it doesn't echo too much.

Workshop

Another common inclusion in new homes today is the workshop, which is usually "part" of the house design. It's important to have a dedicated space where you can work because it isn't always convenient to work outside.

Note: Much like a media room, loud noises made in a workshop can be deadened with insulation.

Organization and good storage (figure A) are vital to any quality workshop, which means cabinets are extremely important, especially if you want to keep your tools dust-free.

Workshops have also become a popular staple in new homes today.

Figure A

	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D

Play Space

While a workshop is a functional workspace, some rooms are meant to be just a play space. For example, an Old West antique saloon (figure B) is what homeowner Lynn Underwood and his wife desired. "One of the things that I wanted to have when I was building [this] house is a saloon. We don't do a lot of drinking or anything like that, but we thought as our kids get older, this would be a perfect place for them to have a party."

While some extras are for your enjoyment, others are good for your health. Many people today are putting home gyms (figure C) right next to master bedrooms so they can have access to the master bath. But some designers suggest to clients that they build the gym a little further away from the bedroom because it can be noisy. Convenience is important, but it's also vital to consider the noise levels.

Here are some things to keep in mind when planning your gym:

• Have a lots of mirrors.

• Different kinds of flooring for the varied exercise equipment -- from carpeting to resistant rubber flooring.

• Air circulation is another vital issue. Temperature wise air circulation is really an important ingredient. You need the air circulation for positive pressure and a sense of coolness.

• No matter how elaborate your gym plan becomes, it's crucial to have good security to keep the expensive products safe. The security systems (figure D) themselves can range from motion detectors to window protectors to door detectors.

Did You Know? -- According to USA Weekend magazine, finishing out a basement can add one-third more space to a two-story house and you can recoup about 80 percent of your costs when you sell the home.

One of the most beneficial "extras" you can add to your home is a workout room.

Web Extra: The Importance of Exercise

Exercise improves your cardiovascular health, burns fat, defines muscle tone, boosts metabolism and energy levels, increases alertness, lifts your spirit and relieves stress. And those are only some of the benefits. Despite proven health correlations and lots of good intentions, many people continue to find excuses for not exercising. For some individuals, the gym or health club is the best place for working out since it offers so many exercise options and the added motivation of being surrounded by other health-conscious individuals. For others, the difficulty of getting to the gym becomes the excuse for not working out at all. If cost or inconvenience is keeping you from getting to the gym, it's time you looked into ways of getting exercise someplace that is readily accessible to you -- like your own home. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to do that.
When asked what kind of exercise is best, fitness expert Covert Bailey asserts (only half-facetiously) that the best workout is one that you will do. Whether your goal is strength-building, achieving a target heart rate, lowering your percentage of body fat -- or all of those -- it's imperative that you find a workout strategy that you can follow and enjoy. Perhaps setting up a home gym or settling upon a home-workout regimen may be the best way to ensure that exercise is a routine part of your life. With the right goals and information, and some self-motivation, you can become your own fitness trainer.

Weight Training

If you're considering weight training but you're new to the endeavor, it's important to seek the advice of a professional before you begin. Going about it the wrong way can be unproductive and even dangerous. If you don't have the means to hire a personal trainer, at least consult with an instructor at a gym or a representative at a retailer specializing in weight-training equipment. Belma Johnson talks with Steven Nace, weight-training specialist at Galyan's sports store, about some of the types of exercise equipment that are suitable for home use.

The basic weight bench is used for bench presses using free weights. The main objective with these exercises is building upper-body strength in the chest and arms. Some benches are adjustable so that they incline (which raises the head) for working the upper chest, or decline (so that the head is lowered) for working the lower chest. Many may also feature a leg-extension attachment for working the lower body. Sitting upright and lifting the weights upward by lifting and straightening your legs helps with building the quadriceps, while lying prone and lifting by bending your knees back helps with hamstrings.

The Total Gym is a multiple-exercise machine. It utilizes the body weight of the person using the machine rather than free weights or resistance weights. It is adjustable so that the user is utilizing as much as 65 percent -- or as little as 4 percent -- of his or her body weight while working. Exercises include such techniques as the butterfly for working the upper body. Since exercises on this machine aren't as rigorous as bench-pressing, for instance, this equipment is used mainly for toning. It is well suited for older individuals and beginners.

The Smith Machine is one of the best weight-training investments for use in a home gym since it provides the means for so many different kinds of exercise. It is a self-spotting machine, meaning that it allows the user to emulate the use of free weights without needing a second person present as a spotter. The barbell travels on tracks and has a safety catch that supports the weight when it's not in use. It also has safety stops that would prevent the weights from falling in the event that the user lost control of the bar. It comes equipped with a dumbbell set and rack as well as a curls attachment for exercises such as preacher curls, an ideal technique for building biceps.

A weight-lifting belt is an important safety accessory if you plan to do heavy weight-lifting or if you've ever had back problems. It keeps your lower back and spine aligned as you lift. Other accessories include weight-lifting gloves to help prevent getting calluses, and a wrist-wrap to give added hand, wrist and forearm stability when working out with heavy hand-weights.

Cardiovascular Training

For aerobic and cardiovascular workouts, a treadmill is an ideal addition to the home gym. The speed and incline are adjustable so that your workout can be made more or less strenuous. Used properly, treadmills provide exercise to both the upper and lower body.

Stationary bikes are also used for working on cardiovascular fitness and endurance. At many health clubs, "spinning" classes have become especially popular. Spinning is a timed workout (usually around 45 minutes in length) that takes place entirely on a stationary bike that has adjustable resistance. The spinning instructor takes the class through a "ride" that incorporates varying degrees of pedal resistance, thus emulating a bicycle ride that alternates between hill-climbing and flat-road sprints.

An elliptical trainer combines some of the benefits of a step machine, a treadmill and a stationary bike. It was designed to emulate the motion of cross-country skiing and is particularly beneficial to the quadriceps, hamstrings and calf muscles. One advantage of this machine is that it allows the user to use a backward-step motion. Though this movement feels unnatural at first, it is beneficial since it works muscle groups that don't ordinarily receive focused exercise.

In the next segment Jeff discusses how to extend the living area by using different options, such as a porch, patio or even a deck.

GUESTS :

Fred Samuels
Homeowner
426 New Hope Rd.
Rockwood, TN 37854
Phone: 865-354-0477

Lynn Underwood
Homeowner
3001 E. Wiley Lane
Vail, AZ 85641
E-mail: whiskey5alpha@yahoo.com

Skip Weahunt
Homeowner
E-mail: skip@ownerbuildercenter.com

Regina Zernay
CMTS, Inc.
Phone: 310-390-9558

Bob Miller
CMTS
E-mail: robertmillerpe@comcast.net

Andy Beasly
PO Box 214
Hillside, CO 81232

John Gilmore
President
Elite Custom Audio and Video
5505 Moreno St.
#104
Montclair, CA 91763
Phone: 909-931-2835
E-mail: john@elitecustomaudiovideo.com
Website: www.elitecustomaudiovideo.com

Huck DeVenzio
Manager, Marketing Communications
E-mail: cddevenzio@archchemicals.com

Mark Mardirossian
Genuine Construction Co.
1146 N. Central Ave.
#303
Glendale, CA 91202
Phone: 818-822-9677

Benjamin Clavan
Architect, AIA
E-mail: benjamic@earthink.net