Whether or not you have a gym membership, having a few pieces of exercise equipment at home can be handy in situations where leaving home to Exercise is not feasible. As a matter of fact, you don't need a lot of equipment and space in order to have productive workouts at home. With a few versatile pieces you can exercise right in your living room.

When choosing exercise equipment for home there are a few factors to consider:

- Cost of purchase and maintenance

- Ease of assembly

- Space requirement for use and storage

- Versatility

- Portability

The ideal fitness gadgets for home are:

- Affordable to buy and maintain

- Easy to assemble

- Space-saving and easy to store when not in use

- Versatile

- Portable

Based on the above criteria, these four fitness gadgets fit the bill:

Suspension trainer

The suspension trainer is one of the most versatile and portable pieces of fitness equipment that can be used to train every major muscle group in addition to being a great tool for balance and flexibility exercises. It can even be used for cardio. One of its best features is the ability to adjust the resistance of exercises by slightly modifying one's position in relation to the anchor point.

Affordability:

A suspension trainer can be purchased online for $25+. Other than regular inspection, no maintenance is required.

Assembly:

Normally a suspension trainer can be assembled in a few minutes. Prior to use the suspension trainer has to be anchored to a suitable object, which can usually be done in seconds.

Space requirement:

A suspension trainer can be attached to a closed door (with door attachment), or a pull-up bar securely attached to a wall or ceiling. For most exercises the space required is no larger than a rolled out exercise mat.

When not in use the suspension trainer easily folds into a carrying bag.

Versatility:

The suspension trainer is one of the most versatile exercise tools. In terms of exercise versatility it is arguably the piece of exercise equipment that will give you the most bang for your buck.

Portability:

Being made from nylon rope, the device itself is relatively lightweight and can easily be transported in a carrying bag. Installing and uninstalling can be done in a few seconds.

Stability Ball, aka. Swiss ball or exercise ball

The stability ball is an inexpensive tool that can be used not only for numerous exercises, but also as a substitute for an exercise bench in many cases.

Affordability:

A stability ball can be purchased in stores and online for $10 and up. A pump is usually included. Other than regular inspection, the only maintenance needed is occasional topping up of air.

Assembly:

The ball will need to be inflated prior to use.

Space requirement:

A stability ball does not require much space for most exercises. The most significant downside to the Swiss ball is that it takes up a considerable amount of space when stored. If space is an issue, it can be deflated between uses.

Versatility:

The Swiss ball is incredibly versatile and can be used for exercises targeting muscles in all parts of the body. It can also be useful in training balance and flexibility.

Portability:

A stability ball is rather large when pumped up, but when deflated it is easily folded for storage or transportation.

Pull-up bar

A great tool for training back, biceps and abs.

Affordability:

A door mounted pull-up bar can be purchased for about $20. Other than regular inspection, no maintenance is required.

Assembly:

The door frame version can be assembled in minutes. Wall and ceiling varieties usually come pre-assembled, but need to be permanently installed to a suitable wall or ceiling.

Space requirement:

A door-mounted bar can be installed in a door frame in seconds. When not in use it can either be removed and stored without taking too much space, or left in place permanently if installed in a door frame without a door.

Versatility:

A pull-up bar can be used for pull-ups, chin-ups and a variety of hanging abdominal exercises. A bar that is permanently and securely screwed to a wall or ceiling can also be used to anchor a suspension trainer.

Portability:

A door mounted pull-up bar can be installed and removed in seconds, and easily stored when not in use.

Ab wheel

The ab wheel is the most specific of the equipment on this list, hence its name. But what it lacks in versatility it makes up for in specificity and intensity.

Affordability:

A standard ab wheel can be purchased for $11 and up. No maintenance is required aside from regular inspection.

Assembly:

Ab wheels are easy to assemble and do not need to be disassembled between uses.

Space requirement:

A space the size of a rolled out exercise mat is enough to use the ab wheel for its intended purpose. When stored the ab wheel takes up very little space.

Versatility:

There are multi-purpose ab wheels available, but the traditional kind is designed specifically with core training in mind.

Portability:Being that most ab wheels are fairly light and small they travel and store easily.

For the price of one month's gym membership you can perform countless exercises to target virtually every muscle in your body - on your own time and without having to leave your home.