Home gyms are popular for their convenience and long-term cost-effectiveness. Some athletes and fitness enthusiasts have built home gyms that rival commercial facilities. UK powerlifter Tony Cliffe, two-time International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) Classic World Champion in the 120KG class, takes a more minimalist approach.
Cliffe’s setup focuses on the essentials, primarily free weights, to hone his skills in the sport’s core lifts: barbell squat, bench press, and deadlift.
Recently, Cliffe showcased his garage gym in Lancashire, England, which features his medals, trophies, training equipment, and even guinea pigs.
[Related: John Haack Bench Presses 501 Pounds 6 Weeks out From the 2025 Ghost Clash III]
Tony Cliffe’s Home Gym Equipment
Below are Cliffe’s training equipment and accessories in his garage gym:
Power Rack
Cliffe trains in a power rack rather than a combo rack because he feels that combo racks lack the safety and reliability of a well-equipped power rack. He has owned the power rack secured to his wall since 2017. Bolting it to the wall in his current space requires drilling into brick. Instead, to ensure safety, Cliffe placed 110-pound (50-kilogram) weights on each rack side to keep it stable.
The rack features what he calls “meaty safeties” on both sides, designed to withstand heavy loads. Cliffe shared that these safeties have successfully supported as much as 882 pounds (400 kilograms) during lifting mishaps.
Weight Plates
Cliffe owns numerous 110-pound (50-kilogram) weight plates. “At the time, I was like, ‘How am I going to get enough weights in the gym and not spend an absolute fortune?’ They’re crappy cast iron plates. I have weighed them all. They weigh 50 kilos (110 pounds),” Cliffe said.
Accessories
The accessories in Cliffe’s gym include:
- Weightlifting Belt
- Weightlifting Chalk: helps improve grip strength. Chalk on the weight bench helps prevent slipping.
- Wrist Straps: help reinforce grip.
- Weight Bench
- Knee Sleeves: protect and provide warmth and compression to the knee joints.
Accessories like these significantly improve kinematics, reduce perceived exertion, and optimize timing during deadlifts. (1)
Other Garage Gym Features
Cliffe’s garage gym serves a dual purpose: housing his fitness equipment and other items, including a tiger canvas, guinea pigs, and trophies and medals.
Tiger Canvas
Cliffe has a striking tiger canvas displayed in his gym, acquired during solo training. “That represented the lone tiger in the jungle,” Cliffe explained of the right mindset to motivate his training.
Guinea Pigs
Cliffe’s daughter’s two guinea pigs, Henry and Harrison, spend the winter in the gym, keeping him company during training sessions. “Harrison often comes out to eat, then sits in a corner, poking his head up to watch me train,” Cliffe shared. Adding a personal touch to his gym, Cliffe keeps a framed photo of himself and his wife on their wedding day.
Trophies and Medals
Over the years, Cliffe has collected many powerlifting accolades, displayed in his gym:
- British Equipped in 2011 — Best Lifter
- 2013 East Midlands Unequipped Powerlifting Championships — 3rd Place
- 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022 Peter Fiore Memorial Trophy — Best Lifter of British Classic
- 2021 British Open Classic Championship
Most of Cliffe’s medals are stored in what he calls the “Sheffield box,” though a select few are displayed in his home gym:
- European Powerlifting Federation Open Men’s 120KG category
- 2024 World Classic Lithuania
- 2022 World Games
- 2023 Malta
Storage
Cliffe keeps a box filled with memories that document his powerlifting journey. Inside are old knee and wrist wraps, a pair of squat shoes he wore during his first World Games win, weightlifting belts, suits, and shirts—sentimental items he no longer uses.
More Powerlifting Content
- Russel Orhii’s Daily Bulking Macros to Move to 93KG Weight Class
You Might Be Doing Turkish Get-Ups Wrong
- The Guide to Arm Training for Powerlifters
Reference
- Fong, S. S. M., Chung, L. M. Y., Gao, Y., Lee, J. C. W., Chang, T. C., & Ma, A. W. W. (2022). The influence of weightlifting belts and wrist straps on deadlift kinematics, time to complete a deadlift and rating of perceived exertion in male recreational weightlifters: An observational study. Medicine, 101(7), e28918. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000028918
Featured image: @tmcpower on Instagram
