Okay, so, I’ve been wanting to revamp my home gym floor for, like, forever. The concrete was just so…blah. And cold! I decided on that rubber volleyball maple assembled wooden flooring, you know, the kind that looks like real wood but has that nice, bouncy give?

Getting Started

First, I measured the whole gym area. Twice. You gotta be sure, right? Then, I ordered the flooring online. I went with the “maple” look because it just seemed brighter and more inviting.

The Prep Work

When the boxes arrived, that’s when the real fun began. Before I could even think about laying down the new floor, I had to prep the existing concrete. I cleaned it super thoroughly, sweeping and then mopping with some heavy-duty cleaner. Any little bumps or debris could mess things up, so I was pretty meticulous about it. I even filled in a few small cracks with concrete patch. Gotta make sure it’s a smooth base, you know?

Laying the Floor

The flooring itself is this interlocking system. Think giant puzzle pieces! I started in one corner, laying down the first piece and then just clicking the next one into place. It was surprisingly easy, though my knees did start to complain after a while.

• Tip: a rubber mallet helps to tap the pieces together for a nice, tight fit. I learned that the hard way.

I had to cut some pieces to fit around the edges and a couple of weird corners. Used a utility knife for that – scored it a few times and then just snapped it. Easy peasy.

Finishing Touches

Once all the main pieces were down, I installed these edge pieces. They give it a nice, finished look and prevent tripping. Those just snapped into place, too. And that was pretty much it!

Honestly, it took me a whole weekend, but it was totally worth it. My home gym looks so much better now, and the floor feels amazing underfoot. It’s so much more comfortable for workouts, and it even seems to absorb sound better. Plus, it just looks so much nicer than that plain old concrete. If you’re thinking about doing something similar, I say go for it! Just make sure you have some knee pads handy.