I absolutely love my bumpers from The Strength Co. The 45s are much slimmer than normal crumb rubber plates, and they mix and match well with my iron 45s.

The button style mats made my northern rubber are the best mats in the business. At The Strength Co. we sell these in 2x2 squares making them easily shippable and moveable in your home gym.

I have seven of these in my Costa Mesa gym and I’m a huge fan. They’re 10 years in and still running strong. The footprint is small, but you’re not squatting in a silo. You can also put it on a 4x8 deadlift platform, and when it’s time to deadlift, just remove the safeties and pull inside the rack if you’re tight on space.

Nothing says “you’re about to do something productive” like walking into a gym with the Massenomics Certified Training Facility banner flying as proudly as Old Glory did when Francis Scott Key decided to write a banger. It’s a signal: barbells live here, chalk is encouraged, and nobody’s handing you a pizza to celebrate cardio. And like the Edmund Fitzgerald—this thing isn’t here for decoration. It’s a marker for a place built for work, not vibes. If the banner’s up, the standard’s up: show up, lift heavy, earn it.

Why this bar stays on the floor at The Strength Co (Costa Mesa): * Knurl: enough bite to hold onto the work set, not enough to sandblast new hands off the bone. * 28.5mm shaft: smaller hands can actually hook grip like adults; big hands still pull just fine. * Zinc: my favorite too—resists rust, feels good, and it ages with the lifter instead of turning into a science project.

The button style mats made my northern rubber are the best mats in the business. At The Strength Co. we sell these in 2x2 squares making them easily shippable and moveable in your home gym.