The Gray Matter Lab – V4

Last updated on January 11th, 2024 at 12:09 pm

Well, I’m finally publishing the The Gray Matter Lab – V4 to align with what I’m actually using in the gym. And this time, the update didn’t require me to break anything or a hospital trip. So we are getting better! Version 4 is all about transitions. My daughter is here and being her 8 month old self. Work is doing its thing as I move into a 50/50 work from home split. And the gym received some awesome upgrades and a much needed facelift. Lets take a look.

Pre-Read

If you haven’t read Pilot Testing yet, start there. Then hit up in order… V1 … V2 … and V3.

The Gray Matter Lab – V4 – Paint, Putty, Perfection!

For a long time one of the biggest thorns in my side was the lack of consistency in the color scheme. This was due to an ever changing layout as I was adding things pretty frequently, as well as the fact that the walls had never been painted. Drywall tends to do weird things when left untreated, so some of it had faded, some had the tape falling off, etc. It all led to a garage gym that looked like it was in a garage. Not horrible, but my cup-of-tea is clean, polished, and presentable.

So when I started tinkering around with the concept of reorganizing the gym I figured if I did it, I was going FULL reorg. Once I did my test runs and determined that the equipment would fit where I wanted, I went for it. Stuff came off the walls, I ordered my Wall Control pegboards, bought new shelves, more paint, plenty of putty, and got to work. Filling all the random holes, dents, dings, and what not was a pain. The prep work is always the worst.

The coolest part about this reorg process was that everything just seemed to fit perfectly. I managed to not make any sacrifices in how things were laid out in my head. Items sat flush, fit in corners, up on walls, etc. And they looked GOOD. Walls got painted, seems were puttied, things got sanded, and they looked GOOD. I even managed to “hide” the wiring for all my electronics, which makes me very happy. Nothing worse than loose wiring all over the place.

Several rounds of putty and paint later, and I’m very happy with what the gym looks like now.

Upgrades and More!

I was in the market for some new cable attachments and snagged some MAG Grips. They were so awesome I dropped almost every other attachment and bought two more. I grabbed my last Edge Fitness Systems bar, the cambered squat bar, and then made a few small changes in terms of a new landmine, some new shoes, and of course my new dumbbells. The Wall Control pegboards I mentioned earlier were a huge upgrade over the standard home depot lot, and they hold EVERYTHING in place.

Any changes?

If I did it again, I’d likely take a week off the gym and just plow through it. Take everything out, tape, prep, cover the floor, etc. And just go for it. Then throw it all back in. I tried to workout and clean, prep, paint, etc. That was hard. It worked, but I ended up cleaning way more often, making more of a mess, and having half-assed workouts. Live and learn.

Whats Next?

I managed to snag some more dumbbells, a dumbbell rack, and a few odds and ends to move into V4.1. That is really all I’m looking at right now. The Gray Matter Lab – V4 is likely where we will stay in this house. There is no more room. So this is the “ending” point in terms of large scale changes. Doesn’t mean I won’t find little stuff, upgrades, etc. But I’m not imagining my gym will change much in future years.

Wrap Up

Of course I was wrong, and here is V5.

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