The 11 Best Pieces of Exercise Equipment for Small Spaces, According to a Tiny-Living Pro

Not to brag, but I'm pretty good at making the most of small living spaces. After seven years living in apartments in New York City and New Jersey, my husband and I spent a year living in a 24-foot camper: 200 square feet of living space — including bathroom, bed, kitchen appliances, sofa and gym.

Needless to say, I only had space for compact exercise equipment that could easily be stashed away in a cabinet or the small nooks and crannies we used as storage spots. I became quite familiar with space-saving workout equipment.

For me, the best at-home workout equipment is and has always been equipment that's small, compact and takes up as little space as possible. Of course, it has to be effective, too.

If you're in the market for exercise equipment for small spaces, I've got you. Below are 11 pieces of equipment that will help you reach your fitness goals without taking up a ton of space. I selected these pieces based on:

• Size
  
• Features
• Price
• User reviews
• Personal experience

Mini loop resistance bands are the ultimate in space-saving exercise equipment. They take up virtually no space and weigh next to nothing, yet make for a really effective workout.

Resistance bands can be used for warming up before a workout, activating small muscles, building strength if you're new to resistance training and adding an extra challenge to certain exercises (think: hip thrusts and squats).

Even if you have a lot of space, you should keep a set of these small-but-mighty bands on hand. This particular set comes with five different bands of varying resistances, so you can pick the best one for each exercise.

A jump rope is an excellent option when it comes to space-saving exercise equipment — and will give you an awesome cardio workout. The problem is, not all small spaces have enough room for the rope to freely swing.

Whether your ceiling is too low or you just don't have enough space in the front and back for the rope to clear without hitting something, a cordless rope is a great alternative. The weights on the end of the handles are half a pound each, which helps mimic the feel and flow of turning an actual rope.

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No weight rack? No problem. One set of these adjustable dumbbells takes the place of 15 different sets of weights. They start at 5 pounds and go up to 52.5 pounds each, turning the dial to change the weight. When you're done, put the weights back in the dock and tuck them away.

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Some of the best workout equipment for small spaces is equipment that folds. It's not easy to find a folding treadmill that lets you increase the speed and incline to match your average gym treadmill, which is why this model from Echelon is so impressive.

Not only does it go up to 12 MPH and incline level 12, it also folds up automatically with the press of a button. Built-in wheels make it easy to lift and roll it back and forth from its storage spot to wherever you want to use it.

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When it comes to choosing exercise equipment for small spaces, you might want to consider aesthetics. Bala fitness equipment is design-forward and meant to be on display.

This ring can be used for lots of different exercises, and it actually looks cool propped up against your sofa or even hanging on your wall. We're not going to go so far as to say it doubles as home decór, but it's certainly not an eyesore.

You can choose between a 5-, 8-, 10- or 15-pound ring, or there's also a set that comes with a 10-, 8- and 5-pound weight.

If you're not into adjustable dumbbells, a compact weight stand can help you store your free weights without taking up a lot of floor space.

This one is slim and has a lot of space to line up your weights, and most styles of dumbbells (neoprene, metal, hex) fit on it. Steel construction makes it durable, so you don't have to worry about your weights banging it up and damaging it.

A floor pad with built-in anchors makes it easy to use this kit for any resistance band exercises you can think of. The set also comes with a door anchor for moves like lat pulldowns and chest flys and a bar for squats. When you're done, fold and pack it up into its compact carrying case.

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Hanging a full-on boxing bag is a true space commitment. If you can't, this easy-to-install (and take back down) punching bag is a great alternative — all you need is a door.

The bag mounts inside the door frame using tension rods — no drilling required — and is engineered to be extra quiet. It also comes with a sensor and syncs to an app, where you can take a mix of on-demand and live boxing workouts and track your punches.

Tonal packs an entire gym-worth of equipment into one unit that mounts onto your wall. The digital weight system allows you to lift up to 200 pounds with its smart cable system — no need to actually store 200 pounds of free weights in your small space.

The device features a huge touchscreen display, tracks your workouts in real time and uses motion sensors to analyze and correct your form.

Trainers often don't recommend adjustable kettlebells, because many of the options out there aren't shaped like actual kettlebells. The adjustable ones end up feeling wonky and hard to swing like you would a normal kettlebell.

The beauty of this one is that it's made of solid steel and shaped like a normal kettlebell, so you won't have to do anything weird with your form to compensate for the different shape.

To change the weight, open up the back of the bell and slide one of the weighted cylinders in or out. Choose from 24, 28, 32 or 36 pounds. Because the weight goes in the middle, the weight distribution stays properly balanced.

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Sometimes you just want to sit on a bike and get some cardio in without having to leave the house. While a full-size, at-home stationary bike would be awesome, people with small spaces know that it's unrealistic to dedicate that room to a bike full-time.

This bike folds up easily, so you can store it vertically. It's relatively lightweight, at just about 40 pounds, and has wheels so that you can easily tip it over and roll it. The frame can be adjusted to either an upright or recumbent bike, depending on what you prefer, and the magnetic resistance has 10 different levels to choose from.