I thinking of buying some weight. What should a beginner start out with and what price range should I be looking at. I'm also gonna look for a folding bench.
Have you thought about finding a good gym? In my experience gyms are better for beginners for a variety of reasons, the least of which is that you can see what others are doing.
Or, you could consider going to a gym for a workout or two and seeing how much weight you can typically lift, and then buy accordingly. You might try getting the type that let you can add and remove weight plates so that you have more versatility and can do a variety of different exercises.
I'm a big fan of the Power cage / Bench / Oly set combination. Mine set me back around £600. I live in London too, so you'd be looking at the same sort of prices. You'll need a separate room to keep them in, they take up a fair bit of space so make sure you have room for them first. Also, I'm intrigued - what do you mean by a folding bench?
I am with CF on this. Also, make sure that your floor is able to support the weights, the cage, and you! No sense loading 1/2 a ton of weights, bars, bench and stuff if your wooden floor won't support it.
* I already go to a gym and do some weights (dumbells mainly) but my membership expires in a few months and I don't think I'm gonna renew it since I got a great deal with a corprate membership (£400 off!). Might try the uni gym though. * Not looking for a massive/expensive set right now as I don't have the finds or room but I'm thinking of building it up. Gonna look at getting a set of dumbells first so any recommendation on brand/type etc. * 'Folding bench' as in a bench that folds up Something like this:
In the U.S. we have tons of used sports equipment shops. You can get DB's for about a dollar a pound (New) and cheaper if you don't mind hand-me-downs. I would recommend adjustable DB's with locking collars. Something that can handle more then your max DB weight fo each lift. It may mean spending time changing plates but it will be cheaper then buying one of the newer "Click-it" DB sets like Bow Flex sells.
For dumbells try Argos which sell york DB and BB sets for £50 http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3008250.htm And if you need more weights http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/0104157.htm Or alternitavely try Tesco, yes Tesco. I walked in to get lunch when I was on brake and saw a section with reasonably priced weights and even supplements. Weights http://direct.tesco.com/q/N.1999319/Nr.99.aspx You can buy the weights and bars separatein your nearest store. Supps http://direct.tesco.com/q/N.1999326/Nr.99.aspx
Ha ha! OK, got ya. It's just that "folding bench" made me think of some rickety thing that might collapse under a bit of weight. If you're pushed for space and funds, there's still an enormous amount you can do with dumbells, so you'd not be wasting your time getting just them. You might want to consider getting a chinning bar as well.
