Building a complete home gym doesn't necessarily mean buying a room full of equipment. With the right setup, you can train virtually every major muscle group from one machine – and you can do it for under R40,000.
For many South Africans, creating a home gym is about convenience. No monthly gym membership, no travelling to and from the gym, no waiting for equipment, and the freedom to train whenever it suits you.
But there's one major question: what home gym equipment should you actually buy?
If your budget is around R40,000 and you want a comprehensive strength-training setup rather than collecting multiple individual machines, the Horizon Torus 5 Home Gym deserves serious consideration.
With an 80kg selectorised weight stack, more than 40 exercise options, an integrated leg press, Vertical Knee Raise station and multiple cable positions, it provides an impressive amount of training variety from one home gym system.
Can You Build a Complete Home Gym for Under R40,000?
Absolutely.
The key is spending your budget on versatility rather than simply buying as many individual pieces of equipment as possible.
A traditional free-weight home gym might require you to purchase a power rack, adjustable bench, Olympic barbell, weight plates, cable system and additional accessories separately.
That's an excellent option for some lifters, particularly those who enjoy barbell-based strength training.
But what if you want something simpler?
A quality multi gym for home combines numerous exercise stations into one system, allowing you to move between exercises quickly without constantly changing plates or moving equipment around.
At R39,999, the Horizon Torus 5 essentially gives you an entire strength-training station while keeping your total equipment investment below R40,000.
Meet the Horizon Torus 5 Home Gym
The Horizon Torus 5 is designed to provide full-body strength training from a single multi-station machine.
At the centre of the system is an 80kg selectorised weight stack. Instead of loading and unloading weight plates between exercises, you simply select your resistance and start training.
But the weight stack is only part of what makes this machine interesting.
The Torus 5 provides more than 40 exercise possibilities, allowing you to train your chest, back, shoulders, arms, legs and core.
That makes it an excellent option for anyone searching for a complete home gym setup in South Africa without wanting to purchase numerous standalone strength machines.
A Home Gym with a Leg Press
This is one of the standout features of the Torus 5.
Many compact multi gyms include a leg extension and leg curl but don't offer a proper leg press station.
The Horizon Torus 5 includes a dedicated leg press, giving you another major compound lower-body exercise without requiring a separate leg press machine.
Your lower-body training can therefore include exercises such as:
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Leg press
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Leg extensions
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Leg curls
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Calf-focused leg press movements
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Cable-based lower-body exercises
For someone looking to create a balanced full-body home gym, this considerably increases the versatility of the machine.
More Than 40 Exercises from One Home Gym
The biggest advantage of a multi gym is the ability to perform many exercises without constantly changing your setup.
With the Horizon Torus 5, your training options include chest presses, wide-arm presses and cable fly variations for your chest.
For your back, you can perform lat pulldowns and seated rows.
Shoulder, biceps and triceps exercises can be performed using the various cable positions and free-motion training arms.
Then you have your dedicated lower-body stations and additional abdominal and core-training options.
For most general fitness, muscle-building and strength-training goals, that's an enormous exercise selection from a single piece of home gym equipment.
Train Your Core with the Integrated VKR
Another particularly useful addition is the Vertical Knee Raise station, or VKR.
Core training is sometimes an afterthought when people build home gyms. The integrated VKR gives you a dedicated station for knee raises and abdominal exercises without requiring another standalone piece of equipment.
Combined with cable-based abdominal movements, this gives you multiple ways to incorporate core training into your programme.
Free-Motion Arms for Greater Exercise Variety
Traditional multi gyms sometimes have a reputation for restricting users to a handful of fixed exercises.
The Torus 5 takes a more versatile approach with its adjustable free-motion arms.
These expand the number of cable exercises you can perform and allow greater freedom when training different muscle groups.
Multiple high and low pulley positions further increase your exercise selection.
The system also includes useful attachments such as a lat bar, two free-motion arm straps, low-row bar, abdominal strap, ankle strap, chain and accessory hooks.
Is an 80kg Weight Stack Enough for a Home Gym?
For a large proportion of home gym users, an 80kg selectorised weight stack provides plenty of resistance for a wide range of exercises.
It's also important to remember that resistance doesn't feel identical across every movement.
You might use substantially more resistance for a leg exercise than you would for a triceps extension, lateral raise or cable fly.
The ability to quickly change resistance also makes selectorised equipment particularly convenient for couples or families sharing the same home gym.
Instead of unloading plates every time another person wants to train, simply move the selector and continue.
How Much Space Do You Need?
One of the most important considerations before purchasing any home gym setup is available floor space.
The Horizon Torus 5 measures approximately:
189cm long × 207cm wide × 204cm high
You'll want some additional clearance around the machine so you can comfortably access the different training stations.
Before ordering, measure your intended training area carefully – including ceiling height and the space required to move around the equipment.
Who Is This Home Gym Best For?
The Horizon Torus 5 is particularly well suited to someone who wants a convenient, comprehensive strength-training solution rather than building a collection of individual machines.
It can be an excellent option for:
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First-time home gym owners
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Families sharing one gym
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Couples who train together
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People who prefer selectorised resistance over loading plates
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Users wanting full-body strength training
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Anyone specifically wanting a home gym with a leg press
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People wanting plenty of exercise variety from one machine
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Home gym owners with a budget of approximately R40,000
More specialised powerlifters or Olympic weightlifters may still prefer a rack, barbell and free-weight setup. But for general strength, muscle building and overall fitness, the versatility of a multi gym is difficult to ignore.
Is a R40,000 Home Gym Worth the Investment?
Consider what you're actually getting for the money.
Instead of paying a monthly gym membership and travelling to a commercial gym every time you want to train, your equipment is available at home whenever you need it.
There's no waiting for a cable machine, no queue for the leg press and no opening or closing times.
More importantly, investing in one versatile machine means you don't necessarily need to purchase a separate chest press, lat pulldown, cable machine, leg extension, leg curl, leg press and VKR station.
They're incorporated into one system.
Build Your Home Gym with Fitness Breakthru
If you have a budget of under R40,000 for a home gym, the Horizon Torus 5 offers an impressive combination of exercise variety, convenience and space efficiency.
For R39,999, you get an 80kg selectorised weight stack, dedicated leg press, integrated VKR, free-motion training arms, multiple cable positions and more than 40 possible exercises.
The Horizon Torus 5 also comes with free nationwide delivery from Fitness Breakthru and a 3-year warranty when purchased with an installation voucher.
Whether your goal is building muscle, becoming stronger or simply staying fit without needing to travel to a commercial gym, a well-designed multi gym can provide the foundation for years of training.
If you're searching for the best complete home gym under R40,000 in South Africa, the Horizon Torus 5 should be firmly on your shortlist.
Explore the Horizon Torus 5 Home Gym from Fitness Breakthru and bring full-body strength training into your own home.
