My first piece of home fitness equipment was a resistance training tool. The store manager never called it that but that was essentially what it was. The name escapes me but what it was; a few springs with handles attached on the ends. You pulled it across the chest, which I believe was its main purpose. You could also step inside one of its handle with your foot and pull upward on the other handle similar to a bicep curl with a dumbbell.
Today buying home fitness equipment similar to that piece from my youth might be a resistance band, although the bands are more versatile. And the best part is that exercise bands are inexpensive. They come in various resistance levels, more portable and less quiet.
Buying that first piece of home exercise equipment set me on a path to purchase more. Back then there weren’t the kinds of gyms and health facilities we have today. So purchasing small hand weights and a single metal bar that one could slip on various weights were commonly used at home. Chin up bars was another inexpensive piece of equipment. All you needed was a door frame you could attach the spring loaded bar to and viola you had an area to do chin ups. Pretty basic stuff but it worked.