By Ayesha Rehman
The luxury gym pod that arrived at The Block share house this season is an 8m x 2.4m SaltPod, designed and built by Elsewhere Pods.
It was craned over the fence line and set down on prepared footings beside the pool. Site disruption ran to a few hours. By that afternoon the pod was training-ready.
As seen on The Block, it is one of the clearest demonstrations yet of what the pod system can do on a timeline that leaves no room for a conventional build.
Who Makes a SaltPod
SaltPods are modular wellness studios designed and built by Elsewhere Pods, created in partnership with Salt.
The split is straightforward. We design, manufacture and install the building. Salt brings the performance and recovery expertise, along with the equipment specification that turns a pod into a ideal training space.
That division is the reason the partnership exists. A modular building system and a wellness fit-out are two different disciplines, and pairing them produces a better result than either party attempting both.
An 8m x 2.4m Pod, In and Training-Ready in matter of Days
The footprint matters more than the floor area. At 8m x 2.4m the pod gives a long, uninterrupted run of floor rather than a square room, and that shape suits strength and conditioning work better than the proportions of a spare bedroom or a garage.
The equipment decisions follow from it. Commercial-grade cable stacks sit along one wall. There is no internal barbell setup and the powerlifting platform is positioned outside, both of which keep the training floor clear. There is no mirror wall either, because full-height glazing does more for the space than a reflection would.
Speed came from the same place. Our pods are manufactured off site as complete buildings, with cladding, glazing, flooring, electrical and climate control all finished in the factory before the pod leaves us. Delivery is a crane lift rather than a build.
On site that meant a truck at first light, a lift over the fence onto footings that were already prepared, and our team inside by lunchtime finishing the fit-out. Studios across our range install in as little as 2 days and tiny homes in as little as 4. This one went from crane lift to first workout inside a single day, which is not a timeline a conventional build could have accepted.
The Same System, Beyond the Gym
The pod beside that pool is not a one-off. It is the same modular tiny home we deliver as backyard studios, granny flats, home offices and tiny homes across Australia.
Our range runs from a 2.7m studio to a 12m x 4.8m tiny home. The structure, the install method and the finish stay consistent. What changes is the fit-out and the customisations.
The kitchenette and bathroom in the share house pod are a good example. Both are available as customisations across our standard range, alongside decking, a motorised pergola and a long list of other options that you can discuss with our team or try while designing your own pod on our configurator. A pod can be specified as a bare studio or as a fully self-contained dwelling, and the decision sits with the customer rather than with the system.
Pods are built from 99.99% recyclable materials and use fewer than 1% of the components of a traditional build. That is what makes the range this flexible. A fitness pod, a consulting room and a self-contained tiny home all come off the same production line without any of them reading as a compromise.
From The Block to Your Backyard
The pod on the show is a standard SaltPods configuration. The same design, fit-out and single-day installation (if required) are available to order.
Every SaltPods project starts with a free 45-minute design consultation. The team assesses your site, works through what you actually want to train for, and configures the pod in 3D so you can see it before committing to anything.
For an Elsewhere Pod without the wellness fit-out, whether that is a studio, a granny flat or a tiny home, the same order applies. Site first, use second, configuration and customisations third.
Key Takeaways
- Elsewhere Pods designs, manufactures and installs high-end modular studio and accommodation pods in Australia.
- The SaltPods luxury gym pod featured on The Block is an 8m x 2.4m pod designed and built by Elsewhere Pods in partnership with Salt.
- SaltPods are modular wellness studios available in fitness, recovery and pilates configurations.
- The share house pod was craned onto prepared footings beside the pool and went from crane lift to first workout in a single day.
- Elsewhere Pods are manufactured off site as complete buildings, with cladding, glazing, flooring, electrical and climate control finished in the factory.
- Kitchenettes, bathrooms, decking and a motorised pergola are available as customisations across the standard range.
- The range runs from a 2.7m studio to an 8m x 4.8m tiny home, built from 99.99% recyclable materials.
Want a SaltPod of your own? Explore SaltPods or chat to our team.