Price v. Health
Why Price is Just a Number When it Comes to Your Health
The problem with price-based shopping on fitness equipment is that performance often lags on highly inexpensive equipment especially if acquired through online means; the painful reality quickly sets in unwittingly, “this machine that I just bought is garbage.” Now you’re back to square one having to pay money to haul away the non-functioning cheap unit, and pay more for a higher caliber piece of fitness equipment hoping that the same nightmare does not happen again.
Consider the following as an illustration, let’s say that you have purchased nine months ago a $500 elliptical as opposed to a $5000 suspension trainer and you utilize it for upwards of 45-60 minutes per session and 6 times a week; also, others that live in the household use it from time to time; moreover you experience some arthritis in your knees, joints, and some hip pain that has not been felt prior the purchase of the cost-effective elliptical. The discomfort may be due to the poor make up of that unit. On the other hand, higher priced units tend to possess user-friendly structures designed to protect the hips, knees, and joints, and for the most part have a higher life expectancy than cheaper models. The same can be said for most other types of cardio equipment such as treadmills, upright, recumbent, and spin bikes. I have clients coming to me almost daily expressing their frustrations they endure about fitness equipment not lasting as long as they expected or do more harm than good.
This site is designed in part to recommend suggestions when it comes to the right fitness equipment-both cardio and strength. There are many units that you can acquire that are used and still have a great lifespan and can be fairly inexpensive; for example, you can visit your local used fitness equipment store, hotels or health facilities. Second hand fitness equipment dealers often carry the higher end machines found in commercial settings, and sold at a fraction of the costs. I recommend purchasing an extended warranty that covers maintenance, repairs and labor because if there’s something that will go wrong generally occurs within the first 30-90 days. You can also venture on a monthly basis or how often the facilities such as hotels or health clubs recommend you to reach back to them for any pieces of equipment they wish to replace. Commercial settings can be a great start because in many occasions they’re just looking to get the latest equipment for their clients to appeal to more clients. So they would have to do away with equipment that has been sitting at ther gym facility for decades, possibly. Many of these commercial setting would be more than willing to practically give fitness equipment away at a fraction of the cost! So don’t be shy look around.
With respect to commercial fitness equipment, they are highly expensive, but also the user experience is highly engaging, and it has to be; many users tend to conduct workout sessions daily; I would say in average 10 to as much as 50 users may use a single machine. Because of the high use, periodic or routine maintenance is normal, and these units are designed to last decades. The point here is once you find a good piece of equipment, it should last a very long time especially if it’s merely five users within a household.
In the end, if you’re on a tight budget, consider financing your equipment or save up; please also keep in mind that higher caliber machines often carry better warranties such as lifetime coverage on the frame, motor, or even shock absorbers.