The Gym Design Checklist

 

Much like as we often teach people the truth about what makes a good treadmill or what makes a good strength piece, we do *so much* full gym design that we actually have a checklist we follow. Of course, every space is different, and sometimes other considerations come to play. But here is the experts' checklist for Gym design.  And we use this checklist for Residential work and Commercial 

It is a lot more than recommending a treadmill or a weight set and black, hard rubber squares.

 

 

1) First, we always look at the flooring. Flooring has certainly changed a ton over the past 20 years. When I first started doing this everybody was selling hard black rubber flooring. Normally it had some off-gassing, which is a nice way to say it smelled like a tire factory, and it absorbed and took on a lot of germs and odors.

Today's stacked flooring has moved light years ahead of that, providing a lot more give and cushion, as well as being a lot more resistant to harm and easier to clean and maintain. Maintain. Stacked flooring will also allows for a lot more looks and feels in terms of the way the room represents itself. The spaces can be a lot more airy and don't need to be dark and dingy. Most of our resorts and spas use a different variation.  But we know what mistakes to avoid!

 

 

2) Secondly, we worry about the air flow and the air quality. We process up to 10 times as much oxygen when we are working out, as compared to being sedentary, So, naturally, the air quality is much more important when you're breathing hard on a treadmill!

That being said, over 80% of residential gyms are in the basement, and many of our commercial spaces are as well, or very closed up. That's why we work with a product called Better Air, which improves the quality of The air, eliminating germs, pathogens, allergens, and mold and odors as well.  The air quality is a vital part of the gym equation...and ignored by almost everyone.

 

3) Third, we have to look at the safety of the space. One thing most people don't understand about gym design is that on the commercial level there are actual regulations that have to be followed, Placement of equipment, signage, cleanliness, and more. These are also wonderful guidelines when we design a home gym. I can't tell you how often somebody tries to put a treadmill nearly up against a wall, not understanding that you need space behind the treadmill. The same thing is true about the space you need for safe Olympic bar use. The safety of the space is one of our biggest concerns.
And when it comes to the family gym, we've helped a lot of parents make super functional, SAFE gym spaces.

 

4) We are part of a dedicated team of Local Experts. Within our company, we have people who've designed equipment for a dozen manufacturers, we have certified personal trainers, and unlike nearly anyone, we have our own dedicated delivery and service teams.

The biomechanical understanding that we provide our clients means we're not just trying to sell you a piece of equipment, we're trying to make sure every client is educated as to  the benefits of different motions and different types of equipment. This even translates down to the different types of dumbbells we carry and why we do that.

Furthermore, our extensive network comprises over 700 builders and designers, along with over a thousand personal trainers and physical therapists. We also collaborate with partners specializing in top-level AV work, mirror and glass expertise, lighting solutions, and the finest gym flooring installers. Beware of unreliable internet companies that claim to offer similar services; without a local showroom, their credibility, local investiture and network will always be found wanting. 

 

We are here to provide a unique experience and build a client, not just to sell you a piece of equipment.

 

 

5) We do home consults and zoom consults and treat every client as the highest end commercial job. I have done CAD work on small home gyms in Boston where square inches matter, and we do that with every client who needs that exacting experience.  Almost every night I'm hard at working on a CAD for a client.

And the home consultations is why we've kept some of our clients for over two decades.

 

6) We do actually sell equipment also.  But having decades of experience in working with and even designing equipment, we have a unique perspective.
We sell over 33 different brands of equipment for our clients. We try to make sure that every brand that we carry has a great parts support experience, as well as the longest parts warranties in their catagories.  The parts warranty is what matters, and almost no one understands that the parts warranty actually dictates parts availability for many brands.

We avoid fly by night internet varieties and D2C brands. We try to have the top level brand in every category as well as having high value options and some esoteric ones as well.
And again, we know this equipment like no one else.  We've designed some of it, worked with some of these brands for over a quarter century, and we know which brands keep people coming back.
We can explain what makes a better treadmill, what the different styles if olympic bars are for,  what the differences in dumbbells, and more.

Come and find us.  You'll be glad you did!