Do you need exercise equipment?
IF going to the gym is just too difficult, you can always opt to work out at home. But before you splurge on some fancy fitness equipment, learn from the mistakes of others, including yours truly.
– Put your imagination to work: I was gifted with an ab roller that is stored under the bed. It lived there for two years, eating dust bunnies, before I gave it away.
To avoid buying stuff you won’t use, imagine yourself working out. Where will you do it and when? In front of the TV every night? In your bedroom? Are you the sort of person who will unfold that handy tool and then get to it or are you someone who needs to see the machine and be reminded to use it?
– Ask about spare parts and maintenance: My first equipment buy was a rowing machine and I loved it to death. Literally. After two years the thing fell apart. It only needed a couple of nuts and bolts to function again but the company that sold the machine disappeared, and nobody else sold the spare parts.
Results: huge investment loss and heartbreak. I’ve never found another rowing machine as good.
– Avoid buying the wrong machine: My second buy was a fantastic elliptical machine that promised everything I needed but as it turned out, I’m just not built to work out comfortably on those things. I gifted it to the local gym and lost my investment.
What I learned was that if you’re not sure what you want, go to the gym for a month and try out the machines. Buy what suits you.
– Ask about price for spares: My current machine, a treadmill, stands behind the sofa so I use it as I’m watching cartoons and reruns of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. It recently died from overuse but since I bought it from a reputable company, I managed to get spares. I was lucky that the price was reasonable but it made me realise that when I asked if they had spares, I forgot to ask the price for basic parts.
So before you buy, see what might break and ask for ballpark repair figures.