With just a few days left before Christmas, I’m sure some of you may be looking to buy some in-home gym equipment to give as a gift to yourself or someone you love. No doubt about it, having fitness equipment right there in your own house will make it easier to fulfill your fitness New Year’s resolutions to get Fit After Thirty! But some of you may be under the impression that owning gym equipment is something only wealthy celebrities can afford. Nothing could be further from the truth.
With retail stores in a desperate position due to the troubled economy, you will undoubtedly be able to find some very good deals on new ellipticals, treadmills, rowing machines, exercise bikes and weight machines. But if, after checking sale prices for new equipment, you still aren’t finding anything within your budget, it’s time to consider one of the best kept secrets since period panties - refurbished gym equipment.
Death of a Machine
Yup, that’s right. That old machine that you ran hundreds of miles on at 24 Hour Fitness, finally endured as many of your beatings as it could take and inhaled it’s last breath about 6 months ago. Shortly thereafter, it was retired and delivered to the fitness machine grave yard.
Rebirth of a Machine
In the world of fitness machines, there is no rest for the weary. The fitness machine grave yard has a lot of ghosts in it. Those ghosts (otherwise known as resellers) go plucking the poor bastards straight out of their graves and voila! What was old is made new again! The level of refurbishing by these used fitness equipment companies is beyond impressive. By the time they work their magic, nothing but the model number would indicate that it’s not straight off the assembly line. I’ve toured these places and seen the before and after, and it is remarkable.
Adoption of a Machine: New Home For Baby
After they go through their refurbishing process, these bright and shingy pieces of used gym equipment now await your adoption! Here are just a couple of the items you can find at some of these web-based used fitness equipment companies:
Life Fitness 9500R cycle for 1,149.99 used, compared to about $3,000 new.
Precor C954 Treadmill for $2,299.00 used, compared to $4,699 new (for next model down).
So where do you find these refurbished beauties? Online used equipment retailers. It’s important to note that inventory at these companies is always changing, so if you do not see what you want at the price you need, keep checking back, because they are continuously taking in new inventory.
There are a few who are big enough to deal directly with the large gym chains and have large enough quantities that they can afford to offer great prices and some even offer free shipping! Here is a list of the ones we like:
1. Fit4Sale.com
Happy shopping!
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used for a millennium or new!
A great idea, and thanks for including the links! We got a great deal on a refurbished treadmill once, so I think it’s an excellent idea.