If you’ve had your Precor equipment for five years, you’re at the stage where you need to make a few decisions. Your cardio and strength machines are most likely showing some wear and tear, and there’s a chance your staff and exercisers are ready for you to make an upgrade.

FOR YOUR EQUIPMENT: Upgrade or Keep
As you consider your equipment, the most important decision you have to make is whether to trade in your current equipment and upgrade to the newest models or continue maintaining the machines for a few more years. Here are some questions to ask:

• How old is the internal and external technology of my machines?
• Has a new model come out since my initial purchase?
• When is the next model coming out?
• What is the trade-in value of my current equipment and how much value will the equipment lose until I upgrade?
• Can I get a service agreement for this equipment?
• How much wear and tear is my equipment showing?
• Do I want to keep this equipment without a warranty or extended service agreement?

Your strength equipment may still be in decent shape, as those machines do tend to last between seven and ten years, depending on usage. It’s important to check for visible signs of wear and tear, especially considering the wires and cables.

Cardio equipment sees far more usage than strength equipment and can take quite a beating in a short amount of time. If you are considering upgrading to the latest models, treadmills and indoor cycling bikes tend to be the fastest to show signs of age. Treadmills devalue the quickest and see the most usage of all cardio equipment. Indoor cycling bikes are used vigorously and sweat from users finds its way into the machines, wearing them down. Adaptive motion trainers, ellipticals, and stationary bikes have more fluid movements and don’t see the wear and tear of other machines.

An important thing to consider with all cardio equipment is the technology changes in new models. Precor is continually improving its products, especially regarding software and hardware upgrades. How far behind is your equipment’s technology?

FOR YOUR STAFF: Striving for Revitalization
Often, your staff is encouraging exercisers to try new equipment, push their bodies harder, and help them reach their goals. However, if your staff feels that the equipment is tired and out of date, their motivation to create new workouts drains as well.

If you’ve decided to upgrade your equipment, your staff will naturally be revitalized to find new workouts, research the equipment, and get excited about the new additions. If you postpone an upgrade and continue using the same machines, you have a little more work to do to keep your staff motivated.

A great resource for your staff is Precor.com/education. This page offers hundreds of educational materials to rejuvenate your staff to create new workouts using both old and new cardio and strength equipment. It’s important that your staff pass on what they learn to your exercisers to encourage continual progress towards their fitness goals.

FOR YOUR MEMBERS: Continued Motivation
One of the most important things to think about your facility and your equipment is customer satisfaction. Are your exercisers satisfied with your current setup? Or do they look down the road to your competitor who has the latest equipment on the market? While five years isn’t an incredibly huge amount of time, there have been internal technological advances, and perhaps external upgrades to the models of your equipment.

If your exercisers aren’t satisfied with the quality of the equipment they are using, there is a strong chance they’ll try to find a place that offers something better. While your current members may stay with you because your facility is what they know, you may have a hard time retaining new members as they consider their fitness needs and whether your gym will help them on their fitness journey.

Each of the above components is important things to consider when evaluating whether or not you want to upgrade your equipment after five years of usage. Answer the questions posed in this article to help you make an informed decision.

Our experienced field team is able to provide additional information and insights if you have specific questions.
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