Why don't most gyms have Arc Trainers or a wider variety of cardio equipment?

FiberousJ
FiberousJ Posts: 82 Member
edited June 2021 in Fitness and Exercise
I am thankful that Planet Fitness has Arc Trainers. Most PF gyms have them. I prefer them over ellipticals. I remember when 24 Hour Fitness had Arc Trainers. In my area, they had 3 Total Body Arc Trainers in one of my Super Sport gyms. And then 2 of them were always out of service. That only lead to 1 left and often times someone would be using it or asking you how long you would be on it. Then another location had 2 and they both broke down.

I don't understand why a lot of gyms just have the basics. Elliptical, treadmills, bikes, and maybe a couple of stairmasters if lucky. There are other machines out there that are versatile like Arc Trainers. I don't know if you've ever tried the Bowflex Max Trainer, but that's another great climbing type machine that's easy on the joints. Sometimes I wonder why gyms don't expand and invest in some more innovative equipment. They can do more than just having cookie-cutter ellipticals.

Replies

  • FiberousJ
    FiberousJ Posts: 82 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Cost is a factor. Especially for equipment that is much more expensive to lease with higher cost repair maintenance contracts and record of breakdown. Members DON'T care about taking care of equipment. They just want it to work for them. An Arc Trainer costs almost 1/3 more to have than a regular elliptical. And breaks down twice as much. When you have limited funds to spend, you have to be practical. Cardio machines only have one user at a time. So you want to get as many cardio machines as you can due to usage.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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    Good points. I wonder why Planet Fitness invests a lot in Arc Trainers, compared to other gyms.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,024 Member
    FiberousJ wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Cost is a factor. Especially for equipment that is much more expensive to lease with higher cost repair maintenance contracts and record of breakdown. Members DON'T care about taking care of equipment. They just want it to work for them. An Arc Trainer costs almost 1/3 more to have than a regular elliptical. And breaks down twice as much. When you have limited funds to spend, you have to be practical. Cardio machines only have one user at a time. So you want to get as many cardio machines as you can due to usage.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png



    Good points. I wonder why Planet Fitness invests a lot in Arc Trainers, compared to other gyms.
    Possible locked in contract. Also, machines are painted specifically for Planet Fitness so I could see long term contracts as a reason.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png
  • MikePfirrman
    MikePfirrman Posts: 3,307 Member
    edited June 2021
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    FiberousJ wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    Cost is a factor. Especially for equipment that is much more expensive to lease with higher cost repair maintenance contracts and record of breakdown. Members DON'T care about taking care of equipment. They just want it to work for them. An Arc Trainer costs almost 1/3 more to have than a regular elliptical. And breaks down twice as much. When you have limited funds to spend, you have to be practical. Cardio machines only have one user at a time. So you want to get as many cardio machines as you can due to usage.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png



    Good points. I wonder why Planet Fitness invests a lot in Arc Trainers, compared to other gyms.
    Possible locked in contract. Also, machines are painted specifically for Planet Fitness so I could see long term contracts as a reason.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    Yeah, if there's a one off equipment provider, some gyms don't carry them. It's also about which they can lease and which they have to own as well.

    For example, Concept2 rowers aren't in LA Fitness gyms any longer for the most part. They have been replaced with Matrix Rowers, which are twice as much and absolute garbage rowers. But they must have a contract with Matrix or are able to get a service contract from Matrix with other equipment.

    As someone that uses a rower as my first choice, LA Fitness lost their chance of me being a member there by putting in such a lame piece of equipment in their locations.
  • chocolate_owl
    chocolate_owl Posts: 1,695 Member
    In addition to cost/maintenance, how many of the gym's members would actually USE an arc trainer? My current gym (LA Fitness) has a ton of cardio equipment, and yet the treadmills are what gets used the most by far, followed by the Stairmasters. The ellipticals and their cousins are always sparsely populated. My previous gym (24 Hour) had more people using the standard ellipticals, but not the variants. What's the motivation for a gym to invest in expensive equipment that's not in demand? They can be using that floor space for more treadmills.
  • Theoldguy1
    Theoldguy1 Posts: 2,496 Member
    Also the more different pieces of equipment the gym has, the more complex maintenance and repairs become.
  • danmam21689
    danmam21689 Posts: 1 Member
    Not sure if anyone will see this or respond since it has been quite some time since the last comment, but I am a HUGE fan of the arc trainer and have been relying on them for over 15 years as a main source of indoor exercise. I've been a member of Planet Fitness for years and it's always been nice to travel the country and always have them have present. I was disappointed to learn that PF was phasing them out; all of the PF gyms near me in Philly burbs replaced them with a machine that is more like an elliptical.

    Does anyone here know of PF gyms that still have them or any thoughts/insight?
  • MelG7777
    MelG7777 Posts: 14,243 Member
    danmam21689 wrote: »
    Not sure if anyone will see this or respond since it has been quite some time since the last comment, but I am a HUGE fan of the arc trainer and have been relying on them for over 15 years as a main source of indoor exercise. I've been a member of Planet Fitness for years and it's always been nice to travel the country and always have them have present. I was disappointed to learn that PF was phasing them out; all of the PF gyms near me in Philly burbs replaced them with a machine that is more like an elliptical.

    Does anyone here know of PF gyms that still have them or any thoughts/insight?
    Mine in WI has quite a few. Tried for the first time a few days ago do to needing to stick to low/no impact because of a broken foot. I was unsure of it. I think I liked it. Good to hear you like it!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    danmam21689 wrote: »
    Not sure if anyone will see this or respond since it has been quite some time since the last comment, but I am a HUGE fan of the arc trainer and have been relying on them for over 15 years as a main source of indoor exercise. I've been a member of Planet Fitness for years and it's always been nice to travel the country and always have them have present. I was disappointed to learn that PF was phasing them out; all of the PF gyms near me in Philly burbs replaced them with a machine that is more like an elliptical.

    Does anyone here know of PF gyms that still have them or any thoughts/insight?

    If they're phasing them out, my guess is that they will have them removed from all of their facilities by the end of December. Gyms typically start purging older equipment or equipment they will no longer utilize in the 4th quarter of the year so that they are ready with new equipment for the beginning of the year and fresh contracts for purchase and maintenance.

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