MORE THAN JUST ORDERING EQUIPMENT FROM A CATALOGUE

I firmly believe that gym design is an ongoing, iterative process, a continuous quest to optimize the member experience. It's about more than just filling a room with equipment; it's about crafting a flow, dedicated zones and an atmosphere that motivates and inspires. Put simply, a gym needs to constantly evolve to avoid outdated layouts and stagnant equipment choices. 

A phase of gym floor improvements has recently been completed at Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury, and it's been a powerful reminder of this principle. What might seem like a simple rearrangement of equipment can have a profound impact on our member’s workout success, their satisfaction and ultimately how long they remain a member with us. 

Karen is a member at Parkwood Health & Fitness, Salisbury. She agrees: “I love the new kit, it’s made me feel more confident. Gym staff have been great at showing us the new pieces of kit” - March 2025.
Recent improvements are not the end, but a stepping stone, as learnings are taken into the planning stage for the next phase of improvements. By prioritising considered planning, data-driven decisions, and a commitment to continuous improvement, I aim to create a gym that truly empowers our members to achieve their fitness goals.

Key Design Principles

A well-designed gym should be welcoming, easy to navigate, and avoid overcrowding. I focus on various elements of the design:

• Zones: Dividing the gym floor into distinct areas for cardio, strength training, functional fitness, and recovery/stretching is really important. This helps our members navigate easily and find the equipment that aligns with their fitness goals.
• Flow: A smooth flow through each zone and onto the next with clearly defined walkways. This avoids confusion and congestion, especially during peak hours.
• Ambiance: A motivating atmosphere with good lighting, décor, and music.  I try to incorporate natural light in cardio areas where possible to boost mood
• Accessibility: Ensuring the gym is accessible to everyone.
• Flexibility: A phased approach where equipment is added or replaced in sections allows me to adapt to evolving trends and member feedback.

Equipment Selection: Finding the Right Balance

Choosing the right equipment is crucial. My approach includes:

• Understanding Our Members: I work to understand the demographics and fitness goals of our members. For example at Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury, the average member is approximately 4 years older than at other sites and more likely to be female, impacting equipment choices.
• Variety: I ensure we offer a wide range of equipment to cater for different preferences, goals and fitness levels. Always avoiding variety for variety’s sake though and being careful not to install equipment that just takes up valuable space.  
• Quality: As a business we only invest in the very best equipment from Life Fitness who are industry leaders. This ensures member satisfaction, safety and reduces maintenance costs.
• Space Optimization: Space on the gym floor is very much at a premium, particularly at Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury. I choose equipment that fits the space most efficiently and remove underutilized equipment to create more space.
• Staying Current: Incorporating relevant fitness trends into our gym design without jumping on every short-lived craze.

Members at the club seem really pleased with the equipment we’ve recently added, Sinead said “The new equipment has transformed my gym regime, it’s nice to have a wider variety of choice with the new pieces of kit” - March 2025. This was echoed by Simon, “The new kit was exactly what I had asked for, I especially like the new chest press” - March 2025.

The Power of Data-Driven Decisions

For significant projects like Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury, we partner with Track My Gym who specialise in advising some of the world’s largest gym operators. They provide invaluable data through:
 

• Usage Tracking: Sensors fixed to equipment reveal usage patterns and bottlenecks over a 7 day period.
• Member Surveys: Gathering direct feedback on the improvements that our existing members would like to see.

This data consistently shows a shift in exercise habits. Cardio equipment needs have decreased, now requiring only around 30% of the gym floor (down from over 50% just 10 years ago). Conversely, strength training's popularity has surged, requiring approximately 60% of the available space. This reflects the growing awareness of strength training's importance in overall health & wellbeing.

To highlight this specifically at Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury, at peak time the average availability of free weights and resistance equipment is only 35% and 50% respectively, whilst the average availability for cardio equipment at peak time is 69%. 

Furthermore, the equipment with the highest average usage across the week was the squat racks (50+ hours), followed by the adjustable benches (39 hours) and cable stacks (38 hours). By comparison, the average treadmill was used for 27 hours during the week and the average cross-trainer just 14 hours. 
 

Implementing the Data at Parkwood Health & Fitness Salisbury

Based on the data and feedback, a phased approach over the next 12-24 months is planned which will focus on:

• Layout: Partnering with Life Fitness to optimize space and create clearer zones, especially a dedicated functional/stretch area.
• Equipment: Addressing the high demand for cables, squat racks and benches by finding solutions to increase availability.
• Space: Continuing to remove underutilized equipment to make way for more strength equipment.

Lee Gaskin
National Fitness & Retention Manager
Parkwood Leisure