Meet Brandon Lohr, Assistant Manager at the Push Pedal Pull in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This fitness expert has worked at Push Pedal Pull for 10 years. Brandon played football at the University of Tulsa, where he graduated with a degree in Exercise and Sports Science. For Brandon, the highlight of his job is matching a customer to the perfect machine to help them reach their goals. He had an exciting opportunity recently where he got to do just that, but on a larger scale.
Brandon helped a customer create a personalized fitness room, complete with flooring and machines that catered to the customer’s workout needs. This is a service available at any Push Pedal Pull location. Read our Q & A with Brandon to see if a home fitness room might be right for you.
Q: Hi Brandon. First off, what do we mean by a fitness room? Help us get a sense of the project.
B: There are a lot of people who like to go to the gym. Some people just don’t have time with the busy schedule of work or they have a family, so they would like to get the same equipment or machine that does what they like to do at the gym.
Recently, I had a customer come in who had worked out at the gym a long time, and now wanted to install his own fitness room. He was using a treadmill, and he liked a bunch of individual weight stacks, so he had an idea of what he planned to put in the room. I did a floor planner for him to make sure that what he had in mind, and what I had in mind for him, would fit in the room.
He told me what floor space he had, we installed the rubber flooring and now we’re waiting for the equipment to get in.
Q: How did you balance the customer’s budget with the his fitness goals?
B: I tried to find the exact pieces that would help him meet his needs. I’m trying to help him out — if I can help him save money somehow, if I can get him to another piece of equipment that meets his fitness needs but saves him money, I will try to do that. I made sure I met his needs on price-point by recommending quality pieces within his budget.
Q: What are other considerations as you plan a fitness room?
B: Well, sometimes the biggest task is figuring out what type of cardio machine to choose. Some people come in and ask, “Should I buy a treadmill, an elliptical or a bike?” I try to figure out what you like to do. Some people say the elliptical burns more calories than other machines out there. Well, if the person doesn’t like the elliptical, then it’s not going to do any good for them, because they won’t use it. So, I try to find them a piece that they’re going to like and they’re going to use.
When some people start shopping for equipment, they might not necessarily want strength training. Usually when I show customers a cardio machine, and that’s the main piece they’re looking for, I will recommend that if not now, then down the road, they consider strength training. Doing strength training is just as important as doing cardiovascular, like running on the treadmill or elliptical.
Q: Can you tell us about the flooring?
B: The flooring was a big process. My customer was putting the gym in a building similar to a barn. It was important to find a color that matched the room. I got samples together from other vendors, to find a color that would match his walls.
Q: Why is it important to go to a specialty store like Push Pedal Pull during the planning of a fitness room?
B: Our main concern at Push Pedal Pull is to help a customer reach their fitness goal. If they’re walking in our door, there’s a reason they’re coming in. We’re here to help.
Some stores sell a person a piece of equipment, the customer takes it home and they’re never contacted again. We try to follow up with customers to make sure they don’t have any more questions. We’ll come out to your house and actually program your machine for you, to make sure you fully understand what you bought and how to use it. Some people just sell you something and you may not know how to use it. We try to walk you through that process.
To learn more about fitness rooms, or additional Push Pedal Pull services, contact a store near you.