Shopping to stay in shape

A vibrant community for health and wellness enthusiasts, Chicago offers a wide variety of sports and fitness specialty stores. To help equip you with the tools needed to keep your New Year’s resolutions and propel you towards your 2013 fitness goals, Chicago Shopping scoured the city and suburbs to find the top fitness retailers. Our assortment of recommended retailers keeps your body and budget in mind, finding places to purchase everything from elaborate home gyms to recycled free weights.

Chicago Shopping visited many area stores and found five that proved worthy of upgrading your home gym or outfitting your sport, making sure each store excelled in offering a wide price point range and variety of products. Check out these stores, all with multiple Chicagoland locations and a premium online presence offering workout tips, reward programs and more.

Fitness Factory Outlet

Variety of Products Available: The largest selection available under one roof, Fitness Factory Outlet is your one-stop shop for fitness equipment like: ellipticals, rowing machines, stationary bikes, home gyms, stair climbers, treadmills, kettle balls and an immense variety of accessories like inversion boots, wrist wraps and jump ropes. 

Wide Price Point Range: The price points for large equipment ranges from $199 to $2000 for stationary bikes, $250 to $5000 for home gyms and $500 to $5700 for treadmills.

Specialty: The amount of product in stock. Store manager, Dave Erber told Chicago Shopping that the store’s method to selling fitness equipment to customers is one of a “no-pressure approach.”

“A lot of our customers are budget-conscious, which makes us work harder to find the perfect fitness equipment for their individual needs. If we don’t have what the customer wants, we will find it for them,” Erber explains. 

Online: Fitness Factory Outlet offers functional training videos.

Multiple Chicago Locations: Chicago, Forest Park, Mundelein and Aurora

Chicago Home Fitness

Variety of Products Available: Bikes, treadmills, ellipticals, home gyms, saunas, and accessories like free weights, medicine balls, and pull up bars

Wide Price Point Range: “We look to find the correct equipment at the price point that the customer wants from the start,” said Wayne Culley, Store Manager of the Randall Road store in St. Charles. “And we work to have a long-term relationship with our customers after they leave the store.”

Ellipticals range from $700 to $8000, home gyms $799 and up, and stationary bikes from $399 to $3200.

Specialty: While educating customers during the product selection process, staff at Chicago Home Fitness support the customer beyond the sales floor with personal training referrals, by demonstrating exercise techniques and providing follow-up calls after your fitness equipment is installed. Delivery, installation and box removal are a few extra perks for investing in equipment from Chicago Home Fitness.

Online: Chicago Home Fitness offers a health and fitness blog.

Multiple Chicago Locations: Algonquin, Aurora, Chicago, Deerfield, Downers Grove, Joliet, Mundelein, Orland Park, St. Charles and Schaumburg

Several of the Chicago Home Fitness locations are located within home leisure retailer, The Great Escape.

2nd Wind Exercise Equipment

Variety of Products Available: Power Plate, ellipticals, treadmills, home gyms, stationary bikes and a selection of accessories.

Wide Price Point Range: With an 80 percent new and 20 percent previously owned inventory, 2nd Wind Exercise Equipment offers customers an array of products and price points suitable for outfitting any home gym.