• Do I have time to commute to the gym?
• Can I afford to have a gym membership?
• Do I feel comfortable working out in front of other people?

If you answered "no" to any of these questions, you may consider purchasing a home gym.

One of the best benefits to having home fitness equipment is that it saves you time.  First, you don't have to spend time picking out an outfit, or even combing your hair.  When you find the motivation to work out, you immediately get on your personal elliptical machine and start burning calories. You only have 30 minutes before you have to start getting ready for work?  No problem.  Throw on your running shoes and start exercising.  The time saving benefits of a home gym cannot be matched with a gym membership.

Although the price of home exercise equipment can get very expensive, consider the price of most gym memberships.  A typical gym membership can run anywhere between $40 a month, and $100 a month.  Most home gym manufacturers have financing options available that can get the equipment down in to this same range.  The great thing is that you after a short time of paying for the exercise equipment, you own the product free and clear.  We have yet to see a gym that stops charging you fees after a few short years.

The benefit to getting a health club membership is that you are usually working out on high quality equipment that cost more than most home gyms.  However, the home fitness equipment manufacturers are producing higher quality equipment than in the past.  Here are some tips on how to choose the best exercise equipment for your life style.

• Check on the return policy.  If the product is a quality product, the manufacturer or dealer will usually offer some type of return policy.  Although, you may have to pay return shipping, this is better than paying a monthly fee on exercise equipment you are not using.
• Does the fitness equipment do everything you need it to do?  If you are just wanting to lose weight, a home elliptical machine or treadmill will usually do the trick.  However, if you are wanting to tone or even build muscle, you will need to consider more options.  Check to see what all muscle groups the product can work.  Many home gyms have plenty of options for working the upper body, but they leave out the legs.  Make sure the home gym offers a full body workout.
• Can you store the product out of the way?  Although your new shiny tread climber may be fun to look at for the first couple of months, eventually you will get tired of walking around it.  Unless you have a large house with plenty of room, you should consider how it stows away.  Many manufacturers make exercise equipment that can be stored under the bed, or fold up tight against the wall.  If you don't consider this aspect of purchasing new or used exercise equipment, you run the risk of pushing it out to the garage to never be used again.
• Warranty.  Probably the most overlooked reason to buy exercise equipment is the products warranty.  Unfortunately, machines wear out.  For this reason, you should always check the manufacturers warranty on your investment.  You do not want to be paying for a broken machine you are not using.

If you consider all of these factors before purchasing a home gym, you should be able to make a prudent decision.  There are pros and cons to consider before you decide to buy home fitness equipment or joining a gym.  Once you make this decision there are many more factors to consider, but your choice to be healthy and lose weight is the best decision you will ever make.