A few weekends ago I was invited to visit the Technogym store and showroom in Soho for a private tour of some of their most popular and innovative pieces of equipment. I had to do a bit of research before my trip because, truth be told, I wasn’t extremely familiar with Technogym and the fitness resources they offer. But when I saw that they are the makers of my beloved kinesis machine, build treadmills that allow you to post to social media while you sweat, and were chosen as the official supplier to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio – I knew I was in for a treat.
The Soho showroom is a place where interested buyers can come to see the equipment in person, test it out, and get their questions answered by Technogym employees. There are a number of professional personal trainers on the showroom floor to help walk you through the ins and outs of each piece of equipment and advise on which one might best suit your fitness needs. And in case you’re wondering where to put your beautiful new sweat machine, interior designers are also available to help craft your own home wellness space. I didn’t get a chance to ask about creating a home wellness space in my tiny New York City apartment, but I’ll save that for next time.
My first impression of the showroom upon my arrival was that it is absolutely first class. Neutral tones of cream and black are beautifully offset by the Italian-designed chrome fitness equipment, which seem to be positioned more like works of art than shrines to sweat. The floors glisten. The vibrant green of a garden wall adds the perfect pop of color. I was marveling at it all when an extremely polite man dressed in a double-breasted blue blazer and smart-looking glasses asked if I would like a Perrier. Well don’t mind if I do, Technogym! Consider me smitten. You are selling a top-notch healthy lifestyle vibe and I love it.
The downstairs area is similarly well appointed and houses a number of cardio machines next to a full wall of kinesis units. While all of these shiny toys are available to purchase for home use, this area is set up to show the full range of what Technogym can offer as a full unit. Can you just imagine being on vacation and having access to a gym full of machines as lovely as these? I’d never go back to my room!
I was treated (understatement of the century) to a personalized demo session with Technogym master trainer Joshua Holland, whose impressive list of credentials also includes being a London 2012 Accredited Olympic Trainer, 3rd degree blackbelt, master kinesis trainer, male model, and Madonna’s fitness guru. He also happens to be an incredibly down-to-earth and nice guy who just really knows his stuff, making him that elusive mix of insanely knowledgable and incredibly personal.
Joshua started me off with a quick warm up involving a short spurt on the self-powered elliptical and a few stretches. We then moved on to the treadmill for an interval session so I could get a taste of all the bells and whistles that machine has to offer.
Let me preface this by saying that I personally hate the treadmill as a concept. Hate it. Will only get on one if there’s a sharknado outside and I am on the hook to complete training miles. However, give me a chance to hop on a deluxe treadmill like this one and I might soften my tone. Why?
Because this one has enough features to distract me for miles and miles. An enormous display console. One-touch access to social media, the tv, movies, online games, and the internet. A built-in breeze simulator. A dock for your iPhone or iPod to stream whatever media you like. Connectivity with Map My Run and Runkeeper. And my favorite: video simulation of popular running routes around the world. Despite being in rainy Soho, I was visually jogging through Golden Gate Bridge Park with the California breeze in my hair.
I hopped off the treadmill and onto a bike that gave me the most unique power-output feedback I’ve ever seen: it showed me what kinds of home appliances I could run using the power generated by my pedaling. Pedal faster and you might move from a fan to a lightbulb. You get the idea.
To cap off my tour, Joshua walked me through a number of different exercises on the kinesis machine. I absolutely love this thing. No matter what your sport, goal, athletic ability, or time commitment, the kinesis gets it done. At one point I was mimicking a golf swing and the next I was lying on a balance ball reliving my swimming days by doing butterfly.
It has the three-dimensional versatility of a TRX combined with the zero impact of pilates and powered buy the full functionality of an entire weight room. All in one machine that’s about the size of a large bookcase. If I had to pick one piece of equipment to take home with me, this would be it. Hands-down one of the most versatile (and best looking) machines I’ve ever used.
An enormous thank you to Joshua and the folks at Technogym for giving me the star treatment on my tour of their beautiful store. If you’re ever in the area, pop on over to 70 Greene Street and check them out for yourself!