When setting up a home gym or outfitting a commercial fitness facility, one important consideration is the color of the exercise equipment. The right colors can motivate and energize users, while the wrong shades can be uninspiring or even depressing. So what is the best color for exercise equipment? There are a few factors to take into account when choosing colors for fitness gear.
Psychological Impact of Color
Different colors have different psychological effects on people. Here is an overview of the general impacts of common colors:
| Color | Psychological Impact |
|---|---|
| Red | Energizing, exciting, aggressive |
| Orange | Friendly, energetic, cheerful |
| Yellow | Uplifting, optimistic, creative |
| Green | Balanced, harmonious, peaceful |
| Blue | Calming, stabilizing, focused |
| Purple | Spiritual, wise, dignified |
| Black | Powerful, sophisticated, dramatic |
| Gray | Stable, practical, sleek |
| White | Clean, pure, fresh |
So when choosing colors for exercise spaces and equipment, it’s wise to consider the tone you want to set and how different hues will make users feel. Energizing, uplifting colors like red, orange, and yellow can help motivate and excite people to work out. Meanwhile, calmer blues and greens create a more relaxed and focused mood.
Visually Enlarging Small Spaces
In home and apartment gyms where space is limited, using the right colors can make the area seem larger than it really is. Light, bright, cool colors like whites, grays, light blues and greens will reflect the most light and open up smaller rooms. Dark or warm colors like blacks, browns, reds and oranges tend to visually recede and can make a compact workout room feel even more cramped and confined. For the illusion of more space, stick to pale, cool hues when coloring a small home gym.
Coordinating With Branding
For commercial gyms, the colors used throughout the facility should coordinate with the brand image and logo colors. For example, Planet Fitness uses tones of purple and yellow in their branding. Using those shades on the walls, flooring, and equipment frames the facility in their signature lively, judgment-free vibe. Orangetheory Fitness utilizes orange and gray—their brand colors—to create an energizing, exciting aesthetic. When ordering new gear, match the color scheme to your brand style guide.
Visibility of Equipment
On strength training machines and other exercise equipment with weights, levers, and settings, highly visible colors can help users quickly identify the different handles, pins, weights, and controls they need to use. Black, gray, navy, forest green, or brown equipment can visually ” recede” into the background, making the adjustable components harder to spot at a glance. Brighter hues like red, orange, yellow, light blue, or white will make the key parts pop out more. Vibrant accents can help users easily locate and adjust the various settings quickly.
Durability
For high-traffic areas of commercial gyms or home spaces that will get heavy daily use, durable appliance-style paints in darker, bolder shades can conceal scuffs and scratches better. Light pastels and shiny lacquers show wear sooner. Bold reds, oranges, blues, greens, grays, and blacks have more pigment to better hide accumulated dirt and scuffs on hand rails, benches, weight stacks, etc. Gloss or semi-gloss finishes are also easier to wipe down and keep looking freshly cleaned.
Avoiding Visual Vibration
When using multiple colors in an exercise space, it’s important to avoid “visual vibration” that can occur from clashing color palettes. For example, placing a bright orange bench directly next to a lime green treadmill can create a jarring, vibrating effect due to the colors’ similar saturation levels and complementary nature. To avoid this, stick to a simple color scheme of 2-4 harmonious colors like different tones of blue, blue and gray, red and black, or green and beige.
Gender Neutral Options
For commercial gyms and home spaces used by both men and women, you may want to select gender neutral colors that appeal to all users. Combinations of grays, blacks, silvers, whites, and medium wood tones create a neutral yet modern look. Pops of bright blue, green, red, purple or orange can liven up the neutral base. Generally avoid heavily feminine shades like hot pink or pastels.
On-Trend Colors
| 2023 Color Trends |
|---|
| Viva Magenta – Vibrant fuchsia |
| Evergreen Fog – Gray-toned sage green |
| Lucite Green – Transparent forest green |
| Coca-Cola Red – True, rich red |
| Botanic Garden – Leafy greens |
| Lilac Breath – Soft purple |
To have a fashionable, contemporary gym, select exercise equipment in colors that are trending each year. Warm earthy tones, greens, and bold red are popular for 2023. Incorporating one or two of these bold trending shades on large workout gear pieces will give your facility a modern, cutting-edge look while ensuring the overall palette doesn’t appear dated.
Conclusion
When selecting the ideal colors for exercise equipment and active spaces, factors like visual impact, spatial appearance, visibility, durability, coordination, trends, and gender neutrality should all be taken into account. Overall, bright, vivid shades of blue, green, red, orange and white are great choices for energizing and modern gym equipment colors. Combos of trendy greens, true red, and grays create an inviting, contemporary look. Steer clear of dark palette or clashes between complementary hues. With the right colors, you can motivate exercisers and make small home gyms appear more spacious.