How to PCS Your Home Gym, Including Your Peloton

Moving a home gym may be a new concern for some military families this year, but it doesn't have to be an overwhelming one. As more people add to their garage gym or join the spin-bike trend, moving these pieces of equipment becomes more commonplace, even for military movers.

When it comes to the U.S. Transportation Command's thoughts on moving home gym equipment, it works the same as other parts of your move. Any concerns about specific pieces should be included online when scheduling your move and during the pre-move counseling session, said André Kok, public affairs planner at TRANSCOM. A reminder when the moving company arrives and packs, loads, unloads and unpacks is also appropriate.

One question that may come up when moving gym equipment is whether it can be counted as professional gear, either for the spouse or the service member. According to the Joint Travel Regulation, the answer is: "It depends."

For service members, the answer is clearly no. For spouses, there is a possibility. In order to get approval for professional gear for a spouse, the service member needs to request it. The details can be found in the regulation or by talking to your local transportation office.

Military spouses who have Peloton bikes or treadmills have been discussing their concerns about shipping their equipment with military movers in a private Facebook group. Some even hesitate to purchase the equipment, knowing a move is coming.

TRANSCOM, however, says that all of these things can be moved. According to Kok, "These items generally do not require crating, but can be if the moving company requests and receives authorization to do so, based on their assessment that crating is required for safe transportation."

The Peloton website has suggestions on keeping our bike safe during a move, including having a company that will insure your bike through transit; removing the touchscreen, pedals, sweat guard, water-bottle holder and weight holders; tightening all adjustment levers; and lowering the handlebars and seat as much as possible.

A spokesperson from Peloton said in an email, "We do offer an assembly and disassembly service for $175 each for our Treads. However, this does not include packing up the Tread, moving the Tread to the new location or moving the Tread to the desired room of choice."

Rowers are another piece of specialty equipment that will need to be moved carefully. Concept2, the manufacturer of popular rowers, ski ergometers and bike ergs, suggests that the best way to move these machines is to rebox them.

Knowing that military families don't always have room for original boxes, Concept2 sells a box with foam inserts to ship their most popular model, the Model D rower on its own. Its customer service department said the company does not sell those boxes online, so you must call them.

"Please give us a call (800.245.5767) to order the packing material (PN 1978, $25). The shipping charge for the box and inserts is $15. Here are instructions on how to rebox a Model D," they said in an email.

"If someone plans to move their machine and leave it for months at a time, we would also recommend removing the two D-cell batteries from the monitor to prevent corrosion. When these batteries corrode and leak, it can be fatal to the performance monitor," they added for families who will be putting their rower in storage or for an overseas move.

Many families have various gym equipment in their homes that don't fit neatly into a box. From dumbbells to pull-up bars and squat racks with barbells, the movers can take care of all of it.

"The moving companies supporting the Defense Personal Program have experience moving items commonly found in homes -- to include home gyms and exercise equipment. Some companies maintain a catalogue of disassembly/assembly/moving instructions of commonly encountered equipment for their crews' reference. If customers retained original instructions, we recommend they make those available to moving crews as well," Kok said.

There's one bonus to having the movers handle your gym equipment. Kok said that just like the moving company will take apart your kitchen table and beds and reassemble on delivery, they will do the same with gym equipment. He mentioned that if assembly and disassembly instructions are available, the moving crews like to review them.

If after delivery something is damaged or missing, the process for claims is the same as with other household items. Kok refers military families to the "quick reference guide on move.mil that outlines the steps for a customer with a loss and damage claim to take as well as who to contact for assistance. Customers should never accept an offer from their moving company if they don't agree with it."

--Rebecca Alwine can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @rebecca_alwine.

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