Equipping a physiotherapy clinic or exercise referral facility
Short answer: an effective active-rehabilitation floor rests on four equipment families — guided-load strength machines (controlled movement path, fine load increments), low-impact cardio (recumbent bike, cross trainer), Pilates and proprioception equipment, and a suitable sports floor. For a 40 to 80 m² space, budget in the order of 15,000 to 40,000 EUR excluding VAT depending on how many guided stations you install; a professional plate-loaded station starts at 1,980.00 EUR excluding VAT in the Light In Fitness catalogue. The single most important specification decision is the use class: equipment used by patients all day must be certified for commercial use under EN ISO 20957-1:2024, not home use.
Why exercise-based rehabilitation floors are growing across Europe
Exercise referral is now embedded in health policy across most of Western Europe, under different names and different funding models — physical activity on prescription in the Nordic countries, exercise referral schemes in the United Kingdom, adapted physical activity pathways in France and Spain. The common direction is the same: more patients arriving at a clinic with a prescription for structured, progressive exercise, and more physiotherapy practices building an active strengthening floor rather than relying on a treatment couch and a resistance band.
The commercial logic follows: a clinic with a proper strength floor keeps the patient through rehabilitation, then reconditioning, then prevention, instead of discharging them at week six. Check your own national scheme for eligibility and reimbursement rules — they vary considerably — but the equipment brief that follows does not.
Family 1 — Guided load: the backbone of the floor
In rehabilitation the guided machine is king: controlled movement path, assisted start of movement, fine load increments and an accessible entry position. Four attributes matter far more than brand:
- Minimum load and increment. A stack that starts at 5 kg with 2.5 kg increments is usable in early-stage rehab; one that starts at 15 kg with 5 kg steps is not. Ask for the first-plate weight, not just the maximum.
- Entry and seat access. Swing-away seats, low step-over height, grab points. A patient six weeks post total knee replacement has to be able to get in unaided.
- Range-of-motion limiters. Adjustable start position and travel stops let you protect a healing joint without compromising the exercise.
- Unilateral capability. Iso-lateral machines let you load a rehabilitating limb independently, which is the whole point in post-injury work.
Priority chains for a clinic floor are lower limb (leg press, leg extension, leg curl), trunk and back (rows, lumbar extension) and shoulder. See rehabilitation gym equipment for the machine-by-machine detail.
Family 2 — Low-impact cardio
Three pieces do most of the work: the recumbent bike (easy entry, back support, ideal for older and post-operative patients), the upright seated bike, and the cross trainer (supported movement, no joint impact). A treadmill with a genuinely low start speed — 0.5 to 0.8 km/h — is what makes gait retraining possible; most commercial treadmills start at 1 km/h or above, so check this specification explicitly.
All cardio used in a clinical setting should be certified to EN ISO 20957-1:2024 in a commercial use class. Home-class equipment is neither designed nor warranted for eight hours a day of patient use, and it will fail inside eighteen months.
Family 3 — Pilates, proprioception and small equipment
Reformer Pilates has become a mainstay of functional rehabilitation: variable spring resistance, supported spine, and progressions that work from supine to standing. Complete the floor with balance and proprioception equipment, resistance bands, medicine balls and wall bars — an old idea that remains one of the most efficient square metres in any clinic for mobility and stretching work.
Family 4 — The floor: hygiene, cushioning, accessibility
A clinic receives fragile patients. The floor has to cushion, be slip-resistant and clean easily. A 20 mm smooth-finish rubber tile suits machine zones; tatami mats suit the mat-work area. Avoid deep-textured surfaces, which trap contamination and make wheelchair and walking-frame movement harder. Keep at least 900 mm of clear circulation between machine footprints, and 1,500 mm where a wheelchair needs to turn. See accessible gym design.
Budget, with real catalogue prices
Current Light In Fitness catalogue prices, excluding VAT.
| Equipment | Role on the floor | Price (excluding VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Iso-lateral chest press, plate loaded, 250 kg | Upper body, unilateral loading | 1,980.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Multi-functional trainer with Smith machine | Multi-purpose station for advanced reconditioning | 5,750.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Recumbent bike, commercial | Cardiac and post-operative reconditioning | 1,795.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Recumbent bike with touchscreen console | Rehabilitation and active seniors | 2,395.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Cross trainer, commercial | Non-impact cardio | 2,215.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Pilates reformer, wood and alloy, professional | Functional rehabilitation, spinal work | 3,411.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Reformer tower accessory | Extends the reformer’s exercise range | 1,665.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Galvanised steel wall bars with pull-up bar | Mobility, stretching, suspension work | 1,550.00 EUR excluding VAT |
| Rubber floor tile, 20 mm smooth high density | Machine zone flooring | 30.00 EUR excluding VAT per m² |
| Configuration | Contents | Equipment budget (excluding VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| 40 m² clinic floor | 2 guided stations, 1 recumbent bike, 1 cross trainer, mats, small equipment, flooring | 15,000 to 22,000 EUR excluding VAT |
| 80 m² rehabilitation and reconditioning floor | 5-6 guided stations, 3 cardio positions, Pilates area, complete flooring | 30,000 to 40,000 EUR excluding VAT |
These are equipment budgets, excluding building works. Leasing over 36 to 60 months is available and is the usual route for a practice that does not want to consume its bank facility — see financing and leasing.
Two compliance questions worth asking your supplier
- Use class. Ask for the EN ISO 20957-1:2024 declaration naming the class. Class S covers studio and commercial use; Class H is home use; Class I is institutional use as defined in the standard. “Semi-professional” is not a class and carries no conformity value.
- Medical device status. The overwhelming majority of strength and cardio equipment is not a medical device and is not CE-marked under Regulation (EU) 2017/745. If a supplier claims a therapeutic indication for a machine, ask which regulation the CE mark was issued under. If your service or insurer requires medical device classification for a specific item, that must be specified up front, not discovered at commissioning.
Frequently asked questions
Which strength equipment should a rehabilitation floor prioritise?
Guided-load machines first: controlled movement path, accessible adjustments and fine load progression make them safe for fragile and post-operative patients. Prioritise lower limb, trunk and back, and shoulder, and check the first-plate weight and increment before the maximum load.
What budget should a physiotherapy practice plan for?
In the order of 15,000 to 22,000 EUR excluding VAT for a 40 m² floor with two guided stations, a recumbent bike, a cross trainer and mat area, and 30,000 to 40,000 EUR excluding VAT for an 80 m² rehabilitation and reconditioning floor, excluding building works. Leasing spreads this over 36 to 60 months.
Does clinic equipment have to meet a particular standard?
Yes. For professional use with patients throughout the day, equipment should fall under a commercial use class of EN ISO 20957-1:2024 with CE marking. Home-class equipment is neither designed nor warranted for that intensity and will not survive it.
Is rehabilitation gym equipment a medical device?
Generally not. Strength and cardio machines are sports equipment, not medical devices under Regulation (EU) 2017/745. Where a supplier claims a therapeutic function, ask which regulatory route the CE marking follows and obtain the declaration of conformity.
What floor should a clinic use?
A 20 mm smooth-finish high-density rubber tile in machine zones, from 30.00 EUR/m² excluding VAT, with tatami in the mat-work area. Smooth finishes clean faster and make wheeled and assisted movement easier than deep-textured surfaces. Keep 900 mm of clear circulation between machines, 1,500 mm where a wheelchair turns.
Planning a rehabilitation floor? Send us the room dimensions, the patient profile and the treatments you deliver, and we will return a 3D layout including patient circulation and accessibility, an equipment schedule with load increments stated, a flooring plan and a price excluding VAT with a leasing option. Light In Fitness has equipped over 500 facilities since 2013, including care homes and health settings. See the health and referral equipment range or request the study.
