Ellipitical trainers: what say you? Gimme the good, bad and ugly

[Buford T Pusser]

I'm looking at dumping my old NordicTrack cross country skier and giving my recumbent bike a break.

I started looking at Ellipitical Trainers yesterday. Anyone have good or bad experiences?

Tell me what you like.

It seems I need to spend $1000 at the minimum and I've seen a few that may be okay. But maybe I should just go all out and get one in the $2000-2500 range.

I'm 6'4" tall and would like a decent stride length and the heart rate stuff would also be nice. It would also be good to get a more compact one for space issues.

One brand that looked nice was the Octane Q35e.




http://www.octanefitness.com/products/


A recent Consumer Reports mentioned a Schwinn 418 as a Best Buy. It's around $1K.

[Buford T Pusser]

The above shot is the 45 model. Here's the 35

[FantasticVSDoom]

I would pass because it doesnt really give you a great cardio workout...Get a treadmill, bike, something that will give you a better workout. If you have those already I guess go for it, just seems like a lot of money for a machine that doesnt really push you that hard.

[cdollaz]

Originally Posted by FantasticVSDoom

I would pass because it doesnt really give you a great cardio workout...Get a treadmill, bike, something that will give you a better workout. If you have those already I guess go for it, just seems like a lot of money for a machine that doesnt really push you that hard.

I get a much better cardio workout on an elliptical than I get on a bicycle. It all depends on the settings you chose and how hard you go.

[waporvare]

Sears sells a real good Nordictrack for around $570, sometimes it's on sale for $470.

[nemein]

I would pass because it doesnt really give you a great cardio workout...Get a treadmill, bike, something that will give you a better workout.

That's funny I've always heard the opposite, that they give a better work out since more of the body is involved as opposed to the treadmill/bike which primarily focuses on the legs.

Anyway the good (depending upon the above debate ) is that they give you a better workout, the bad is that they are expensive (esp for something that'll work for you w/ your size) and take up a lot of space, and quite frankly they are all ugly

I've had a mid level Rebok for a few years now and it's starting to wear a bit. If you have the space go w/ a nice one/best your budget can afford.

[The Bus]

It definitely has to do with the settings.

I have been very happy using the Precor EFX series at the local Y.

[Phil L.]

Buy whichever one holds the most coats and wet towels

[Wazootyman]

Originally Posted by The Bus

It definitely has to do with the settings.

I have been very happy using the Precor EFX series at the local Y.

I use this one at the local gym, and it gets me a really good work out, really gets the sweat going, and it's not rough on the legs at all

[adamblast]

Originally Posted by Phil L.

Buy whichever one holds the most coats and wet towels

[al_bundy]

just bought one of these babies today

[monkey42]

The gym I go to has some Precor machines, but I prefer the Life Fitness ellipiticals. This is the model I like to use:

http://us.commercial.lifefitness.com/content.cfm/95xi

The reason I don't like the Precor is the motion feels more up/down to me, where the LifeFitness is more front/back, and feels more like a running stride to me. That's just personal opinion though.

[majorjoe23]

I say as long as they don't have a seizure near me, let them do their jobs.

[Bloomiesgirl]

I bought an Elliptical for Christmas. I got the Nordic Track Cx990 Model.. i believe it retailed for $999 but I got it on sale at NordicTrack.com for $799.

I tried out some different brands at Sears--and even lower models of the Nordic Track and I went ahead and went for the more expensive model. I found what was important to me was the smoothness of the strides. Some of them felt really choppy which made me wonder if i'd be able to endure a 45-60 min session.

I'm happy with the one i got however--it is a bitch to put together. I would suggest having it assembled for you even if you think you're the best at assembling things.

ChitownAbs, Inc helped me and it still took us at least 5 hrs.

I use it consistently about 3x a week--but--i can be humble and say that the first time I used it i had higher ambitions for myself. I soon realized I had to work up to higher resistance levels and inclines. It was a little demotivating the first time..but i'm better now. I should be using it more..but.. all in due time .
Good luck.

[woofman]

We use lifefitness at my gym as well and I really like it, granted I've not used another brand, but it has a good range of motion and I get a great aerobic workout on it. It has user friendly settings too. I'm sure they're not cheap though.

[FantasticVSDoom]

I dont know...Im obviously not an expert but all the physical trainers and "experts" I talk to say that it isnt the best. But I guess like with everything its how you work at it.

[DaveCole]

I have found ellipticals to be great for people starting out (or at least me). It allowed me to go a long time and keep my heart rate up without killing my shins. Now that I have gotten used to it and built up my leg muscles I have switched over to a treadmill trying to get my shins built up for extended walking outside this summer.

[Buford T Pusser]

Originally Posted by FantasticVSDoom

I would pass because it doesnt really give you a great cardio workout...Get a treadmill, bike, something that will give you a better workout. If you have those already I guess go for it, just seems like a lot of money for a machine that doesnt really push you that hard.

I have a nice recumbent bike but I seem to read/hear experts say that they build up the legs but don't push the cardio aspect enough. They all seem to love ellipitical trainers which I'd been ignoring as large and expensive.

[Buford T Pusser]

The Jan 2005 Consumer Reports did a short report on them.

1-Precor $2400
2-Life Fitness $2600
3-Nautilus $2300
4-Vision Fitness $2500
5-New Balance-$1200
6-Schwinn $1100 (their Best Buy-saw this online for $900-1000 shipped)
7-Keys Fitness $900
8-NordicTrack $800
9-Reebok $600
10-Pro-From $800



They had problems with the NordicTrack, Reebok and New Balance. The NT "clunked when we pedaled. We managed to reduce the clunking, but we couldn't eliminate it." The NB also clunked and the Reebok had electrical problems.


Sadly they didn't test the Octane or another a nearby dealer recommends: SportsArt. This is around mid $2K.

[Dabaomb]

Originally Posted by FantasticVSDoom

I would pass because it doesnt really give you a great cardio workout...Get a treadmill, bike, something that will give you a better workout. If you have those already I guess go for it, just seems like a lot of money for a machine that doesnt really push you that hard.

actually, it gives you the best cardio workout.

Running in general can be tough on your knees and joints.

With an eliptical machine, you get more of a total body workout cuz you have to use your arms and upper body to move the handles. On an eliptical machine, you can usually last quite a bit longer than you can on a traditional treadmill. Plus, if you use a pretty high setting, you'll feel like you're not working as hard when in reality you're burning a lot more calories. The resistance is causing you to go really slow but you're exerting a lot more energy trying to move. You sweat a ton.

Typically, while on an eliptical machine for 30 minutes, I can burn 600+ calories which is a lot more than I burn while running. But then again, I could never stay on a treadmill for 30 minutes. I prefer running outside cuz I don't have the patience to run on a slow setting on a treadmill.

[Thor Simpson]

John Paul II


Sixtux IV


Benedict XVI

[Buford T Pusser]

huhwah?

[Al Padrino]

Maybe he's referring to the last portion of the thread title. At least, I hope so. Maybe he's just posting pics of people who endorse ellipticals.

[D.Pham00]

i hate elliptical machines. they're just annoying to use. i've tried it once and didn't like it.

[DVD Polizei]

Strap your baseball bat to a $150 bicycle. Then, after getting a good speed, whip the bat around your head in clockwise and counter-clockwise motions.