Buying fitness equipment

kandell

I've decided to buy some fitness equipment so I can work out at home rather than go to a gym.

Free weights and resistance bands are easy enough since those don't have moving components, but I'm looking to get an elliptical as well.

And it's there that I've run into a slight snag. I don't want to buy one of the $1,000 machines, but I do want something that will last me at least a year, preferably 3-5. I expect to use it 3-4 times a week, probably for around 30 minutes at a time. I also expect my roommate will use it too.

Anyone have any recommendations or experiences with purchased ellipticals?

ChaplainHeavin

Several factors to consider purchasing an elliptical trainer.

1) If you buy a cheap one you'll get what you paid for it. If you want to purchase one of high quality, try Craigslist or Amazon. People are always purchasing these type of machines then never using them and decided to sell them.

2) Service Issues: A lot of these last for years and many break down or the company offers lousy service. To avoid all of that I chose to purchase a Nordic Track Skier which requires no motor or electric power at all. My wife paid $35.00 for a $600.00 machine she found at a garage sale.

3) Google reviews for whatever brand you're considering. This should help a lot in making a wise purchase.

4) Make sure you have the room for one of these machines and think about where in your house you want to put it and not have to move it again because they are very heavy.

leggup

We got an elliptical from amazon in October. The brand is Horizon. They have several models, so I'll have to check his account to get the exact one, but I believe it was in the $500-600 range. It ended up being cheaper because we ordered it with Amazon Prime. It was late (3-4 days), so they gave us a $100 discount. We got one of the models with a longer walk tread, which was essential for us since I'm 5'11 and my husband is 6'4.

A few precautions- this machine is so so so so heavy. You will want to purchase a mat to go under it to protect your floor. You will also want to get a can of lithium grease to regularly grease and tighten the various joints on the machine. Since it is a cheaper elliptical, it doesn't have all of the features of a PreCor or Lifetime Fitness machine. For example, on mine, I have to get off of the machine and manually raise the incline. The resistance can be adjusted while using the machine, which is the important thing anyway. Another feature missing that fancy machines have- I have to plug mine into the wall.