Looking to buy an elliptical

kimber607 · August 2009

Hi

I was thinking about buying an elliptical machine at Sports Authority....any suggestions?
Do u think I need to lay out a ton of money to get a decent one..I wanted to spend about $400-$500ish

Thanks, kim

jljohnson · August 2009

I just bought a cheap one (Gold's Gym brand) at Walmart on clearance. It was only $225, but it does the job. I think it will depend on what kind of features you want. Mine started out at $425, so it has some neat stuff like a built in fan and mp3 player speakers. I'd probably look for one that has the gears in the front, or indiviually driven pedals. For some reason, I remember hearing that these are better that the rear-gear-driven ones.

This is mine:

rear-driven:

EDIT: Forgot to say, I love mine, and it totally gets the job done.

CasperO · August 2009

The reputation is bad, but I bought the Walmart machine and I'm happy with it.

I bought the cheapie $305 special 7 months ago. I pound on it 1/2 hour a day - wife uses it occasionally. For the first month or 2 I was still in the 250's-240's,,, which is pretty heavy for that machine.

I assembled it carefully and substituted real bearing grease in place of the crap they provided - and I also greased/lubed/adjusted/tweaked a couple other pieces to make it work better.

It did break an angle-bracket on the pedal support - (within the warranty period, I could have gotten it replaced). I took the thing apart and welded it back together - regreased/re-aligned/reassembled. Took about an hour, no biggie.

Otherwise, no problems. It's comfortable, quiet, works well. I think the break was my fault - I was really heavy and hard on it. I'm now happy with the machine.

Mine's the rear wheel like in that pic BTW. Luv it.

laura11248 · August 2009

My only recommendation would be to try out the floor model. Ellipticals have different stride lengths so what might be comfortable for someone might not for others.

koriebrownie · August 2009

I would try it out for sure. The stride length was a big deal for me. If it has a larger stride length then it is a smother movement not so up and down.

I have a Horizon Fitness Elite Elliptical it was about 800 but worth every penny. I would even check craigslist for something like that. Good luck.

Just a tip... I would still walk or jog too. I was doing the elliptical a lot last winter and when I went walking I was so sore. It works such different leg muscles.

kimber607 · August 2009

Thanks everyone for the advice/tips
DH is NOTTTT handy, so I don't think he will be tweaking it or adding grease where/when necessary

Thanks again all :flowerforyou:
Kim

arewethereyet · August 2009

Kim do you have a Play It Again Sports in your area?

Consignment for sports equip. I bought a high end 1200 dollar elip for 400 bucks and I love it. I have been on cheaper ones and they wobble and I dont feel like I am getting a good workout.

This way I got a good one, for cheaper and they delivered!

(if you were close I'd let cha borry mine!!)

Alligatorshirts · August 2009

No need to buy a brand new one. I would try Craiglists first. There is a ton of equipment posted there that people buy and then never use. Almost like gym memberships.

kimber607 · August 2009

Thanks all
Checked craig and nothing in my area

Never heard of the store mentioned...will look into it

Kim

arewethereyet · August 2009

Thanks all
Checked craig and nothing in my area

Never heard of the store mentioned...will look into it

Kim

http://www.playitagainsports.com/locations.aspx?s=NJ

Looking to buy an elliptical

Replies

Categories