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Elliptical trainers are used to increase muscle tone and cardio capacity. They are a low-impact aerobic workout that works both the upper and lower body. Elliptical trainers get their name from the elliptical (oval) motion of the pedals. This elliptical motion helps to ensure that your joints are not overworked or harmed, as they can be on higher-impact exercise equipment, such as treadmills.
Why Use An Elliptical Trainer?
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Elliptical trainers offer a combination of several popular exercises. They offer the running/walking action of a treadmill in combination with the circular action of a stationary bicycle and the stepping action of a stair climbing machine. An elliptical trainer also makes use of circular arm movements which tones the upper body.
For people with knee or joint problems, who may find using a treadmill or stair climber too difficult or painful, an elliptical trainer can offer great results without the pain often associated with high impact exercise. Many people with no joint problems have switched from treadmills, stationary bikes to elliptical trainers for the greater cardiovascular and toning benefits caused by the ability to work both your complete lower body and your upper body at the same time.
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Elliptical trainers have greatly increased in popularity over the last several years and there are nearly as many elliptical trainers in gym as there are treadmills or bicycles. Elliptical trainers have often replaced other aerobic exercise machines in homes because of the more complete workout they offer and how little room they take up. A quality elliptical is also less expensive than a quality treadmill or stair climber.
How to Use an Elliptical Trainer
Properly set up, you should never feel that you are straining or reaching too far while using an elliptical trainer. Your movements should be smooth and controlled, allowing you a full range of motion without making you uncomfortable.
Using an elliptical trainer is very intuitive, step on it, put both hands on the upper body lowers, begin pulling one of the upper body levers towards you and move your body with the motion the elliptical will create.
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You may find the need to adjust the foot pedals for ease of use; on most models this is very easily done by making an adjustment at the bottom of the machine. |
Once you have begun rowing, you can increase or decrease the resistance
depending on you workout preferences. Most trainers recommend beginning
with light resistance and then slowly increasing the resistance once your
body has begun to warm up.
What to Look For When Choosing an Elliptical Trainer
Make sure, when choosing an elliptical trainer, that it is properly designed
to work the upper body as well as the lower. The handlebars should be
designed so that you get a full stretch of your arms and upper body.
The motion of an elliptical trainer should be very smooth and controlled.
All the machines we sell are tested up to 300 pounds and we do not sell
any elliptical trainers that we do not feel are very stable and confidence
inspiring. All motions, both for the feet and your arms, should feel very
smooth and natural.
While it is possible to adjust the resistance (pedal and arm tension)
on almost all models, some do this job better and more consistently than
others. The best option is one that allows you to adjust the resistance
electronically, such as the Horizon E53,
made by Horizon Fitness, which allows you to keep track of the resistance
you are using to help you better monitor your performance.
 
Examples of typical control consoles |
Many elliptical trainers eliminate the guess work by displaying distance traveled, current heart rate, calories consumed and time elapsed, allo of which help with motivation and allow you to log your performance and track your progress toward your exercise goals.
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What Type of Elliptical Trainer Do I Need?
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One of the main attractions of ellipticals is the low-impact nature of exercise,
which means less stress and wear on the joints - a major consideration for
individuals with knee, hip or ankle problems. Treadmills and stepping machines
create stress on the joints by the nature of the exercise. Ellipticals with
jerky movements, a less than sturdy construction or a poor balance will
force you to make unnaturally controlled movements which, besides for their
uncomfortable nature, can put unnecessary stress on your joints. Horizon
fitness, the same manufacturers that create Vision Fitness commercial cardio
equipment, uses very high quality components and extremely solid construction
in all their ellipticals and also incorporate their own Super Conductor
Drive System and a unique pivoting footpad provides a smooth, natural
motion which puts less stress on your joints.
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The Horizon Fitness E52
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This trainer features the super conductor drive system which provides
an exceptional level of pedal stability and consistency. Have you ever
gotten on an exercise bicycle and felt as though the pedals were sticking
and slipping? You may even feel clicking through the pedals as different
pieces of the gears wear unevenly. With the super conductor drive system,
there is absolutely no danger of this ever happening due to the unique
nature of the pedal system.
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The E52 also features an advanced pivoting
footpad which fits around your shoes rather than trying to put your feet
on small bike-size pedals which are easy to slip off of. The E52
features a 275 pound weight capacity.
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The oversize console for the E52
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Another advantage to the Horizon Fitness E52 is the oversize backlit
display. This display provides easy-to-read lettering and very large buttons.
These features come in very handy when you're trying to make adjustments
to the machine during a workout and don't want to have to slow down because
you're fumbling, trying to find the right button to press. The E52’s console
ensures that you'll never have to slow down during a workout. The console
also provides you with a built in fan on either side of the console to
cool you down and prevent your body from overheating.
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This can be a real
advantage if you plan to work out on a porch or other location without
the benefit of air conditioning.
Conclusion: For less than $800 the Horizon
Fitness E52 is soft on your joints and for the features it offers,
soft on your wallet as well.
The BodyCraft ECT-2500
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The BodyCraft ECT-2500 |
For the very serious fitness enthusiast who needs just a bit more control
than the E52 can provide, there’s the BodyCraft
ECT-2500. This machine offers control over every aspect of your workout
experience, from the location of the footrests to multiple sets of handgrips
to assure that your workout is conducted in as much comfort as possible
without unnecessary straining.
The movable foot pedals are a great way to adjust for height differences
among users and is one of the features that makes the ECT-2500 comfortable
for a users of a wide variety of builds. The ECT-2500 is also rated to
support 350 pounds. Having different handgrips allows you to change between
working your upper body and lower body together, or just your lower body.
One very unique feature of the ECT-2500 is its use of magnetic resistance.
Most resistance-based exercise equipment use physical pressure on the
rotating wheel to make the pedals and arms harder to move much the same
way that brakes on bicycles and disc brakes on cars operate.
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With magnetic
resistance there's no physical contact between the moving parts meaning
there’s no rubbing to create vibrations or uneven operation. Because there’s
no contact between the moving parts of the machine, it will last far longer
than competing models. In other models, the brake and rotating wheel are
the first pieces to break down. And with 400 watts of electromagnetic
resistance possible, you'll never have to worry about outgrowing the ECT-2500!
Both the BodyCraft ECT-2500 and the Horizon Fitness E52 feature preprogrammed
exercise routines. What’s the advantage of these? Proper motivation is
the often the key to success in any exercise program. A preprogrammed
routine gives you something to accomplish, something to finish. In addition,
these programs will automatic adjust resistance, to give the feeling of
ascending and descending hilly terrain. This can add a large degree of
realism to your workouts.
Conclusion: The BodyCraft ECT-2500
is an elite performer.
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The Horizon Fitness E51
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For the person who’s fairly new to elliptical trainers, but is looking
for a great product for a great price that will do everything they need,
look no further than the Horizon Fitness E51.
This machine is a great entry-level trainer at a price that everyone can
afford. The E51 features the same super conductor drive system and AIRcell
foot conditioning system as its big brother, the E52.
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The console for the E51
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While the E51 doesn't feature preprogrammed exercise routines, it does
feature a large back lit LCD screen to keep track of your time, resistance
and mileage.
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Conclusion: A basic model which benefits from the quality control
and some of the components and construction details of the Horizon Fitness
higher end models, the E51 Elliptical Trainer
is an excellent value.
Final thoughts
The elliptical
trainer you decide to buy should have a high build quality, a very stable construction and it's performance should be good as compared to the others in its price range.
When making your decision, be sure the weight limit is above the weight
of the heaviest individual who may be using the elliptical and that the
machine has the features you are looking for and the warranty and price
are comfortable for you. If all those are true, you have found a good
elliptical for yourself.
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