Forget the gym. Now you can enjoy a full cardio workout in the comfort of your home or office with this compact elliptical trainer from Stamina Products. Unlike full-size ellipticals, this trainer doesn't have arms or a front console. Instead, the trainer is essentially foot pedals only, with a chassis that's small enough to store under a desk or in a closet. Despite the small size, the trainer still packs a workout wallop, letting you burn a similar number of calories as jogging but without the risk of injury to the back, knees, hips, or ankles. Just keep your feet moving on the pedals--which continually oscillate in a low-impact manner--and you're set. Other details include sturdy steel construction, non-slip pedals, and an electronic fitness monitor that tracks the number of strides per minute, total number of strides, exercise time, and calories burned.
About Elliptical Trainers Elliptical trainers represent the next wave of advancement in low-impact cardiovascular exercise machines and continue to grow in popularity. By simulating motions experienced through walking, stepping, cycling, and skiing, elliptical machines allow for a smooth and fluid motion while building strength in the arms and legs. Similar to the exercise position for treadmills, elliptical trainers are used by standing in an upright position while holding the handrails of the machine. With elliptical trainers, however, your feet remain in the foot pedals throughout the exercise regimen and circulate in a smooth and seamless motion, resulting in little to no impact on the knees, back, and hips.
Elliptical trainers are compatible for all ages and fitness levels and allow you to select the difficulty level through the incline and intensity settings. Additionally, elliptical trainers allow you to determine the complexity of your workout based on your needs, all while listening to music, watching television, or reading a
Magazine while exercising in the comfort and safety of your own home.
Although different types of elliptical trainers offer an assortment of features, many of them include an array of challenging programs, forward and reverse directional movement, EKG grip pulse handles, a lightweight portable design with easy fold-up capability, and a monitor displaying calories burned, distance, speed, time, and heart rate. Other types of exercise machines, namely treadmills and bikes, offer excellent cardiovascular exercise and muscular training for the legs in a forward-motion exercise. Elliptical trainers take this to the next level by offering an upper and lower body workout with dual motion, challenging and diverse programs, and a low-impact exercise machine that won't strain sensitive joints.
Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
This is a fairly compact, noiseless and easy-to-assemble machine and it does its job.
The counter is placed out of the way, between your ankles, so you don't have to stare at it while exercising (unless you exercise while staring at your ankles) which to me is a plus. Also, the counter only accounts for the actual time you spend exercising, so if you go get a drink of water and return, it self-pauses, which is cool.
The machine does occasionally rock slightly from side-to-side during use which I'd imagine could cause injury. Also, the machine doesn't glide easily during strides as it does on a regular elliptical; it occasionally jolts. This can be jarring, especially if you're not used to the unusually short strides on this machine. I recommend using this while you have something to stabilize yourself if this happens (I use it in a doorway)
Not the best machine out there, but it's certainly affordable and easy to use, a great purchase for a small space or for someone who wants to be able to stow away exercise equipment easily.
