Elliptical Machine Buying Guide 2020 [Do Not Buy Before Reading!]

Topic – Elliptical Machine Buying Guide 2020

In recent years, Elliptical Machines have become one of the most widely used fitness equipment be it in the gym or at home.

Here in this article, we will take you through each and every aspect of an Elliptical Machine. So if you are in the market searching for an elliptical machine stay tuned with us!

An Elliptical machine is basically an exercise machine which provides the stimulating experience of walking, climbing stairs and running!

What is the need of an Elliptical Machine?

An obvious question might arise in your mind, why would anybody replace walking and running with an Elliptical Machine?

Well, walking and running come with their own side effects in the long run:

• It can cause excess pressure on the joints
• It can have adverse effects on the heart

So an Elliptical Machine comes into the picture! Since this equipment is easy on joints, it drastically reduces the risk of impact injuries while giving you the entire benefits of running. Plus the fun part is an add-on advantage!

Who should go for an Elliptical Machine?

• One who is suffering from any kind of lower body injury but still want to continue his workout
• One whose workout regime consists of running, walking and climbing stairs as major activities

Benefits of Using An Elliptical Trainer:

• Total Body Workout: Unlike the treadmill, it engages both upper and lower body workout. And because of this feature, it is often called a cross-trainer. Elliptical machines focus on the legs, chest, shoulders, back and arms areas. As little as 20 mins are enough to get your full body workout.
• Non-Impact Exercise: In this machine, your feet are always connected to the pedals unlike running or walking where you have to lift your feet every time you take a step. Repetitive lifting causes excessive pressure on the joints which makes you more prone to injuries.
• Cardiovascular Benefits: A typical workout session on an Elliptical Trainer will increase your heart rate which will eventually strengthen your heart and lungs. So whether you are looking for weight loss, toning up, or just want to get your heart rate up and burn some calories Elliptical Machine is a great option
• Easy to use: An Elliptical trainer is very easy to use, you don’t need to know any technicalities! Just Step on and start working out that’s how easy it is! Plus it gives the same result of other cardiovascular activities in just half the time! How cool is that!
• Increased Aerobic Capacity: An Elliptical Machine will help you increase your Aerobic capacity without breaking a sweat. A 20 -30 mins workout 2 to 3 times a week is more than enough to work on your aerobic capacity.

So now when you have finally made up your mind to buy an Elliptical Machine  What’s  Next? You should look for following details before making a purchase:

Elliptical Machine Buying Guide 2020

Checklist: This table will serve as the go-to checklist when you are in the hunt for an Elliptical Machine:

Flywheel Weight	>25 pounds
Stride Length	20-22 inches
Resistance System	Magnetic/Air
Console	Basic/ Advance
Foot Pedals	Cushioning /Design/size

These are the areas concerning main parts (Hardware) of the Elliptical trainer.

Flywheel Weight: The flywheel weight is the most important factor that you should consider before buying an elliptical trainer. It impacts the fluidity of pedaling and ranges from 13 to 35 pounds. A lighter flywheel will provide less resistance and will lead to an unpleasant pedaling experience. The Simple logic here is heavier the flywheel, the smoother and quieter will be the overall experience.  Average recommended flywheel weight is 25 pounds.

There are three types of Elliptical Machines with respect to Flywheel Weight:

1. Front Drive Machine: When the flywheel is in the front of the machine.

2. Rear Drive Machine: When the flywheel is in the back of the machine

3. Centre Drive Machine: When the flywheel is in the center of the machine

Working out on the Front Drive Machine is more like climbing stairs while the latter two gives the feel of running and walking.

So it will depend on the user as to what are his concern areas and accordingly, he should make a choice.

Stride Length: A stride length is basically the distance you cover in each walk. It can vary for person to person. A tall person of height says 5 feet 8 inches may find a 26-inch stride length comfortable while the same could be very uncomfortable for a 5 feet tall person. The Average stride length that is generally recommended is 20-22 inches.

Resistance System: Elliptical Machines offers two types of resistance system- Magnetic and Air.  In the magnetic resistance system, you can change the resistance levels on your own digitally which ensures quieter workout sessions unlike the later in which the resistance levels changes with the intensity of your workout. Since the Air Resistance system works on the air levels it is much noisier than Magnetic one.

Console: Elliptical Machines comes with various types of consoles. Basic Console provides only the workout details such as Speed, calories burnt, distance covered etc But if you are kind of person who likes to engage in other activities like music while working out then you should consider Entertainment Console which provides features such as access to internet and you can watch TV or listen to your favorite workout playlist.

Foot Pedals: Foot pedals are also very essential feature when it comes to Elliptical Machines since this part will always be in action.

Here are some areas you need to check in this feature:

• Cushioning
• Design
• Pedal size

Personal:

These are the areas which will vary from person to person and will be a point of personal preference

1. Budget: Budget is, of course, the main criteria while making any purchase. A typical Elliptical machine will range between $200and $5000 depending upon your requirement and willingness to spend.  Inexpensive models may not be high on the quality part, but will certainly be a better option if you are an occasional user and doesn’t want to spend much.

PRICE RANGE: $50-$200	PRICE RANGE: $700-$1200	PRICE RANGE: $2000 and up
Exerpeutic 1000XL Heavy Duty Magnetic Elliptical with Pulse	Schwinn 470 Elliptical Machine	Sole Fitness E95 Elliptical Machine
Exerpeutic Aero Air Elliptical	NordicTrack SpaceSaver SE7i Elliptical Trainer	NordicTrack FreeStride Trainer
Sunny Health & Fitness Magnetic SF-905 Elliptical Trainer

2. Workout Space: Elliptical Trainer is not the small equipment that can be easily accommodated to any area. These machines are huge and take up a lot of space. So you need to ensure that you have left enough space for pedals while you are in action and have also taken into account the ceiling height so you are not hitting your head every time you are hopping.

3. Safety: This is the easily ignored but the most important point. You should look for following points in an Elliptical Machine:

• Warm Up and cool down settings
• Easy to read console
• Parental lock( in case of kids)
• Low Maintenance

General Considerations:

• Warranty
• Easy Assembly
• Power supply
• Water bottle holder
• Deck and roller

Elliptical Machine VS Treadmill

People often get confused between Elliptical Trainer and Treadmill while making a choice for a cardio fitness equipment, since these two machines are the most widely used machines in almost every other gym.

Let’s take a brief look at the advantages of both the machines:

Treadmill Advantages:

1. You can have a more consistent running regime with a Treadmill as it allows you to run in comfort and convenience of your home while escaping all the weather conditions.
2. While working out on the treadmill you can directly focus on your calves, hamstrings, hip muscles, glutes, and quads.
3. In Treadmill you completely lift off your feet from the treadmill belt while running which requires the constant engagement of your ab muscles to make the body stable.
4. Treadmills require lesser space when compared to Elliptical Machines. You need more room sideways because of the rotation cycle of the pedals. People tend to hop while working out on elliptical so an additional headspace is required. So if you have a limited space, Treadmills can prove to be a better option

Elliptical Machines Advantages:

1. Elliptical Machines provide a low impact workout eliminating all the risks associated with running. It exerts little to no pressure on the hip, knee and ankle joints. So it proves to be a better option for people with any sort of lower body injuries.
2. You can focus on the complete body while working on Elliptical Machines unlike on Treadmills. In Ellipticals, you have to push the handles from the hand while pedaling while ensures complete engagement of the core muscles of both the lower and upper body.
3. Since in Elliptical Trainer you need not lift your feet every time you are making a move, it eliminates the risk of accidents which may occur in case of treadmills if one misses a step even by the nanosecond.
4. Elliptical Machines generally requires less maintenance when compared to Treadmills.

So we have seen that both the machines have their own pros and cons and one should make a choice depending on his needs and requirements.

Outdoor Elliptical Machines

An outdoor Elliptical machine is a cross between a bicycle and an elliptical trainer. While maintaining all the benefits of an indoor elliptical machine it provides some additional benefits as well.

Let’s Check out how an outdoor elliptical bike stands above all the other machines:

1. Environment-Friendly: An Outdoor Elliptical Bike requires no electricity or batteries to run. Power of the feet is the only power that is needed.

2. Breaks the Monotony: Working out in the same place and area can be a bit a boring at times which may lead to the discontinuity. With an Outdoor Elliptical Machine, you can workout in nature and can explore places while maintaining your fitness! Brownie Points here!

3. Portable: Outdoors bikes are very easy to move as you can simply roll them in case you want to shift them to other places. They are very compact and can fit easily in small areas as well.

Suggestions:

• ElliptiGO Arc 8 – The World’s First Outdoor Elliptical Bike
• WingFlyer Zike Elliptical Stepper Scooter Bike (Hi-Gloss White, Z150)
• ElliptiGO 8C – The World’s First Outdoor Elliptical Bike AND Your Best Indoor Elliptical Trainer

Read More – Unbiased Spin Bike Review of 2020

Final Words: We have tried our best to make the Buying Guide of Elliptical Machine as comprehensive as possible. But if we have missed out on something, please comment and let us know! We will be more than happy to include the same in our article.