Fitness

My elliptical machine broke again and this time I cant fix it. Im looking around for a new elliptical or the bowflex "treadclimber". I have bad knee's,back and the easy motion of the elliptical was great.

I need good solid reviews. Money is no object or spare no expense.

Yes im on a tight budget, but I need the reviews so I can make a financial  decision.

I did go from 266 lbs down to 206 lbs.

Thanks in advance for you help.

I will never surrender. I will never forget.

I am not on a diet, I am changing my life style.

i LOVE the elliptical <333

struggs

What brand is this elliptical <333

The treadclimbers at my gym are ALWAY BROKEN.  I'm sure some of that is due to the rough use but they clearly break down far more frequently than the ellipticals and stairmills, therefore I certainly wouldn't recommend one.  What about getting a trial pass from a gym, and trying out what they have to see what you like? You can buy gym-quality ellipticals for home if money is no object. ;)

I'd like to know what kind you had too.  I have a Walmart cheapo elliptical and have used it for years with no problems.  It was $350 online with shipping included its an eclipse 1000hr or something like that and I used it every day for over 2 years and it never broke.  Sure it doesn't have the bells and whistles some machines do, but it only uses a battery for the display and the rest is all manually controled but it does have tension and programs.

I've used more expensive models at hotel gyms and hated them all.  They were big bulky and awkward for me to use. 

I have (had) {still in the bed room}. Horizon e6050, I bought it at sports authority several years ago. it was in the later part of 07 that I really started to intensely use it. warranty has expired.

It cost me $700. I don't mind spending a little or a lot more as long as it last my life time.

So, the tread climber is out>>>>>>

I know when I was looking for an elliptical I just did a search on reviews and the one I chose got very high marks and for the price I couldn't resist.  Google customer reviews and start weeding out the duds.  I know some folks love their Nordic traks some hate em  I personally just read a lot of bad issues with them and for the $$ I don't think I'd go that way

Thanks guys for the advice.

I goggled elliptical reviews and this is my list.

Precor

Smooth

sole fitness

life fitness

Nordic trac 990

I don't think I will ever buy Horizon again.

I'm heading out to Sports Authority and see what they have.

I will never surrender. I will never forget.

I am not on a diet, I am changing my life style.

Sports Authority has pure junk at $1500.

I read a post about e-bay im going to give it a look.

Try Craig's list, Amazon , overstock.com or if you live in a larger community a Play it again sports or other resale type shop -- even garage sales - I'm sure alot of folks got these for the new years resolutions and haven't touched them since January so probably can get a decent machine at a decent price.  good luck

You could investigate which brand that you are interested in and then try Craigslist to purchase one. I have found that they have a wide variety of equipment and brands that people are selling and not all of them are used. I've run across a few ads where someone purchased an item and then their circumstances changed and they never used it. Good luck

I have a fairly low-cost elliptical at home that came from Wal-Mart. I love it, and I've lost 12 lbs. using it since January.

Of the brands that you mentioned, I have only had experience with the PreCor. My university had those in their Activity Center. They were great! You could program in your weight, age, etc. to really get a good idea of how many calories you burned during your workout. My current elliptical tells me how many calories, but ti doesn't ask about my weight, age, etc...so I don't know where it gets the info. Anyway, the PreCor was easy to use, had several different programs, and always seemed to be in commission.

the rec center at my university and the gym that i use at home both have precor and i love them for the same reasons that vindwyn gave. i also feel like the fact that several gyms use them is a sign to how well they hold up, especially since they are being used all day every day and i have never noticed any of them being broken. i'm not sure how pricey they are though...

I'm no good for elliptical info, but here is the quick and dirty on the Bowflex Treadclimber...

*It's different from the commercial grade the prev. poster mentioned. Commercial TRC's were recently recalled for redesign...so yes, they were breaking down a lot but they are looking at fixing that issue. You can't really compare commercial grade to the regular ones tho, they are completely different designs (same concept tho).

*They are great machines, but be well informed before you buy. If you buy one used, or from a non-authorized dealer (avoid ebay like the plague) they won't have a warranty. Parts are expensive if something goes out, and you will have to make the repairs. Only the 5300 and 6000 have a labor warranty (meaning someone will come fix it for you) This isn't uncommon tho for most fitness equipment. So if you aren't mechanically inclined, willing to work on them, or hire someone to do so, get one with a labor warranty.  If you buy direct from Bowflex, it does have a 6 wk guarantee, but you have to pay the return shipping to send it back...and that's expensive. A lot of people don't read the fine print, or don't realize that it costs 400 bucks to ship these suckers when there is no big corporate discount.

*You will have the best workout of your life. It will kick your butt, but you won't feel as sore as you do on treadmills...not sure compared to an eliptical, but the belts help you burn more than you would on one. It's easy on your knees, and joints from what I could tell using it. You will burn twice the calories!

*The 1000, 3000, and 5000 are compact. I wouldn't waste your time with a 1000 if you are planning on a long term investment. They look and feel cheap for what they cost. The higher up the model, the nicer they are. I personally recommend the 5300 and 6000 if you can afford it. They look more like the commercial grade. However, if you are watching your budget, the machine is virtually the SAME structurally between the models. They all have the same treadles, the main differences being the console, and warranty. So if you don't need bells and whistles, I say go for a nice TRC 3000.

*If you are a taller person, 6 feet and over, you are going to find that the 1000, 3000 and 5000 are going to be way too cramped and small. Go for the larger walking platform of the higher end models. These machines seem much smaller in person.

*You can't run on these. They max out like at 4.5 MPH, so if you like to run, forget it. It's not a treadmill. Think fast walking pace.

*Make sure you have a place in your home, where the machine can be plugged into it's own outlet, and NOT a GFI outlet. No way around that, so keep that in mind when planning where to put it in your home.

Good luck with your choice!

Thank you all very much for all the info.

I have been on Cregs list (I thing I spelled that right, don't matter I have the site saved)  list several times nothing yet. but it gave me an alternative.

littleblue, thanks for the detail in put. I am assuming that either you have one or use one.

Yes I do have a bad back and knees, so running is out. I just got the dvd form Bow-flex and will give it a look see later on tonight. One question I have for you.

On my old dead elliptical I was able to go all out fast for 45 sec (HITT) will I be able to do that (HITT) on the bow-flex?

I don't want to just be walking fast up hill. I know it sound like a great work out and I have walked hard up hill and in my very yonger days ran up hill and loved it.

Just quesition.

Thank you all once again.

I will never surrender. I will never forget.

I am not on a diet, I am chnaging my life style.

Well, I own one AND I used to work for them (Bowflex) ;)

The only thing I can think of that would interfere with a HITT workout would be that in order to change the resistance on the machine, you actually have to stop it and turn the dials on the hydraulics, you can change the speed and increase it and whatnot by the console but not the resistance. Kind of a pain when you are in the zone if you know what I mean. Walking on the treadclimber isn't so much running up hill, it's more like walking in sand sort of. It's really hard to explain!

 

I got their DVD. I don't think I will be buying  a bowflex. HITT is something I really got hooked on.

I live in Florrida were the tropics begin and I have waked miles on the beach (sand) and boy that was one hell of a work out.

Thanks