Best Ellipticals Online

Elliptical trainers were invented sometime in the 1990s as an alternative to the treadmill to provide cardiovascular exercises. By then treadmills were very popular and were actually quite extensively used in most gyms. People also started buying them to be used in their homes where they could get their quota of physical exercise at home itself.

They are actually very very simple machines and at its most basic is just two pedals attached to two handles. You stand on the pedals and move your legs forward and backward. The handles serve the twin functions of providing stability as well as being a secondary source of motive power.

This basic design can incorporate drive motors so that you can choose different speed settings and the more upmarket you go, the more features they have. In fact the really upmarket ones give you a variety of motions that the basic ones cannot give you.

The reason why they are called elliptical trainers is because of their movement which follows an elliptical path.

Advantages wise, there are many, primary among them being that as an alternative to a treadmill that only gives your lower body a workout, this also gives your upper body one. It is also much simpler in design and you will have no reliability issues as long as you keep the moving parts greased. The really simple ones that do not even come with a motor require only that.

The problem is that as an exercise trainer it is a little difficult to choose which one you want to buy with any degree of authority unless you have already used them all before. For the vast majority of us this is not the case and we just go with the advise of some sales man or after seeing some ad on TV. At the end we will be stuck with something that we paid quite a bit for even though a much simpler one would have been sufficient.

We have therefore split these elliptical trainers into three categories based on price. Under each category we give a short review on the top bestsellers so that you can basically choose which one you want to go with. We also let you know where exactly to go to get the best price. Read on.

Budget Elliptical Trainers

The low end trainers are those that cost less than $200. These machines are the bare basics that you need to work out and if used properly actually give you quite a good workout. Of course they do not have the same functionality as do the more upmarket ones, but most customer reviews are positive simply because for the price they are very effective.

The only problem with them is that many people say that they fall off because they are so unstable on it. Some people also complain of shaky legs after using it for 10 minutes, but that is supposed to be a good thing right. Your legs shake because you have used them, not because the trainer has given you the “shaky leg” syndrome. The falling off is because to be perfectly honest, it is a little unstable, but then you are supposed to hold the frame while getting on and off.

It is actually this instability that forces your body to tighten up as all the work is done by your muscles.

The understanding is that if you want a workout there is really no sense behind you getting a motor to do half the work for you.

The top three best sellers are given below.

1. Stamina 55-1610 InMotion E 1000

This model is actually not a full fledged elliptical trainer and only has the pedals. This means that it is a very small compact unit that is only a little larger than your feet. There is a motor in the center that you can set to different resistance levels and the pedals go in an elliptical path.

This model is actually more than enough if all you want is to get some exercise for your legs. You push it up against a wall so that you can lean on your arms for support, step on it and away you go.

At nearly $200 it may seem a little expensive, but then you can get it for about $90 here which makes it a real bargain. The flip side to this is that it does not give you a full body workout, but if you are trying to reduce weight, it may be better for you to go with this, especially if you do not want to go for a walk as you can basically continue to do other work with your arms while you work your legs.

2. Gazelle Edge

This is the most basic full body workout elliptical trainer that you can get. It is nothing but two pedals hung on sturdy cords that are attached to a frame and the handles. This makes it a little unstable, but it also ensures that you get a wider range of motion than on any other machine in the market. Plus you get a CD that takes you through the different exercises that the machine is capable of assisting you with.

The best part of the Gazelle is the price. At $89 it is one of the best exercise machines that you can get. It is simple, gives you a good work out, and what is more, it can be used by everyone starting from the beginners to the really advanced. The levels of difficulty are all dependent on your own levels of fitness.

3. Gazelle Freestyle

This model is a ditto of the previous model except that it incorporates a pulse meter on the hand-grips. There is a small monitor that is attached in front that gives you details of your heart rate and such. Because of this the price has more than doubled and at $199 (the lowest price is here) is almost at the top of the category. It is still good value for money because any good heart rate monitor will cost you between $60 and $80 in itself and here it comes integrated with the machine.

Economy Elliptical Trainers

The mid range ones are the ones that cost between $200 and $500. Although the gazelle is actually one of the top sellers in any category, machines in this price range offer a number of advantages because of which they run a close second in terms of sale. They usually come with a motor assembly which provides the resistance levels that you desire, along with digital display readouts that gives you various information including pulse rate and calories burned.

These machines are a very good compromise because for a little more than the freestyle you get many more functions. The only drawback to them is that they do not allow the same range of motion that the Gazelle does like the stretch where you can actually use the machine to stretch your muscles either before or after a workout. The top selling ones are given below.

1. Body champ BRM 3671 cardio dual trainer.

This model is the top seller and it is very easy to see why. It is a dual trainer which means that you get the elliptical trainer as well as a pseudo cycle too. The same foot pedals are used and with just the addition of a bicycle seat it becomes a dual trainer. This gives you the option of you doing two different workouts with just the one trainer enabling you to exercise two different muscle groups. Plus you also get the digital display that gives you all the information that you need.

At $269 (this is a discounted price available only here, store prices are $400) it actually makes the best value for money in any segment.

2. Schwinn A40 Elliptical

This is a deceptively simple looking machine and looks very basic. At nearly $400 however you know that it is not. The difference between this and the previous model is that it gives you a reverse function too if you want to add some change to your exercise. As to whether this actually makes it worth the extra you pay is something that you will have to decide for yourself.

3. ProForm 850 Elliptical trainer with game fit technology

This machine is really high tech (or at least it looks high tech) and everything is concealed inside a large casing where all the working takes place. All that sticks out are the foot pedals and the hand levers. Although it costs nearly $1000 in stores you can get it for as little as $500 which makes it a very good option. Why this model makes sense is for those who get easily bored while they exercise. This trainer gives you the option of plugging in your music player and listening to it via speakers. It also gives you 12 different personal trainer workout programs. The biggest USP for this model though is their large display where you can play games. The games are connected to your training so that they actually get easier as you workout harder. As a way to distract you from the strain in your legs there is nothing to beat this.

High End Elliptical Trainers

The high end trainers are those that cost more than $500. These trainers are really high end because they come with a number of features that are integrated, like a reverse action, a very quiet operation, different resistance settings, pods for your music system, plus any advancements in technology that has not yet tickled down to the cheaper models.

1. Schwinn 420 elliptical trainer

This model is the best selling in the high end category because it is gives you a very wide range of motion but with a lot of stability. All the connections are are made using metal connecting rods which means that there is very little shake. There is both a good and a bad side to this and while this model gives you the most stable platform there is, it also weighs a ton (figuratively speaking of course).

At $600 it is a good option because it gives you everything but with added stability and for all you know the additional cost is for the extra metal that went into its manufacture. Of course the price is a discounted one that is available only here. The in store prices are much more.

2. Sole E35 Elliptical

Sole is a very well known brand when it comes to personal fitness equipment and have a name for making very good quality machines that last you a lifetime without any problems. When you go with a Sole, there is no way that you can go wrong and there are very few negatives in this sense. Of course they do not have any offering in the low and mid range, but then for the kind of quality that they give you, they are good value for money.

This model is one of the more expensive ones and at $1300 costs more than 13 times the cost of the low end models. You however get a very ergonomically designed machine without any of the stresses that you get at various joints like your ankles and knees. In fact this price is nearly $1000 discounted and is available only here. Again the store prices are at $2300.

3. Horizon fitness EX-57

This model is one of the best all rounders and the only reason that it is the third in the list is because it does not look as high tech as the other two, and we all know how important looks are. At only $540 it is also one of the lowest costing in this category and is a very good option if all you want is a really good quality machine and are not very particular about the way it looks.

When it comes to personal fitness equipment the common sensical thing is to choose one that gives your body a full workout. Unfortunately many people prefer to make exercising as easy as possible which is why there are three different categories anyway. Considering that you can get as good a workout on a machine that costs just $100 paying 20 times that price may seem like a little too much, but then buying decisions are not always made just based on how effective any product is.

This is more apparent in the high end versions than in the low end ones as it looks like buyers are more discerning about their money when they pay less. Maybe when you have more money to spend it is the brand that is more important in which case there is really nothing to beat getting a very expensive one.

Top Selling Elliptical Trainers Online