Fitness Equipment

[poohs4me]

I am thinking of buying either a treadmill or eliptical, but I have no idea where to start. Any of you bought one before? Where did you go (sears, sports authority, etc)? How did you know what was good and what was junk?

 

[LaLaroo78]

I bought an elliptical in January at Sears. My hand me down treadmill just wasn't cutting it anymore! I feel I get a better workout on the elliptical then I ever did on the treadmill. I bought the Nordic Track one and I chose that one because of the reputation of the company and after trying all the other ones out that is the one I liked the best. Plus you can buy ifit cards for the machine that have different workouts other than what is programmed into it. Stop by a store and they will be more than happy to let you try it out.

 

[Duanerice]

All I can say is buy a good one. There is a big difference in an "economy" model and a better one. I think you know that since you are getting rid of your hand me down treadmill. But, that's how I started, I bought a used treadmill just to see if we would really use it. After a year and lots of use we purchased a new one. I bought a high end Nordic Trac treadmill that I have had for a little over 3 years. Love it although I mostly run outside now.

But, I spent a little more money on it and I'll tell you it is better than I get at most hotel fitness centers.

Can't really tell you about the elliptical since I haven't bought one, but it may be in my future when I get older and finish a few marathons. I'm only 50 years and 1 week old. Just kidding of course, I'm sure younger people use them. They are much easier on the knees than walking or running.

Go to Sears and try them and ask questions, then go to Sports Authority and try them and ask questions, then go to a fitness store and try them and ask questions. I always ask them "what do you look for in a Treadmill/elliptical training"? That's the only way to know what fits you and feels good for you. You and I might not like the same machine so you have to go try it.

enjoy,
Duane

 

[poohs4me]

Thanks for the advice. I plan on going to Sears this weekend.

 

[DareTooDream]

I got on DIS to ask this very same question! Good thing I read your post first!

LaLaRoo - which model of Nordic Trek do you have? The Costco by me has the 1300 for $699. It looks nice and stable (and Pooh sized). I only tried it out for a minute.

Duane, one thing I was wondering was would treadmill or elliptical be easier on the knees.........you say elliptical. Both my DH and I have lots of weight to lose.

I didn't think of going to Sears or Sports Authority, let alone actually talking to a salesperson about it

Sherry

 

[poohs4me]

I never thought of going to costco (not that I have a membership, but that could change). Do they have a delivery option? I thought treadmills were in the thousands of dollars. At least on consumer reports they seem pricey.

I heard there are some elliptical machines you can hook up to a computer and download new programs. Do you know if this is offered for treadmill's as well.

 

[DareTooDream]

I never thought of going to costco (not that I have a membership, but that could change). Do they have a delivery option? I thought treadmills were in the thousands of dollars. At least on consumer reports they seem pricey.

I heard there are some elliptical machines you can hook up to a computer and download new programs. Do you know if this is offered for treadmill's as well.

Hi Poos4me, I'm in Peoria. Costco has a treadmill too, but I paid no attention to it. They have some online at costco.com. You don't have to be a member to look online. What is online is not always at the store. Are you on the west side of town? I'd be happy to meet you at Costco so you could check out the treadmill if you don't have a friend with a card. That's interesting about being able to download new programs..............
Sherry

 

[Duanerice]

Sherry,
The elliptical is much easier on the knees. You don't have the pounding of running or to a certain extent, walking

I have the Nordic Trac 4100 which I actually purchased form Sears. Retailed around $1,400 if I remember correctly (3 years ago).

Hope this helps,
Duane

 

[Tiger Lily 03]

AS far as where to buy on, I can't be certain how to advise that. We bought ours at a sporting goods store.

I've looked up 2 sites that just might give you a start on what to ask/look for about your buying. I hope I'm not too late with the info.

treadmill buying tips

treadmills vs ellipticals

Happy shopping. Let us know what you picked.

The BIG thing is that you've got to use it though.

 

[DareTooDream]

AS far as where to buy on, I can't be certain how to advise that. We bought ours at a sporting goods store.

I've looked up 2 sites that just might give you a start on what to ask/look for about your buying. I hope I'm not too late with the info.

treadmill buying tips

treadmills vs ellipticals

Happy shopping. Let us know what you picked.

The BIG thing is that you've got to use it though.

No, not too late for me anyway. Has Poohs for me found out anything new? I think I have decided that I would pick the elliptical over the treadmill. DH is kind of interested in the Total Gym...........can't afford both right now. We have an exercise bike that we could technically use for cardio if we did the Total Gym. Although it doesn't get used much now. We need to get serious about something though. I started checking into the Total Gym and they don't make it easy. Apparantly there's 3 different manufacturers and supposedly they're not all created equal - blah blah blah. You go to totalgym.com and you can end up at totalgymdirect and some other total gym site. We do need a sturdier model due to our size, which means a more expensive model. I had seen one on craigs list and I called the total gym # to see how to go about telling the model, weight max, etc (the seller didn't know and said she couldn't find that info on it). Instead of getting a customer service type person I got a sales person. Geeeesssss!
Sherry

 

[poohs4me]

I haven't found out anything new yet. I am still working on it. Please keep me updated on what you guys find out. I am having to travel for work right now, so it will be awhile before I can actually get to Sears or Costco.

 

[Telynn]

Hi...Popped in to read this thread and I have a suggestion on where to find either treadmills or elipticals. In our area we have a store called "Play It Again Sports". This location carrys discontinued models and gently used models of all kinds of sporting equipment at very reasonable prices--even the aformentioned treadmills and elipticals.

 

[cobbler]

I got a pretty nice one today at Dick's Sporting Goods. There were a few on clearance and I got a $500 treadmill for $250 today

I also had a hand me down treadmill, it was about 14 years old and it broke on me the other day while I was running.

 

[RUDisney]

I went to Dick's in May and bout an elliptical for $800. You need to ride several of them to find the one that has the most comfortable stride for you. The Horizon Fitness CSE4.6 seemed to fit the bill. I didn't buy the warranty plan for it.

In 6-weeks, the dang machine had broken 3 times. The first time, it was my DS's fault. He stepped off of it on the wrong side and caught the power cord with his foot. Instead of just pulling out of the wall, it had a transformer in it and broke with the plug part still in the wall but the rest on the floor. I tried to get a new cord from Dick's, but they told me without paying $160 for the maintenance plan, they couldn't sell me a $10 power cord. I emailed Horizon Fitness and they never got back to me about purchasing this replacement part.

In the meantime, we rigged the power to work.

That elliptical had an eTrak system that would log your workouts by lifetime, month, week and last workout. This option worked sometimes and not other times. Basically, it worked when it felt like working.

The last straw was when the machine started ticking when we rode it. We had 90 days to return it and that's what I did.

We went to a fitness store and bought a $3,500 Precor elliptical. It's made for home use, but it is just like the one that is at the gym to which we belonged. This is the best decision that we made. Yes, it cost a lot, but neither DH nor I kept the gym membership at a savings of $65 per month. Our kids can also use it. They couldn't go to the gym all the time because they are under 16 and it would have cost us a membership fee for them to go, too.

I like the elliptical better than a treadmill because I can read on the elliptical and I can't on a treadmill. I have to read to keep my mind occupied, otherwise I feel tortured by the machine. A good book will suck me in and I forget how long I've been riding.

As my DH says, I should have listened to him in the first place and bought a Precor from the beginning.