WHY ****** Due to a serious injury to my Knee playing rugby my physio recommended a cross trainer to me as it is a low impact exerciser and is a good alternative to running machines. I found this one on Ebay and thought it was reasonably priced at £130 with some good features.
Quality ********* Build quality is very good, the trainer is heavy due to the large solid tubular frame and if like me you have it upstairs you will need some help in carrying it up the stairs. Once upstairs you can wheel the trainer to your preferred place as it has built in wheels. The fly wheel is encased in a plastic cover, which should prevent little fingers being trapped where they shouldn't be. The foot stands are large and have tread marks on to prevent slipping. You can choose between the static handles for an easier work out, these also have the sensor on to register your heart rate. The longer handles are attached to the fly wheel and move, when using these during your workout it makes it a lot harder and gets your heart pumping a lot quicker, shame these also do not have sensors on to monitor your heart rate.
Computer ************ Monitoring your progress is made easy with the computer which has a large screen which is easy to understand, it automatically adjusts the tension as you are going through any of the 9 preset programs these can be decreased or increased with the press of a button. If you do not like any of the programs you can make your own program to suit your individual requirements. Distance, time, calories burned, heart rate, progress in program is all shown during the training which helps to keep you motivated as you train. The computer does not keep track of any previous training you have done on the exerciser, but you can easily write this onto a note pad.
Exercising ************ Once on the cross trainer you will find it's action very smooth and on the low setting very easy to use so is ideal for someone who is very unfit or not used to training. As your fitness improves the cross trainer is capable of keeping pace with those improvements to a high level of fitness. Instructors recommend training at various speeds and the programs on the cross trainer allow this. The graph on the computer shows how the tension is set for each program, the higher the line the harder it is the lower the easier. Any time you find the going to hard or easy just press a button to adjust the tension.
Conclusion ************* This has got to be the most successful piece of exercise equipment we have bought, it has been robust and is still as good as new with over a years use, has improved our fitness and we have continued to use it after the initial novelty factor has worn off.
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