Having found myself drifting away from going regularly to the gym and always using the excuse of having no time to go, I was always looking for ways to get fit at home. I'd gone through dozens of fitness videos which was fine when the kids were small and went to bed early but now I'd got to the point that I just wasn't up to starting a workout later on in the evening. And to be honest I got bored and frustrated watching some very slim fit lycra glad goddess telling me she was just a normal woman who understood what it was like to feel pressured and struggle to find time to workout. No you dont!!!

I'd seen the LTT advertised in magazines and found myself sucked into it's programme on the shopping channel. Undeterred by, if too cynical to actually be inspired by, the slim orange lycra clad goddesses with ironing board stomachs I thought that this did seem to be something I could fit into my own lifestyle. The price at a little under £90 was the main problem but I headed for ebay and picked a new one up for around £50.

Probably the hardest thing is to remember to exercise a degree of moderation at first. I tried to go for the hard toning workout by adjusting the speed/tension setting - I felt like my legs had just seized up altogether and rapidly went back to a more sensible level until I'd got more used to it.

It comes with cords for upper arm workout though I found those a bit awkward to use. Also if I dropped them for a bit and wanted to then use them again I had to have somebody around to pick them up for me or stop the machine and then get off and on again. Instead I use hand weights while I'm working on the LTT and get the same benefits

On the downside....the telly advertising really does make it seem like you can achieve miracles which I must admit to being a bit scpetical about, though there's no denying it certainly has improved my flabby bits a lot. But to get the sort of weight loss and inch loss results they talk about I reckon you must have to spend much longer using it and diet like hell. I had the Powerhouse diet book that came with it and decided that was way too strict to even think about. I'm just cutting out my between meals junk food, going for healthier options, drinking more water and along with the LTT there are definite results. i don't believe any one exercise machine will ever compensate for a lousy choc-filled diet...but if anybody can prove me wrong there I'd lobe to hear it!

Also remember it is giving a pretty good muscle workout so warm up well. I got complacent, used it a couple of times going in cold and ended up with a sore hamstring that forced me to stop altogether for several weeks. And like any exercise routine be careful if you have any existing injuries. That said I've suffered from back pain since a gym accident as a teenager and can use this without aggravating it at all