Equipment - How To Buy Home Cardio Equipment

Since I’ve touched on the basics of purchasing Home Exercise Equipment (see my previous article called “10 Tips For Purchasing Home Exercise Equipment”, now I thought I’d go into a little bit more detail of the types of home exercise equipment you should consider for your home gym.

Treadmills – Everybody pretty much knows what a treadmill is – you’ve seen them at the gym, with people running on a machine featuring a moving belt. And, the benefits of treadmills are that they provide an easy, low to high impact cardio workout that allows you to vary the pace and incline to increase the benefit of your workout. But, not all machines are built the same. First, the length and width of the belt that you run on is very important to consider. Many cheaper treadmills have a very narrow belt, and although you might find yourself comfortable on them, belts that are too narrow can get annoying. For example, kicking your foot off the belt can cause you to fall, or on the better machines, you’ll quickly come to a halt. Also, spending a bit more money for a machine that has a wider footprint gives you a machine that is more stable, and less likely to break down due to higher quality construction. Additionally, spending a bit more for a machine can get you a higher quality belt that provides more cushioning to your stride. What to know what fits you best? Visit a specialty dealer like Fitness 4 Home Superstore, and test the treadmill at the store (and really test it out – run at a pace that you would normally run). And, make sure it is something you’d be comfortable logging several miles a day on.

Elliptical Machines – Also known as cross-trainers, they are very stable, effective pieces of workout equipment that can also work your upper body as well as your lower body. Plus, they provide a great cardio workout without the impact you would get on a treadmill. Elliptical machines are good for people that have issues with their knees or ankles. Lower quality machines may actually force you to assemble them, which can be quite difficult. Your better choice is to look at a specialty dealer like Fitness 4 Home Superstore, and take advantage of delivery and installation services they provide.

Exercise Bicycles – There are two types of exercise bicycles you can consider. One is your standard “freestanding” bike, which puts your body into a position similar to a regular bicycle. For some people, this position can become very strenuous if they have back problems. Fortunately, there are also recumbent stationary bicycles available as well. Not only are they quite comfortable, they also allow you to read while you exercise, as a seat with a back to it is much for comfortable for this. Exercise bicycles also help you build lower body strength & balance, as well as also being much lower impact than other types of equipment.

Rowing Machines - These are great for building upper body strength, cardio fitness, all without the impact you may get on other machines. Again, you get what you pay for. Higher quality machines like you’ll find at Fitness 4 Home Superstore, provide a smooth stroke. You want to avoid machines that have a jerky motion that is all too common in low-priced, budget machines you’ll find at the “big-box” stores. Also, make sure that when you’re shopping for a rowing machine, that the length of the stroke provides full motion to stretch your legs completely. Without a full motion stroke, your workouts won’t be as effective (as you’ll over compensate with your quads, rather than getting a full body workout).

Finally, when you look at the cost of ownership, for what you’d pay annually on a nice club membership, you could invest that money in a new piece of equipment each year, building your own circuit training room. Remember, to stay healthy, you need to work out on a consistent bases, and that doesn’t’ happen if you don’t enjoy using your machine. So, pick machines that you’ll enjoy using, and pick a number of machines so that if you find yourself getting bored with one, you can switch to another.