On Monday, my final student loan payment will be sucked out of my bank account and I will officially be debt-free. ::golf clap::
I made a promise to myself that in March I will use the money I would have spent on a loan payment to buy an exercise machine of some sort, then subsequent “loan payments” are going in the down-payment fund.
I’ve done a little (very little!) research into tread mills & stationary bikes, and I know that I can get one that would fit my budget ($500) but I’m not sure if the ones available for that price will be any good. I’m also willing to look at used equipment, but I don’t know what brands & models are good.
I’m trying to gather enough information so I don’t sound stupid or uninformed when I go to a shop to actually try these things out.
First question: what’s a good treadmill (I probably won’t want to run on it - just walk) or what does one look for in a treadmill? I don’t necessarily need a lot of bells & whistles. I doubt I want a folding one that I can hide under a bed.
Second question: what’s a good stationary bike or what does one look for in a stationary bike? How rough on your knees are stationary bikes?
Third question: What’s an elliptical machine? What do they do for you that bikes & treadmills don’t?
Fourth question: I live in a second floor apartment. The house was built about 1920, is sturdy & well kept. We have hard wood floors. How much noise do you think a bike or treadmill will make? I don’t want to bother the downstairs neighbors. I could put the machine in the basement, but that may affect how often I remember to use it.
Please offer me your wisdom & thoughts.
I am not a gym machine expert, but I do have some opinions
Exercise bikes are easy on your knees since there is no shock as you foot hits the ground like when you run on a treadmill. Treadmill are the hardest on your joints since there is an impact every time you foot hits the machine.
Elliptical machines are kind of a hybrid between a treadmill and bike. Little to no impact since your foot never leaves the foot pad. You also get the advantage of an upper body workout by grabing the moveable handlebars. If this causes your heart rate to spike too high, you can hold the stationary bars. If you want a totally different workout, use the machine in reverse. Your muscles get a whole different workout.
As far as what to look for, wear gym shoes and try them out. You will find that cheap treadmills are lightweight and will bounce and transmit a lot of vibration into the floor (you said you live on the 2nd floor, your neighbors might not like this)
Heart rate monitors are a nice feature, but you can also buy a Polar that you wear on your wrist.
Exercise programs are also real nice but not necessary. Lots of machines come with built in fans to blow air across your face. A very nice feature is your apt doesn’t have great air circulation.
Bikes and ellipticals are probably the most neighbor friendly, but a good treadmill is probably not going to create major problems.
If I had to buy one of the three you listed, I think I would go for the elliptical. No impact, and I can work the upper body as well.
You might check out Craig’s list for used machines. Lots of people buy them and never use them.
My younger brother uses a treadmill. When we are at our parents home it shakes the whole house because he is upstairs. When we lived together on a one floor apartment I could barely hear him (it was the same treadmill). So it could be bothersome for people below you, but probably not for people next door to you. I don’t know much about treadmills either but my brother told me that the good ones were expensive, at least $600 or so. The ones below that supposedly have motor problems. I don’t know how true that is though.
A stationary bike sounds like a better idea. I’ve never had any knee problems from using one.
elliptical machines are like cross country skiing devices. I don’t like them as it is harder to read while using one.
I uses the treadmill since last 6 months and have the best one benefits out there…
I also do the walking, running, jogging and weight lifting… That helps much…
Never buy any of this equipment new - unless you’ve really got money to burn. It can always be found in various places for dirt cheap as people discovered that they never use them.
Not that you won’t of course, but do you live somewhere that’s particularly cold? Otherwise running outside is pretty fun.
So howsabout an update, then? Did you get a machine? Did it work for you? Did it bug the neighbors? Did it fall through the floor onto their dining room table in the middle of their fancy dinner party in classic slapstick fashion?
I didn’t do anything about exercise equipment based on the thread because we went into house-buying mode not long after the thread. We bought a second/third floor condo instead of a single family, though, so all my original concerns still exist. I am still interested in exercise equipment but am thinking of putting it in the cellar because that won’t bother the 1st floor neighbor.
I had a used exercise bike for a while, barely used it, gave it away.
Get something you can use while being around your partner or while watching TV; it makes it much more likely that you will actually use them. Maybe a Wii Fit or some hand weights. Sounds silly, but something small that you will use is better than something big that you won’t.
A treadmill might be useful if you need somewhere to hang your clothes while they dry.
how much room do you have and how wide are the stairs and interior doors of your place. You need to get a rubber floor mat to put under it. this reduces noise, wear and tear on the floor and helps reduce dust/lint/dirt build up on the interior of the machine. if you go with an eliptical, you want to get a used and refurbished commercial precor brand machine. I say precor specifically because they make the best quality commercial elipticals on the market and the used ones are a bargain. the price will vary with the cost of refurbishment but usually you can pick them up for $1000 or less (should be able to anyway) used treadmills, commercial or otherwise you will pretty much get what you pay for, the best, simplest stationary bike is the schwinn, or a spin bike also, maybe think about a rowing machine. most of those are pretty simple construction. if you decide to buy new, keep in mind that there can be up to 1000% mark up depending on who you buy from (new can run you from $1500 all the way up to $10000 for one peice depending on what you get)
Advice from one who used to work for a local fitness equipment retailer
gack should read before posting. missed the edit. you probably want to buy from a dedicated fitness retailer that is manufacture certified and has service contracts with the local gyms (this way you know they know what they are doing) precor, matrix, tetrix, schwinn, lifefitness are a few of the major brands for aerobic excercise gear (cannot remember the name of the rowing machine brand) you probably want to stay away from anything you get at sears/walmart/ikea/costco where ever you do you dept. store shopping, that $300-$500 you spend will be wasted. if you go with a stationery (ary?) bike, I’d recommend one of the schwinn models with a fan wheel (helps keep you cool as you work out).
As far as stationary bikes go, if you already have a bike, you may want to consider a trainer. It’s certainly less expensive and easier to store when not in use (assuming you already have bike storage) and then on beautiful days, you can get outdoors and get some exercise.
