Life Fitness Cross Trainers
A cross trainer or elliptical trainer by Life Fitness as they are also known, is designed to simulate walking or running without causing excessive pressure to the joints, hence decreasing the risk of impact injuries. A cross trainer is designed to provide a cardiovascular workout rather than build muscle.
If your goal in training is to lose weight then a Life Fitness cross trainer, may be the ideal piece of fitness equipment for you. Depending on the intensity, you can burn more calories with a cross trainer compared with a treadmill or exercise bike, as a cross trainer can enable you to burn up to 8 to 12 calories a minute. Many of the latest cross trainers have screen monitors, which allow you to monitor your progress and feedback calorie burn, BMI and body fat percentage.
Life Fitness Cross trainers are perfect for a low impact way to tone all of your upper and lower body at the same time. Legs and arms are worked on whilst your stomach and sides are flexed with twisting motions creating toned abs. This all-over workout is what burns calories more effectively than when using many other pieces of fitness equipment such as treadmills and rowing machines. Life Fitness Cross Trainers optimise your cardiovascular fitness whilst providing a total body workout routine, with the varied range of body movement building flexibility. We recommend you use a cross trainer a few times a week, this will aid the improvement of your general fitness.
A good example of a cross trainer workout is the interval training workout 'Sprint 8' that can be found on Vision Fitness cross trainers. The workouts are pre-programmed and designed to improve your fitness quickly and also to burn fat and aid weight loss. The 'Sprint 8' works by aiding your bodies production of the human growth hormone which strips fat and gives you a slim and healthy body.
When purchasing a Life Fitness Cross Trainer there are several factors that you should take into consideration.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Warranty – As with any other piece of home fitness equipment be sure to check the warranty on a cross trainer before making your purchase. Usually most cross trainer warranties range from 1 to 3 years which often includes both parts and labour warranties, as this ensures that you wont have to repair the cross trainer yourself if something was to go wrong with it. Certain cross trainers by selected fitness brands often come with a lifetime warranty on the frame.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Space – Cross trainers are fairly compact when compared to other pieces of home fitness equipment, so they require less space within your home. Although cross trainers are fairly compact we recommend that you have enough room to place the cross trainer as well as half a meter or so either side of the cross trainer to ensure you can perform your workout in comfort.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer User/Users - It is important to consider who will be using the cross trainer. Different types of users may have certain types of requirements. A heavy user will have to check the maximum user weight of the cross trainer, a tall user is likely to need a longer strider area and higher handles to make the workout comfortably. A cross trainer workout is low impact and smooth which makes cross trainers suitable for most people as they don't put too much strain on your body and joints. For those who are overweight and over 60 we recommend that you consult your GP before undertaking exercise.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Types of Cross Trainers– Cross trainers come in three variations.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Front Wheel Cross Trainers- Due to the stride difference, there is a small shift in muscle usage between the rear wheel models and the front wheel models. The front wheel will cause the legs to turn over at a steeper angle which can cause the legs to move in a stair stepper like fashion. The rear wheel housing allows for a longer stride, which tends to feel more like jogging.On a front wheel cross trainer you have a tendency of leaning forward, this won't impact on your workout but it should be put into consideration as you should adopt a workout position which is most comfortable for you.
Front wheel cross trainers tend to be more expensive due to their mechanics and their overall design. The reason for this is on a front wheel cross trainer your weight is centered at the rear of the machine on the pedals, so front wheel cross trainers use a roller and track system to support the weight. Secondly, in order to form the arm movements which you have on a cross trainer a front wheel cross trainer has to be designed to coordinate the movement of both arms as well as both pedals around the mechanism.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Rear Wheel Crosstrainers - The position of the wheel on a cross trainer does not make a huge amount of difference on the way in which the cross trainer effects the body and your workout. The only difference is the stride difference, there is a small shift in muscle usage between the rear wheel models and the front wheel models.
Rear wheel crosstrainers can have more of a jogging or walking type motion then when compared to front wheel cross trainers, due to their longer stride motion.
On a rear wheel crosstrainer you are usually more centered where as on a front wheel cross trainer you have a tendency of leaning forward, this won't impact on your workout but it should be put into consideration as you should adopt a workout position which is most comfortable for you.
Due to the mechanics of rear wheel crosstrainers they have less parts so there are less parts to service if something was to go wrong with a rear wheel crosstrainer.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Commercial Cross Trainers – Commercial cross trainers are ideally suited for use within commercial establishments such as gyms, health clubs and fitness halls. Although commercial models are more often than not used in gyms and health clubs, many home users prefer to purchase a commercial cross trainers as they often represent and embody the highest quality, advanced features that you can get on cross trainers, similar to the standards you find in gymnasiums.
Each variation of cross trainers have their advantages and some disadvantages but it really just depends on your preference, your fitness requirements and the quality of the cross trainer.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Resistance - There are two different ways to control resistance on cross trainers manually and electronically. The lower the resistance the easier the stride movement and the higher the resistance the more difficult the stride movement. The more levels of resistance on a cross trainer the greater the variety for your workout. The resistance levels give you a variety of options such as, using a low resistance level at high speed to increase the heart rate. Or you could use a high resistance level at low speed to increase the heart rate, this will also improve muscle tone in the lower parts of the body, but will not increase stress impact.
Although both resistance control options are extremely easy to use, electronic resistance has the benefit of often coming with heart rate control program, this automatically change the resistance and intensity of the workout to keep you in your target heart rate zone.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Programmes - Most cross trainers come with workout programmes. Workout programmes are a fantastic way to keep yourself motivated during your training as workout programmes offer a wide variety of fitness routines. If you find that you get bored easily whilst exercising, it may be worth investing in a cross trainer which has a range of fitness programmes as this could help you enjoy your workout out more and increase your motivation. Some cross trainers have as many as 20 workout programmes. Workout programmes are invaluable as they offer detailed feedback, safety, variety and allow you to monitor your progress. Some cross trainers have pre set programmes which are designed to work on specific elements such as cardiovascular strengthening or weight loss. These are fixed in time length and the computer will vary the speed and incline. Heart rate training programmes are extremely popular as it has been proven that they aid weight loss and improve performance and provided a safer more controlled workout. The latest programme is user programming which enables you to store your individual workout data as well as enabling you to design your own personal workout programme to suit your workout requirements. The amount of personal data which a cross trainer can store ranges from 1 set of data to 5.
Life Fitness Cross Trainer Dual action - Dual action motion on a cross trainer is simply the backwards or forwards motion. A dual-action crosstrainer has handlebars that move simultaneously with the pedals to work both your upper and lower body at the same time.
