Cross Trainers

A cross trainer (or elliptical trainer as they are also known) is a fantastic piece of exercise equipment as it exercises most of your body and so you will see lots of benefits from using a cross trainer.

With a cross trainer you move the handle bars back and forth with your arms and peddle the foot rests with your feet, they are both connected to the same mechanism and so you balance the effort of your arms and legs to move the cross trainer. They mimic running in harsh conditions due to the resistance and so are great training for runs outdoor adventures.

Look for the amount of levels of resistance that are available with the cross trainer that you choose as it is always better to have more as you will have a finer control over the amount of resistance. You should start on a low resistance and slowly build this up as you become fitter and this also applies to the time that you spend on the cross trainer; you should do at least 30 minutes but we say aim for 1 hour for a really good work out.

Also look at the information that the LCD console offers as this is very useful with some offering all kinds of information including the time that you have completed so far, the amount of calories that you have burnt, the speed that you are exercising, the distance that you have covered and your current heart rate.

Some also have programmes which alters the resistance at set intervals which can make for a much more effective work out because the body has to adjust every time the resistance changes. And the type of resistance is also important as the magnetic cross trainers are of a better quality and will generally last longer but most are magnetic these days.

© Healthy Is Easy.co.uk 2008

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