Elliptical Trainer or Elliptical Bike?

So you’re in the market for some kind of fitness equipment for your home and maybe you’re torn between and elliptical trainer and elliptical bike.

What’s the difference? Which is better and which should you go with?

Well, there are advantages and disadvantages to each. Plus it really depends on your personal situation, your budget and who else lives in your home. Let’s break down your options here:

 

 

Elliptical Bike

For the sake of this post, we’re going to assume we’re talking about a machine that can be used as an elliptical trainer – and as an exercise bike. But not both at the same time – either or. Something like the Proform hybrid trainer seen below.

The advantages to this over an elliptical is obviously that you get 2 machines for the price of one. If you want to change up your fitness routine, having 2 machines to choose from every day instead of one is a great option to have.

 

 

 

If you feel extra energized one day you can really rock out on the elliptical trainer. But if you’re a bit tired and you just want to relax a bit and take it easy, you can use the recumbent bike portion. It’s good to have choices.

Plus if you have other people in your family who prefer one over the other, everyone can choose the best machine for them. So it’s a win-win if you have family members whom you don’t want fighting over the fitness equipment.

I also found, for some reason, that these machines tended to be smaller than a regular elliptical trainer. Some elliptical trainers are gigantic in size, it’s crazy. But these machines take up a lot less space.

So a lot of elliptical bikes would fit nicely into a small apartment or basement.

 

 

Elliptical Trainer

The elliptical trainer has benefits as well however. The first one is that it tends to be better at being an elliptical trainer than an elliptical bike.

What I mean by this is that it tends to have a more ergonomic feel and design than an elliptical bike (provided you get a high quality elliptical). That means that with longer workouts you will have less strain on your hips or knees and you’ll probably feel more comfortable afterwards.

Also, I found the stride lengths tended to be longer on an elliptical trainer – which means you’ll get more fully extended running motion out of your lower body workout. This can also mean a more optimal workout and faster results.

 

 

Another benefit I noticed is that the front control panels on these trainers tended to be larger and easier to read.

They also had a lot more gadgets on them for entertainment like iPod jacks and speakers or multiple speed fans. So the comfort factor is a bit higher on a standard elliptical.

Finally I also observed that the footpedals are much better on a crosstrainer. In the sense that you can get adjustable footpedals where you easily adjust the toe-heel angle.

You can get ones that articulate through the motion to support your foot. This again makes for a more comfortable workout.

So those are some of the differences between an elliptical and an elliptical bike. If you’re still not sure, try going to a few sports fitness stores and trying out the different models.

You might find something that really gels with you and that you could see yourself using for many years to come.  And don’t let any salesperson pressure you into buying! There are always good deals to be had wherever you go!

 

 

 

How To Research and Find the Best Elliptical Bikes

 

Looking for the best elliptical bike or elliptical trainer? That’s tough to find. There are a lot of options out there and everyone has a different opinion it seems.

Of course there are some decent review sites out there. And they are definitely worth your time.

 

 

But you could also spend a lot of time reviewing different machines and reading different opinions.

I found it pays to know a few things yourself so you can cut through the clutter and really see if an elliptical bike or trainer is the best option for you:

 

#1 Know Your Budget

There’s no point reading about some $2000 commercial machine and how wonderful it is if your budget it $800. Know your budget and stick to it. Will you get a better machine if you spend a bit more? Probably yes.

But you also don’t want to pay more than you have and go into debt. It’s just not worth it and you have some great options that are very affordable these days anyways. So why would you want to spend money you don’t have?

 

 

#2 Know Your Goals

What’s your purpose in buying an elliptical bike? Do you want to burn calories and lose weight? Do you want to get back into shape? Do you want the convenience of home exercise?

I know one guy who bought an elliptical bike just to control his blood sugars (he was a diabetic). So he only rode it when he needed to get his blood sugars down. That was it.

By knowing your purpose for buying the machine, you’re more likely to be able to cut out the models you don’t need and zero in on the ones that will help you reach your goals.

 

#3 Know Your Space Limitations

How much room do you have? Have an idea of the length and width of the machine you can comfortably fit a trainer inside.

Also, consider your ceiling height as well. This is especially so for the elliptical trainer, not really for the bike portion.

Take the tallest user height and add that to the elliptical step on height. After that add another half a foot or so and you have the ceiling height you’ll need.

I found that most ceilings of 8 or 9 feet were fine for any elliptical trainer I looked at. But if you have a ceiling height of 7 feet like some basements, you’ll have to be extra careful.

 

 

#4 Know Your Attention Span

This may sound funny but it’s true. If you get easily bored like I do, you’ll want a machine you can easily fit in front of your TV.

Or maybe you want one that has a tablet holder so you can use your tablet and watch Netflix or YouTube.

I found that some elliptical trainers even had built-in web browsers. So you could go online and read the latest news or celebrity gossip as you work out – which is great for people who don’t want to know that they’re working out.

 

So those are 4 things you need to know when you’re researching ellipticals and looking for the best elliptical bike or elliptical trainer.

Knowing these things ahead of time will help you sift through your options and find the best fit for your needs. Good luck!

 

Resources:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/ellipticals/buying-guide.htm

Proform Hybrid Trainer – An Elliptical Bike with Promise

The Proform Hybrid Trainer – seen below – is one of the first elliptical bikes I looked at when I was first shopping for our own home elliptical bike.

It’s very popular and had a lot of things going for it. Here’s a rundown of what you need to know:

 

Use As Both Elliptical Trainer and Bike

This is a 2-in-1 machine.  You can use it as an elliptical trainer. Or you can make a few quick changes to the pedals and console and use it as a recumbent bike.

It has an easy to move seat so you can find the right pedal to hip ratio.  And there’s also a simple console that gives you feedback on your speed, calories burned, heart rate and more.

 

16 Different Levels of Resistance

This is a decent amount of resistance. When I tried it out I certainly found I couldn’t go past the 4th level – so there was plenty of challenge there.

It is digital resistance and you can change the level pretty easily from the front panel.

 

Pedals

The pedals on this trainer are oversized with traction beads on them for better grip. I find them pretty large and easy to find a comfortable position.

They are great when you’re in the elliptical position. But when you’re using it as a recumbent bike, well, it’s not as good as a regular recumbent bike with straps on the pedals I found. Then again, for a machine under $400, what can you expect really.

 

 

Front Console

The console is small but you can still read it. There’s also a holder that the sales guy told me I could use for my tablet.

If I had a tablet this would be great. Apparently you can attach your tablet and watch tv shows or movies on your tablet. Since I was going to set it up in front of the TV anyways, this wasn’t an issue. However I could see that some people would like it.

 

iFit

This is another feature I couldn’t get my head around. But apparently you can connect the trainer to your wireless internet and go online to store your workout information.

You can also track and graph different fitness goals. Again, this would be a fine thing if I was a computer techno-geek. But I’m just a guy looking for a good elliptical bike. So I don’t think I’d use this option.

 

 

Heart Rate

There are two grip sensors on either side of the console that you can use to take your heart rate. They’re pretty accurate, although they ‘re a bit of a reach if you’re using it in bike mode.

 

16 Built-in Workouts

There are 16 workouts that come with this trainer. They guide you through the workout and change the resistance automatically.

If you are looking for a challenge, this might be a great option for you to try. Apparently you can also download new workouts if you get iFit mentioned above as well.

 

 

 

 

Drawbacks:

According to a few experts reviews I read, the stride on this elliptical isn’t as wide as it should be. That means if you’re taller you might find it a bit uncomfortable.

Also, Proform has another Hybrid Trainer model called the Hybrid Pro that is a bit better with better pedals and a longer stride. So that might be better suited to a taller user.

 

So is it the best elliptical bike on the market?

No – but it’s pretty good. You get to use it as both an elliptical and as a recumbent bike.

It’s a lot better than a lot of the cheap, flimsy elliptical bikes from China that seem to be flooding the market right now under various, unheard-of, brand names.

I tried it the Hybrid Trainer Bike in both modes and it seemed fairly comfortable as both a bike and an elliptical.

It was also pretty easy to move it back and forth between the elliptical setting and bike setting. So I imagine if you have kids that want to use this, they could handle it pretty easily as well.

And you really can’t argue with the price – that’s a darn good deal for 2 machines in one. The pedals could be a little better and the console is a little small for me. But overall I think it’s a pretty good value overall.

You can learn more about it here.

 

 

 

What Is An Elliptical Bike?

So now that we’ve covered elliptical trainers in the previous post here, let’s talk about elliptical bikes. What exactly is an elliptical bike?

Now this is confusing for a lot of people because manufacturers put a couple of different types of equipment under the same category and call them all an “elliptical bike”. Here’s a rundown of your options:

#1 An Elliptical – and a Bike

This type of elliptical works as both an elliptical trainer and as a bike. So you can use it as either an elliptical or as a recumbent bike – but never both at the same time.

Usually this means you have to make a few changes, move a few things around and snap a couple of other things into place to make the transformation complete. But the bottom line is you get two machines in one.

An example of this kind of elliptical bike is the Hybrid Trainer from Proform shown below. You’ll see that it can work as both:

The advantage to this is that you can get 2 exercise machines in one. Or two exercise machines for the price of one.

So you have different people in your home – one who wants a bike but another who wants an elliptical, this is the perfect option. Everybody gets what they want.

Another benefit is that these bikes tend to be recumbent bikes. And recumbent bikes can be a lot more comfortable than upright bikes. They are certainly more popular these days.

#2 An Upright Bike With Elliptical Arms

Another option when it comes to an elliptical bike is to get an upright bike that also comes with moving arms, similar to an elliptical trainer.

So you basically are buying a bike – but with the ability to train your arms as well. An example of this is seen in the Schwinn bike below:

The benefit to this is that these can be (but not always) cheaper than the 2-in-1 bike example above. This is not always the case however and it really depends on the quality of the bike you purchase.

The downside of course it that you don’t really get to use this as an elliptical trainer – it’s just a bike.

#3 Elliptical Bike Hybrid

This is kind of like #1 in that you can use it as both a bike or as an elliptical trainer.

But I thought I’d give it another category because these are the models that are dirt cheap. That’s the advantage. You can find a lot of them at Amazon or any cheapie department store. Here’s an example:

The advantage to these is that they are very affordable and technically you can use them as both an elliptical and as a bike.

However the disadvantage is that they are super-flimsy and usually not worth your time. As I found out the hard way, they break easily and are really poorly made.

They also don’t hold your body in an ergonomically correct position for either the bike or the elliptical setting. So you end up being very sore and in a lot of pain after your workout.

My advice?

Avoid these kinds of elliptical bikes like the plague! They will waste your time and money. And you’ll probably come out in pain after your first or second workout.

There is another elliptical bike on the market where you have a recumbent bike seat but move your legs back and forth like an elliptical trainer. Schwinn used to make one of these models.

But I can’t seem to find them anymore so I’m guessing they may not be available for sale at this time.

So those are your options when it comes to an elliptical bike. Most people like the first option best as it gives them the most choices.

I’m going to be talking about the best models for this in upcoming posts so stay tuned!