Find your ideal elliptical cross trainer

So, you're ready to join the elliptical cross trainer craze, huh? Excellent decision! Elliptical trainers are the best all-around fitness machines made, not just exercise-wise but money-wise as well. They're ideal for all workouts, whether you're into strength training, sports training, or weight loss. These machines beat the heck out of the standard treadmill or stair-stepper, because treadmills and stairs-steppers focus on one part of the body: namely, the legs. While running and walking are excellent cardiovascular workouts, they don't hold a candle to elliptical exercise. Elliptical fitness equipment exercises the legs, arms, back, and just about everything else, from your abs to your gluteus maximus.

What's this elliptical thing, anyway?

Studies in the 1990s proved that the most effective sports are those like walking, running, and cross-country skiing: sports that repeat motions in an elliptical pattern (an ellipse is basically a squashed circle). Treadmills and similar fitness equipment provide some elliptical benefit, but it turns out that cross-country skiing is much more effective. That's why many elliptical machines look a lot like cross-country ski rigs. Their full-body motion is the key to building strength throughout the body with a single daily workout.

So, how much will an elliptical cost me?

What price fitness? The truth is, a good piece of elliptical exercise equipment won't cost you any more than a decent treadmill. Considering that you get a better workout, that's a bargain. And like just about any item, the price range is quite wide. You can get a useful folding cross trainer for less than $500, but if your budget allows, why not investigate the upscale machines? A good elliptical machine with electronic readouts can be had for $1,000 or so.