What you should know about Crosstrainers / Ellipticals:

Since the late 90th crosstrainers also called ellipticals have become one of the most popular fitness machines for cardio training. With their elliptical movement they mimic the natural walking motion and when using the moving handlebars they also offer an upper body workout. Training on a crosstrainer is very easy on the joints and by moving the lower and upper body simultaneously more calories are being burned than when using a fitness bike. High leverage develops as a result of how a crosstrainer is constructed and a solid frame construction and high quality components are essential to guarantee continued enjoyment of your crosstrainer. Smooth Fitness, rooted in the country with the world’s largest fitness market, offers only the highest quality in crosstrainers. They are engineered and built to offer long lasting training enjoyment.

Before you decide on a crosstrainer you should ask yourself the following questions:

How will the Crosstrainer / Elliptical be used?

• How often will the unit be used:
  Do not just think of yourself but also take into consideration that other family members and friends might use the crosstrainer.
• User weight:
  What is the weight of the heaviest person using the crosstrainer? For a body weight starting at 90 – 100kg choosing a very solid frame construction is essential. It is definitely advisable to have a buffer between the max user weight of the machine and the weight of the heaviest user.
• Size of the crosstrainer:
  How tall is the tallest user? The taller the person the longer their stride. Beginning with a user height of 180 cm a crosstrainer with larger dimension and a stride length of at least 45 cm should be chosen to allow for a comfortable body position and fluid movement.

What you should know about Crosstrainers / Ellipticals:

Frame construction: An often underestimated but very important component of a high quality crosstrainer is a solid frame construction. The leverage affecting the crosstrainer is extremely high. A weak frame construction can result in twisting which in turn leads to squeaking pivot points and welded seams that break. The double upright construction of the Smooth models CE 2.1 and 3.2 as well as the extremely large diameter tubes of the CE 7.4 guarantee high stability even for a heavier and taller user.

Pivot Points: High quality crosstrainers offer pivot points that have double ball bearings to allow for a smooth operation without jerking and squeaking.

Stride length: A crosstrainer with a larger stride length allows for a more natural movement that is easier on the joints. Crosstrainers with the flywheel in the rear, a large disk and long frame construction achieve a longer and shallower ellitpical movement. A stride length of more than 40 cm is desirable.

Braking system: High quality crosstrainers offer an electromagnetic braking system that generates frictionless resistance using magnetic force.

Flywheel mass: Extremely important for a smooth and fluid operation. High quality crosstrainers have a flywheel mass of at least 20 kgs.

Distance between pedals: A narrow distance between the pedals allows for a natural body – and walking position. This is only possible with a longer frame construction where the pedals can be brought together in front of the rotating disk. If the pedals are mounted to far apart the user stands with legs widely separated which increases the strain on the joints.

Cushioning: The cushioning of the footrests also leads to decreased impact. The Smooth models CE 2.1, 3.2, 7.4 use the innovative ergonomic pivoting foot pedal which has a cushioning effect as well as it supports the natural up and down movement of the foot.

Heart rate monitoring: There are three types of heart rate sensors:

• ear clip sensor
• hand pulse sensors
• chest strap

Using an ear clip sensor is not very accurate and additionally not suitable for a work out on a crosstrainer. For this reason most manufactures do not offer this type of heart rate monitoring with their crosstrainers
Measuring the heart rate via hand pulse is only feasible it the sensors are located on the moving handlebars otherwise the pulse cannot be recorded continuously. This involves more complex engineering and therefore is only available on high quality models. The hand pulse measurement does not have the accuracy of a chest strap.