Proform 700 'space saver' elliptical cross trainer: anyone tried this?

A question about : Proform 700 'space saver' elliptical cross trainer: anyone tried this?

Hi All,

Am looking to buy a cross trainer and this particular model appeals as it folds up to save space when not in use. Am trying to post a link but struggling, so though I'd post anyway just on the off chance that someone recognises the model and has one!

Will continue to attempt the link....

Thank you for reading :-)

Best answers:

• I am also looking into buying a cross trainer. So am interested in the response. I am in a quandary buy a cross trainer or get a gym membership.
• Sadly if it fits under the bed or in a cupboard it will stay there. In my opinion it is better left out to remind you to use it. Even if it is in the way. It will just sit there nagging you to use it.
• The Proform 700 doesn't fold up completely, so as to fit under a bed or in a cupboard, just looks like the 'wheel' bit and pedals fold up, thereby just giving a bit of extra floor space when not in use. If I have exercise equipment though, having shelled out for it, I always use it! )
  I'm also weighing up the pros and cons of home exercise or gym membership: it's a very individual decision.
• I've used a cross-trainer pretty much daily at home (30mins) for over 10 years, and you definitely get what you pay for.
  Here's my chronology ;-)
  1. 'Orbitrek' clone from Argos (Ј80 I think). Was a glorified coathanger for 6 months. Once I decided to use it daily it was a wobbly/noisy mess and I gave up. Sold it to a friend for Ј20 but I think it was on its last legs.
  2. 'Steph Davis Fitness' machine bought over the internet (Ј175). Magnetic movement, seemed so smooth. Broke within 6 months. Sent it back to them to be fixed, broke again after another 3. Ended up scrapping it.
  3. Kettler Verso machine (s) (Ј300). Initially great, and amazing customer service from Kettler. Machine would break every 6 months or so. I ended up having 3 engineer visits, 2 complete replacement machines, and umpteen spare parts sent to me, even after the 3-year warranty was up. The same faults would occur over and over (welds on front of 'ski' would snap, or main vertical frame would crack).
  4. Spirit Fitness machine (Ј600). My current one. Seems to be built like a tank, the parts are so incredibly heavy, reassuringly so when I assembled it. I've had it 3 years now with no hint of a fault, though it's not quite as silent as it used to be. This one has a 10 year warranty and lifetime for the frame, and so far looks like I won't be needing it!
  Not sure what the Proform is like, but from my experience check out how heavy and well made the parts are, especially the welds as the majority of the failures I've had were with welded joints suddenly giving way mid-workout (not good!).
  PS I've never set foot in a gym. Having a machine at home has always appealed and I now look forward to my 'daily half hour' (I usually put something on iPlayer etc and the time flies by).
• Realistically the vast majority of workout machines become clothes horses. I have an exerciycle which I use when I am recovering from a running injury, which just happens to be the case for me right now. I've got an IT band injury and am taking 3 days off from running and, as the gym is closed today as it was yesterday, I can't go there and use the cross trainer.
  But I will say this. Such machines are incredibly boring and were it not for entertainment such as tv or the occasional iPod I wonder if I could stand using them at all. Although that said, I love a good workout on a treadmill. No accounting for taste.
  Anyway, where I'm heading with all this is, if you buy such a thing as an elliptical it's a good idea to make sure you'll use it. Know thyself, as Plato said.
• I laugh out loud when I hear the salesperson of these types of machines when they say they fit under the bed. A month after delivery 90% of the machines spend ALL their time.....under the bed.