SAN FRANCISCO, Ca., August 7 — You love the fitness benefits of running; you hate the toll it takes on your body. Maybe nothing makes you feel quite as accomplished as a good five-mile trek, but nothing makes your knees or back quite as achy, either. You’ll just have to suck it up and keep on pounding, right? Wrong.
Mercantila Does Elliptical Trainers!
How did a former tobacco company revolutionize the fitness market? In the Beginning. Ever heard of Amer Sports? Didn’t think so. Ever heard of Precor? As in, the name splashed all over your gym’s rows of elliptical trainers? Well, Amer Sports is Precor’s parent company, and it began in 1950 as a diversified industrial corporation that did things like manufacture plastics and grow tobacco. Luckily for everyone who’s ever broken a sweat, Amer Sports had a little change of heart in the 1990s — they called it “undergoing structural changes” — and turned its attention solely to sporting goods. In 1995, this focus took the innovative form of the first elliptical trainer — a revolutionary low-impact workout machine that used an oval striding motion and variable resistance levels — and a boom was born.
Innovations
The Holy-crap-these-things-are-cool reaction hit the fitness market immediately. Two years after Precor’s unveiling, Reebok added upper-body handles for total-body training; now it’s hard to find machines without an upper-body option. Other brands have hopped in with their own special manufacturing details and touches — and an emphasis on creating affordable models sized and priced to fit your home. And think of it this way: you don’t need to pay monthly dues to use your own fitness phenom, and you don’t have to buy new running shoes every six months.
What’s In It For You?
Happy joints. Are you one of those sentimentalists who might miss the gritted-teeth joy of a dripping ice bag? Maybe you need an excuse to support your Advil stock? Forget ellipticals; you just keep right on pounding that asphalt, tiger. (Also, when you go to pick up something heavy, don’t bother bending your knees.)
Healthy heart. Cardio benefits? Are you kidding? Tons of these machines offer programs designed to cater to your heart rate. Just pick a target zone, and stride away. (But not with blind faith, silly. Use the heart monitor or pulse sensors. They’re included for a reason.)
Hardy bones. Higher bone density helps ward off osteoporosis. Elliptical training builds bone density. Which of these DOES NOT help prevent osteoporosis: a) calcium; b) elliptical trainers; c) the Pythagorean Theorem? (P.S. If you guessed c), you should know that exercise stimulates brain activity. We’re just saying.)
Harmony in motion. Okay, so the motion’s smooth. Right, right. Low impact. You’ve got it. But did you know that most ellipticals offer simultaneous upper-body training too? Which leads us to another question:
Hey, have you lost weight? Don’t answer that. Just let the sequence of words wash over you for a minute. Now go find that pair of jeans you’ve been saving for a lighter, happier day.
Meet your match:
What’s not to love about elliptical trainers? Honestly, nothing. And now that we’ve befuddled you with a good, solid double negative, you can either read about the market for clarification or just skip to our favorites:
| Top gun: Schwinn 418; $999.00 |  We slobber over both the LifeCore Fitness LC-980 and LC-990, but there's no denying the mass, market-shattering appeal of the 418's blend of fluidity, programming, warranty backing, and brand reliability. (Psst: we've even got some in stock. Hurry.) | | Top saver: Hudson EL3300; $539.99 |  Okay, so you have to make some sacrifices at the price. Stride length? No, that’s actually quite good. Resistance control? We’ll be jiggered; it’s electronic. Program variety? Huh. Seven options. You don’t say. A-ha! Turns out you need FOUR batteries to power the console. And this calls itself a great value. (Exchanging snide high-fives.) | | | Save & Share |  Save 10% on Ellipticals over $1,000!
Get 10% off any Elliptical Trainer order over $1,000. Enter Coupon code ELPTL45 at checkout. Coupon valid through 8/14/2006 at | | |
| Top Brand | Wait a minute – they only sell two ellipticals. Oh, that’s right. They’re the top two ellipticals… which isn’t to say they’re the most expensive, or the most deluxe, or whatever. But once you spend a little time with the Schwinn that catches your eye – well, you just know. (Be warned: thousands of people are thinking the exact same thing. You might want to be proactive, there, killer.)
The Schwinn Store | |
| Penny For Your Thoughts? |  We sell a lot of stuff. Is there any particular line of products that's always mystified / fascinated you? (Go on, admit it. We're retail freaks. We're into this.)
Tell us why you're so curious -- give us a good enough story, and we'll give you the inside scoop. (Nobody wants pennies these days anyway.) Send your reply to readers@mercantila.com | | |
