Uphill Skiing-Nordic style (Nordic Treadmill and Cross Trainer 8561TM-4)

Member Name: rachpirt

Product:	Nordic Treadmill and Cross Trainer 8561TM-4
Date:	31/01/08 (1122 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: It folds up so you can store it easily

Disadvantages: The angle of the belt

I have mixed feelings about my Nordic Cross Trainer.....I guess it depends on what you are looking for in a cross trainer...

I bought this cross trainer just after I had my Son. I was attracted to the fact that it folds away and that you can exercise your arms as well as do your usual running/walking. This is a traditional manual treadmill design which also features arms at either side that you push back and forward, this gives the feeling of cross country skiing. You can use this as a cross trainer or as a regular treadmill which I find I do often.

--Buying/Constructing the Cross Trainer--

I purchased the Cross trainer from eBay, I paid £89.99 from a seller called Furniture Direct. When the item arrived it came in one large (heavy) box. In the box were the cross trainer workings, screws and nuts, lubricant for underneath the belt, a computer which was going to tell me how hard I was working and the instructions

I set to work putting the cross trainer together. The instructions were very clear and all in all, I felt that it was very easy to put together. It was a little heavy and would recommend you had a willing volunteer to hold the belt up for you when you screwed it together. It helped that it was very logical in terms of which part went where, and that I am the general flat pack builder of the household! (I am used to building lots of things). One the Cross trainer was built it was time to adjust the tension, this is easy to do as it involved putting an Alan key into the holes at the front and turning a few times to improve the tension. I would also recommend that you lubricate the back of the treadmill before use as it can stick quite a bit when you first use it.

--Using the Cross trainer --

The instruction book is very helpful. It not only helps you construct and adjust the cross trainer, but it also gives you stretching exercises to do before and after, and some suggestions of how to train using the item.

Initially it was really weird using the cross trainer, it recommends that you get used to the motion by walking and not using the cross trainer arms. This advice I followed, I found it very different indeed using a manual treadmill. I am used to the automatic ones that most gyms use. This is different, the belt is at an acute angle to the floor, and does not adjust. You are therefore always going up hill, which is fine but it does take it out on your thighs. It means you cannot really do a nice cool down so that you are not putting lots of strain on your thigh muscles.

When you integrate this with the cross training arms it can feel a bit tricky at first. Again it is very different from the cross trainer machines at the gym. I have found that the tension on the arms is not stiff enough, even though I have it adjusted to the highest setting. This results in arms going too quickly to match the movement of your legs, this also means that you start to get a bit out of sync. I think I prefer automatic cross trainers.

The computer is easy and simple to use which is good, it makes it very easy to track the progress you are making. You can set your training according to distance in km, time, calories used, and heart rate. The heart rate is measured by the sensors on the static handles which you have to hold on to, to get a reading. You can also get the computer to display all of these as you are training.

I tend to use the cross trainer at least twice a week and more if I get the chance.

--Progress --

I feel that purchasing this item has helped to improve my general fitness. Although it has taken a few weeks to get used to using a manual trainer it has been helpful. I can go for longer and I feel that I am able to move faster as a result. However part of me wishes that I had purchased an automatic cross trainer and sacrificed the space!

Summary: This has helped to improve my fitness, so I really should stop moaning!