Elliptical - NordicTrack ASR 1000

Special Features:

ClearView™ Backlit Console

    Perfectly clear and easy to read, the ClearView™ display has a large viewing angle so no matter how tall or short you are, you can always keep track of your workout progress. It displays your time, speed, distance, resistance, pulse and calories burned.
SMR™ Silent Magnetic Resistance

    This smooth, frictionless resistance system allows you to adjust your workout intensity without interrupting your workout. Choose from twenty resistance levels to target specific workout and conditioning goals.
Club Design CardioGrip™ Heart Rate Monitor

    Make the most out of every workout by monitoring your heart rate with these sensors that are built into the handlebars to ensure you are in the right training zone for your goals.

20 Personal Trainer Workouts, 2 Weight Loss Workouts

    The ASR 1000 comes with 20 Personal Trainer workouts that automatically adjust the resistance of the elliptical to focus on aerobic, weight loss, and performance goals. It also includes 2 Weight Loss workouts that help you burn the maximum calories in the least amount of time.

iFIT® Workout Card Technology

    Lose weight, feel great and improve performance in just 8-weeks with ifit® interactive workout card technology! Each card is designed by a Certified Personal Trainer and plugs directly into the elliptical's console, automatically adjusting your speed, while the voice of a personal trainer takes you through each workout. ifit® workout cards are available in Wellness and Weight Loss categories to give you the most advanced, interactive and result-specific fitness options.
      ** ifit workout cards are sold separately.

18" Stride Length

    Really work your muscles with the long 18" stride length that gives you a fuller range of motion.
Upper-Body Workout Arms With Soft Touch Grips

    Burn more calories and add muscle tone with the upper-body arms that provide a great total-body workout and increased cardio benefits.

Interplay™ Universal iPod® Dock

    Now you can plug in, charge and play your iPod* ® or virtually any MP3 player-while listening to your favorite music through 2 premium speakers.
      * iPod is a trademark of Apple, Inc., registered in the US and other countries. iPod® not included.
300-lb. User Capacity

    This heavy-duty elliptical is capable of accommodating 300 lbs, thus demonstrating it is as strong as it looks.
Commercial Grade Construction

    Get a gym-quality workout with a commercial-gauge steel frame, traction-control pedals, enhanced flywheel and more.
Digital Resistance

    Digital resistance allows you to adjust your workout resistance for increased calorie burn and higher intensity. It also works together with the Personal Trainer™ workouts to automatically control your resistance for great results.
Footprint

    31" Wide x 76" Long x 58" High

4 Game & Train™ Interactive Video Games & Touch Screen Technology

    Add excitement to your workout with Calorie Destroyer™, Fat Blocker™, Black Jack and Texas Hold 'Em. The harder you work, the easier the game becomes.

30° StrideMax™ Power Incline™ Ramp

    Your trouble spots have met their match. Get faster, better results with this ramp that hits grades of up to 30°, allowing you improve muscle activity for better results.

Treadmill - NordicTrack Elite 7000T

Product Specs:

DuraSoft Advanced™ Adjustable Cushioning

    Reduce impact by up to 33%, as compared to road running, with this full-length, adjustable cushioning system. Now, with virtually limitless settings, it's easier than ever to select the perfect cushioning for you. Whether you want a firmer, street-running feel, a softer, beach-like feel or anywhere in between, only DuraSoft Advanced™ Adjustable Cushioning lets you choose your own cushioning level.
Polar® Wireless Heart Rate Telemetry

    Track your heart rate hands-free with Polar® wireless telemetry, providing accurate heart rate readings via contact sensors. There are also two hand-grip sensors that are conveniently built into the treadmill's handlebars.

Workout Intensity Meter

    Stay on target and reach your workout goals with this built-in intensity meter, which uses your personal information, combined with the speed and incline of your treadmill, to determine your workout's level of intensity-displaying the results in a simple, multi-colored light meter.


DurX™ 2.5 HP Commercial Drive Motor

    The commercial-grade DurX™ motor allows you to exercise for longer periods of time, while maintaining smooth, consistent operation. Employing an internal fan, this motor reduces noise as it cools internal components and extends the motor's life. It is built for and will sustain runners. Bottom line: it's a premium, powerful motor that will exceed your expectations whether you run, jog or walk.
20" x 60" Commercial Treadbelt

    This heavy-duty, 2-ply commercial-grade treadmill belt is designed to operate more quietly than a normal treadbelt-giving you commercial quality that's perfect for the home. You'll find a phenolic coating on the 3/4" running deck that helps the belt slide for a quiet smooth workout. You won't be disappointed.
0-12 MPH 1-Touch™ Speed

    With a speed range of 0-12 MPH, this treadmill feature allows you to instantly adjust your speed up or down in 1 mph increments. If you are a runner, and know that 7.6 mph is just under a 7 min. mile, you can also scroll through mph by .1 mph.
0% to 12% 1-Touch™ Incline

    Tired of running, but still want a calorie burning, intense workout? Increase your incline! By increasing your incline, you burn calories at a faster rate and also reduce impact on your joints. This treadmill has a 12% incline capability that can be adjusted instantly with the single touch of a button. You'll be amazed at the calorie burning effects of an incline workout.
2.5" Precision Rollers

    Better than the standard roller, these precision-machined rollers reduce noise and help the treadmill operate smoothly and quietly. They are heavy-duty steel rollers, not aluminum. And, being as close to perfeclty round as is possible, these rollers provide you with a smooth and quiet workout.

350 LB. Weight Capacity

    Now able to accommodate weights up to 350 lbs., this sturdy new deck is our strongest to date and can withstand the heaviest of use.

Dimensions:

    Unfolded - 77" Long x 36" Wide x 56" High
    Folded - 52" Long x 36" Wide x 56" High

Special Features:

20 Personal Training, 2 Create & Save™ Workouts

    20 personal trainer workouts automatically adjust the incline and speed of your treadmill, each focusing on an aerobic, weight-loss or performance goal. 2 Create & Save™ workouts give you the ability to create and customize a workout and then save it for future use.
ifit® Workout Card Technology

    Simply insert an iFIT card and let our personal trainers do the rest. It really is like having a personal trainer right in your home. You'll be coached by the personal trainer's voice and your treadmill will be controlled for you.

iPod® Compatible Music Port with Speakers

    Motivated by music? Listen to your iPod or mp3 player through our Interplay premium sound speakers. The port is also equipped with a shelf that is great for storing your iPod.
      *iPod is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc. iPod sold separately.
Intermix Acoustics™ Sound System

    Discover the ultimate listening experience with Intermix Acoustics™. Integrated into the treadmill's console, this premium sound system combines high-end speaker and subwoofer components to give you the best in crystal-clear sound quality.

Grafixx™ Hi-Resolution Display

    Now, you can see your preferred workout information, such as calories, distance or elapsed time, at nearly 2" tall. This console can also visually display your heart beat or an animated figure walking, jogging or running through your workout with you. The Grafixx display also tracks your speed, time, distance, pulse and calories burned, plus allows you to choose which workout reading appears in the main display-giving you the information you want, when you want it.

CoolAire™ Workout Fan

    When we do customer reviews we are surprised to find out that one of the favorite features on our NordicTrack exercise equipment is the CoolAire Fan. You'll stay cool while you workout, allowing you to workout longer and reach your goals faster. It's built right into the console and has two speeds for your comfort.

Space SaverAirLight™ Shock with Self-Locking Latch

    This SpaceSaver® treadmill features an AirLight™ shock and a self-locking latch, making folding and unfolding your treadmill easier than ever before.

Converted home gyms get a workout

Four evenings a week for almost two hours, power lifter Bob Packer puts his body through a rigorous routine of strength training. There are no lines to use equipment, no monthly membership fees and no commute time.

Packer, 59, is one of a growing number of Americans choosing to work out at home. According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturing Association, between 2000 and 2006 there was about a 30 percent increase in the number of people who exercised at home, primarily due to aging baby boomers concerned about their health.

Packer converted a two- car garage into a hard-core strength-training gym when he moved to his Clovis, Calif., home a year-and-a-half ago. His $20,000 worth of equipment includes an eight-station machine with two weight stacks, 2,000 to 3,000 pounds of free weights, an assisted chin dip, bench press, squat rack and power cage. There also is carpet and a few wall mirrors. Packer trains in his gym with fellow power lifters.

"I like it because there are no distractions," says Packer, who is co-owner a fitness equipment shop in Fresno, Calif.

According to Kevin Mulligan, a partner and president of Image Homes, which builds homes in central California, rooms designed specifically for fitness have become a trend in the last five years. Image Homes offers a 15-by-15-foot bonus room option, which Mulligan says owners typically want to use for a gym or theater.

Features such as ballet barres, wall mirrors, electrical outlets closer to the ceiling for wall-mounted televisions and floor plugs for cardio machines are added to the fitness rooms.

"Bonus rooms are a huge seller in houses," Mulligan says. "The gyms are more popular than the theater room. People are into fitness."

According to the National Association of Home Builders, one-third of new and potential home buyers list a home exercise room as essential or desirable; these rank third behind offices and theaters as the most popular special-function room. Anthony Gamber, president of the Fresno Association of Realtors, says bonus rooms bump up the appeal of properties because people can choose what to use them for.

Henry Rodriguez, owner of Better Body Home Fitness in Fresno, says benefits of a home fitness room include convenience and a controlled environment.

"It's right there. There are no excuses for not working out other than being lazy," he says. "You set the air conditioning, the television and the music."

Mulligan, 53, works out four to five times a week in his home gym, a 10-by-12-foot space he added when he remodeled his tri-level Fresno home about five years ago; it sits off the garage on the lower level. Mulligan has about $4,000 worth of equipment, including a treadmill, elliptical machine, bench press, dumbbells, fitness bands and a television. Mulligan's wife, Jode, and children, Patrick, 23, Jenny, 22, and Kelly, 20, also use the room.

"It's convenient. It's quiet. It's private," says Kevin Mulligan, who belongs to gym and a country club, but prefers exercising at home. "It's my own little safe house to go to where no one bothers me."

There can be a drawback to exercising at home, says Derek Pennington, 21, who works at Busy Body Home Fitness in Fresno. "If you lack discipline, you can find ways to distract yourself," such as the couch or the refrigerator, he says.

Family also can be a distraction, Packer says, and they must understand that workout time is sacred. "This is your time. And it has to be a habit, not just something you do as a whim," he says.

Packer has seen about a 20 percent increase in the sale of home fitness equipment over the last five years.

Equipment costs vary depending on durability, warranties and options. It can be as simple as spending $25 for a jump-rope and strength-training exercise bands, Rodriguez says.

Or it can run more than $20,000 for a multistation weight machine, several pieces of cardio equipment and free weights. Rodriguez once outfitted a $36,000 room that included top-of-the-line cardio and strength training equipment, chrome dumbbells and orthopedically designed weight bars. But the average cost of equipment for a good home workout room, with a piece of cardio equipment and a weight machine, is around $2,000, Rodriguez says.

Packer recommends buying more than one piece of equipment. "Any type of exercise is better than nothing, but the fewer things you have at your convenience the more likely you are to get bored and stop doing it," he says. "Variety is a good thing when it comes to fitness."

However, there are several things to consider before buying any equipment.

"I always ask the customer: 'Who? What? Where?'" Rodriguez says.

"Who will use the equipment? What is it going to be used for? What are your goals? Are they weight loss, strength training, well-being? And where is it going to go? You need to make sure it fits in the space you have."

-dailyherald

Wii as a Weight-Loss Machine

When Publisher Tom Donnelly bought a Nintendo Wii for his – ahem – children, he and I spent an afternoon breaking it in over several competitive virtual tennis matches. Sweating in his living room, swinging the motion-sensitive controllers wildly, another co-worker filmed the duel to prove how absurd two grow men could look – or, maybe, to frame us one day. Now the company is rolling out Wii Fit, another way to trick gamers into exercising. But this time, it may not work.

Wii Fit will begin arriving in U.S. stores over the next few months. It includes a weight-and-motion sensing device called the Wii Balance Board. According to the Guardian, “Once stepped on, this board calculates a player’s bodymass index based on their weight, height and age. The player then carries out a few basic balance exercises on the board to gauge their rough level of fitness.”

Apparently, 1 million Wii Fits have already sold in Japan. But I’m leery of the device maintaining its early surge. After all, the Hawaii Chair, with the slogan, “If you sit, you can get fit” enjoyed some early popularity before being deemed the worst workout machine ever. Chuck Norris’s Total Gym also appears to be fading in popularity. Norris, understandably, has been too busy stumping for presidential candidate Mike Huckabee to plug his product.

Why the original Wii is so effective is because when you use one you forget you’re working out. In fact, when the consoles were first released, gamers – new at exerting so much energy – would throw their controllers through televisions, lamps and windows. The Wii worked because it tricked the sedentary into burning calories. The Fit is being marketed as a fitness machine.

For hardcore gamers, ignorance is bliss. And good trickery is the only way to get many of them off the couch.

-Beacon