FOLD AWAY CARDIO STEPPER

"I have 2 of these. One for the living room and one for my home gym. They are both noisy and it gets on my nerves so much I can't use them. I am donating them to a thrift store."

"This stepper was easy enough to assemble, and for its size-very sturdy. I like that is not very wide, so I can easily use it in my small living room and watch TV at the same time. I have gotten some very good workouts using this machine. The unit has wheels on one side, that do not compromse the balance os the base, so it can also be moved without much difficulty unless you are on a thick carpet. It is fairly quiet during operation, unless you step all the way down each time and then the bumper underneath each pedal is heard hitting the metal support.



The height and resistance can be controlled pretty easily too. I like a higher resistance, although for the first minute or so the steps are a little more difficult until the pumps under the pedals have loosened some from the friction. And do not touch them right after the workout as they will be HOT!



I bought this particular stepper because of the interactive display and pulse monitor. These are nice in that you can see your progress. However, the display is supposed to shut off after 4 minutes of non-use. I have not found that to be true on my unit and have resorted to disconnecting the sensor wire from the base after use. (Otherwise I will go through batteries very quickly).



I would recommend this stepper for in-home use.

It can easilly be folded down with the center bar and handles on top of the pedals to store under a bed, or standing up in a closet. However, your bed needs to have a bit of clearance underneath."

"I've had the stepper 2-3 years and I used it fairly often, for 20-45 minutes at a time. Just the other day the piston broke off from the pedal. The metal actually bent and broke so I can't do anything to fix it. I am only 120 lbs and use it for moderate exercise, nothing too strenuous. I will also say that it is a little noisy and not too long after I got it started making a clicking noise when I stepped which I have read in reviews of similar steppers means the shocks wore off. When I lived in a apartment, the people below me complained that they could hear it, so there was a period of time when I couldn't use it at all even with a gym quality mat underneath. It offered a good workout, but it isn't very sturdy and I wish it lasted longer than it did. It is only covered by a one year warranty [...]"

"I used this product 2-3 times a week for an average of 30 minutes at a time as part of my plan to get back into shape. At first it worked great, providing a good amount of resistance and I liked the timer display. I saw, however, that the calorie counter/heart rate monitor was off. I have a personal heart rate monitor that I've used for over a year and it is a much more precise tool for the job.So, the electronics on this machine are not tuned correctly, at least on my unit.My girlfriend, weighing in at 108lbs, found that she couldn't use this machine because she herself was too light to be able to get up to pace in order to get a good workout. I didn't have this problem being 215lbs. My problem came when the pedals started to swivel for no reason (it seems the frame was not solid enough to support my weight or the intensity with which I was working out). I figured, since I only paid [$] for it I would just keep using it until it gave.Well, this evening it finally did, but not in the way I expected. There is a "steel" truss that enables the pedals to alternate. It snapped!!! Not at a point of connection, but in a random spot! The hydrolics let me down nice and easy so thankfully I didn't injure myself.All-in-all, I got about 3 or 4 months of use out of it so I don't feel to bad about the money I spent on it. I don't believe that I got a faulty unit, it worked just fine at first. Poor design and shotty manufacturing are responsible in my mind. This product is geared toward people who either work out regularly or are getting back into shape, it should be able to handle the workload.Best use for this product? A prop for someone who wants their friends and family to think they work out. It is very compact, the only positive thing about it. But I don't mean it in a sense that it easily stowes under a bed, just that it doesn't take up a lot of room on the floor.In the future, I will think twice before I buy something from [...]. Very disappointed in this product."

"Just got home with a two year old unit I bought [...] I bought it from a skinny woman who had used it for two years. I set it up home and adjusted the step height under it. After a few minutes I noticed that it had gone down to very short steps again...hmmm. Ah well.. I adjusted it to max and started again, it felt good to start with but the again it went back to short steps. I looked under it and noticed that one of the shocks were leaking. They were also very warm... so I would rate this to "go and find something better,you are wasting your $" category."

"I bought this for winter exercise. I like to hike, but not in northeastern cold & snow. I also wanted something I could put in my living room, where I can watch the good TV, whilke exercising.



Since a treadmill is not something I want in my living room, this was the next best thing. It feels sturdy (and I am not light) and has a relatively small footprint. I like the feel of resistance without impact, as I have had a serious back injury, It can be rolled on the front end with ease, if you need to move it. I also like the fact that the display is where it can be seen. Models lacking a support post have a display near your feet, which is useless.



At first, it was squeaking very loudly. There is a solution to this. Turn it upside down and you will see a pulley & cable. This is the source of the noise. After lubricating it with white lithium grease, the squeak disappeared.



So, on the whole, I like it and enjoy the workout it provides."

"Junk!!At first it seems solid. However with a little use it becomes wobbly. The welds break and the anchor points for the gas spring tubes just rip out of the metal tube. Before spending [$] on this find a better quality stepper."

"I find this easy to use and something you can set up in front of the TV so you don't 'forget' to use it. It get the heart rate up for the occassional exerciser. The only thing that is an issue is the display does not shut off without removing batteries, but I think that is a defect on my unit.. but too minor to return."

"I bought this after reading the reviews. I really needed something small for my small apartment in the winter. It was real easy to put together, but the display was twisted a bit to the left and the bottom hinge to lower the unit up and down left a gap that when the stepper was being used, caused the unit to shake. I put a rolled towel in the gap and that stabilized the unit. I used it a couple of times but it wasn't really what I was looking for (I needed something a bit more sturdy, I put my machines through their paces) heavier use. I ended up giving it away.



Great if you want very light use and something small, not good if you plan on heavy use."

"I wanted a stepper to lose weight because I have had much success from using one in the past but I didn't want one that took up a lot of space. My sister purchased a portable stepper that simply has the pedals to stand on, which I thought was a great idea until I tried to use it. Call me a klutz but I couldn't keep my balance on it. When I found this foldable stepper [...]I was extremely excited. It was the same as my sister's except it has handles and I didn't have to strain to see the screen. It's great[...] Here are the problems, though. It's heavy, it doesn't fold up small enough to slide under a normal bed, and you have to wait until the shocks cool after use or else you will get burned trying to fold it. Still, it fits the closet just fine or is small enough to leave out in a room without looking bad. Plus, it works great and I haven't had anything break on it."