Gear: A step up in home ellipticals

The elliptical trainer and its smooth oval foot pattern was a hit the moment it arrived on the scene in the mid-1990s, but a good one that could stand up to regular home use without rattling apart has never come cheap. That's doubly true of some of the expensive new sub-categories that have arisen recently, such as the seated elliptical, which gives older exercisers a safer all-body workout, and the suspended elliptical, which has a free-form, variable movement that is a favorite of high-performance exercisers. Fortunately, the market has finally responded with newer, high-quality and affordable alternatives, such as the models below.

By Roy M. Wallack, Special to the Los Angeles Times

February 21, 2011