Fitness equipment buying guide
A Tesco guide to buying fitness equipment
Exercise plays a big part in following a healthy lifestyle. Whether you want to increase your overall fitness, build strength or tone up muscles, there's a whole range of equipment to do the job. Indeed, so much equipment is now available that it can be tricky to know what to buy. This guide gives you some general tips, as well as a brief overview of the different types of fitness equipment. Separate, more detailed, guides to cardio-vascular equipment are also available.
What are you trying to achieve
The best way to decide what equipment you are after is to think about what you want to achieve. Look at what specific areas you want to improve and learn more about the benefits of different types of equipment.
Improve overall fitness
Cardiovascular exercise is good for all-round fitness, endurance and circulation. It increases your heart rate and gets the blood pumping around your body.
To improve cardio-vascular workouts, try any of the following:
- Exercise bikes: ideal if you are just starting to get fit, as they are easy to use and can be adjusted for different levels of fitness.
Find out more about Exercise Bikes
TreadmillsPerfect for a gentle stroll or serious training for the next marathon, a treadmill means you can continue going for a run even if it does rain. Adjustable incline makes for a more challenging workout.
Some models can be programmed to track speed, calories burnt & time taken, and folding treadmills are available for those short on space.
Find out more about Treadmills:
Cross trainersCombining the best elements of stair climbing, skiing and running, Cross training allows you to exercise upper and lower body at the same time, helping to build up over all fitness. You can also focus on one area at a time. Cross training is a low impact exercise putting less stress on joints.
Find out more about Elliptical Cross-Trainers
Rowing Machines
A useful form of low impact exercise which strengthens arms and shoulders as well as major muscle groups, as well as providing a good cardiovascular workout.
Find out more about Rowing Machines
Increase suppleness and strength
Suppleness and flexibility can be improved through low impact anaerobic (non-cardio) exercise such as Pilates and yoga. These improve circulation and reduce the risk of injuries. They are low impact exercises designed to increase strength and mobility in the upper and lower body such as the arms, legs, and abdominal muscles. They also improve posture, breathing and muscle tone, as well as minimise health problems, lessen stress and anxiety.
The most important equipment for this type of exercise is a yoga or Pilates mat; other useful accessories such as balance balls are also available.
Increase muscle tone
Improve strength and muscle tone through weight lifting and resistance training. The more muscle you have, the better your metabolism works and the easier it is to burn off calories.
Useful equipment includes:
Dumbells, allow you to lift as much weight as necessary
Multi-gyms and weight lifting benches: providing a varied range of exercises for arms and legs.
Gym balls: can be used for various toning exercises
- vibration trainers Vibration trainers provide a gentle form of exercise without the risk of straining muscles or putting too much strain on individual body parts. This form of exercise strengthens and tones muscles, improves circulation helping to reduce cellulite & increases metabolism. Although useful if you are trying to lose weight, be aware that this is not a miracle calorie burner, and you will need to do other forms of exercise as well.
Getting a balance
Ideally you want to get a balance of high and low impact exercise. High impact is the most effective at burning calories and strengthening muscles and bones, it can however put pressure on your joints. It's worth including some low impact workouts that use resistance such as swimming and cycling. Or for anaerobic (non-cardio) exercise, do some stretching exercises and weight lifting.
Equipment
Now you've decided on the type of exercise that's right for you, learn more about the types of exercise equipment available.
Buying an exercise bike
Buy an exercise bike from Tesco.com.
Buying a treadmill
Buy a treadmill from Tesco.com
Buying an elliptical cross trainer
Buy a cross trainer from Tesco.com
Buying a rowing machine
buy a rowing machine from Tesco.com
Weights and benches
Using free weights is effective way of improving strength and fitness. Lifting weights burns calories, increase muscle size, strength, power, and endurance, and increases bone density. They also have the added bonus that if you're short on space, they don't take up much room, plus they're a lot cheaper than other fitness equipment.
Buying weights
Think about how you're going to use your weights and the frequency to help you choose the right weights for you.
- Setting up Bear in mind the time and convenience of buying weights that are set at a specific weight, or that can be adjusted according to your strength. You won't need to worry about assembling a set weight of dumbbells for example.
- Storage and care Think about the maintenance requirements. Chrome weights need a little more TLC than metal, concrete, or foam-covered weights. Check you have plenty of space to safely store the weights. Dumbbells need limited room and free weights can be stored on the floor, or on specialised racks.
Buying a bench
You'll need a bench that's the right size for you and that can be adjusted to suit - you may want it to recline and decline. Make sure the bench is sturdy enough to take the weight you intend to lift as well as your own, and consider leg and arm attachments that support you as you lift.
Buying a multi gym
If you can't decide on which piece of fitness equipment's right for you, then why not consider a multi gym that gives you a number of options all in one. It will improve strength and build muscles using standard features such as chest presses, leg extensions and lateral pull down.
Before you buy
Some things to consider when shopping for a multi gym:
- Weight Weight-stack machines consist of blocks or disks of weights attached to a lever or pulley system. Changing the amount you lift is easy. Just move a pin in the weight stack or add another plate in plate-loading models. Check the resistance is right for you - its settings should include weights light enough for the weakest user as well as heavier ones that will challenge the strongest lifter.
- Does it do what you want it to? Check that your multi-gym offers the variety of exercises you want. There should be at least 12 different options.
- Will it fit? Check to see if the dimensions of the multi gym fit where you want it to go.
Buying yoga and pilates equipment
Yoga and Pilates provide an intense low-impact muscle workout that are good for a whole host of things including strength and flexibility, improved stability and co-ordination, released stress and improved posture. Many serious runners and cyclists will do Pilates or yoga to avoid damage to their joints when they've worked too hard.
In Pilates there are about 500 specific exercises designed to develop the entire body.
Equipment for Pilates
To start you'll need at least a Pilates mat or yoga mat, both available at Tesco. We also stock accessories including: starter kits, balance balls, body bands, resistance cords and body circles.