The Life Fitness E1 Elliptical Cross-Trainer

Overview: The Life Fitness E1 elliptical is the entry level model in the gym quality series, offering solid construction, smooth, natural motion and the choice of two different consoles. It’s a more affordable model for those who want a commercial grade machine for their home.

Let’s take a look at some of the highlights of the E1 crosstrainer…

Smooth, Quiet Motion

The E1, just like its sister model, the X1 crosstrainer, has a patented feature called WhisperStride Technology. Special ball bearings reduce friction as you work out, making it much quieter and smoother than you typically find on a gym quality elliptical.

Two Consoles To Choose From

One of the appeals of the Life Fitness brand is the ability to choose the console that appeals most to you. There is the basic Go Console, which features a blue LCD display giving you 12 workouts, 2 custom workouts and 2 user profiles. Then you have the Track Connect Console which features a slightly different blue LCD display as well as the ability to connect your phone or tablet to track your workouts and your iPod for music. It also give you 14 workouts, 12 custom workouts, and 4 user profiles. The Track + console is about $450 more than the Go console.

Heart Rate Monitoring

The Life Fitness E1 elliptical, as all of the machines, gives you heart rate monitoring capability on the multigrip handles as well as a wireless chest strap for even more accurate readings. This ensures that you stay in your ideal zone throughout your workout, maximizing your results.

Other Benefits

As one of the most well-regarded brands in the industry, Life Fitness delivers unmatched quality and precision, so whether you buy the entry level E1 or the Platinum Club model, you are getting the very best you can buy with this company. Some of the other great features here include the Energy Saver button to reduce consumption when the machine is not in use, oversized, non-slip pedals and an accessory tray.

Life Fitness E1 Test Drive

We couldn’t tell the difference between the E1 and the Life Fitness ellipticals we use regularly in the gym. Perhaps if we had them side by side we might be able to notice a few things, but for all intents and purposes, it’s just like the one you’ll find in your health club. And nothing changes when you get on it. The feel is rock-solid, the stride is ample and smooth, and the motion is balanced and natural.

We had the Track Connect console on this one, which is a nice upgrade as we like to be entertained while we work out. If you don’t need to track your workouts or listen to music, the Go Console is perfectly fine. We popped in our iPad to test out the tracking capability and it worked quite well. We were also able to sync it to some of our fitness apps, although that took a little bit of effort the first time around.

The different built in workouts were great, and we also created our own programs which we like to do. Resistance levels were seamless and we used the included chest strap to measure our heart rate throughout.

All in all we enjoyed out workout on the E1 just like we did on the similar X1 model. We would have liked to have a little more adjustability, especially at this price point. But the ergonomics and design are such that it is somehow ideal for any sized user. So you don’t really miss the fact that you can’t make too many adjustments.

Conclusion

If you’re looking a high-end machine, the E1 Crosstrainer from Life Fitness is a solid, gym-quality elliptical trainer. It is designed for those people who want to have a commercial grade piece of equipment that will last for years and years with minimal maintenance requirements.

Take a look at the similar X1 as well, which offers adjustable stride along with a few minor differences. Either one will offer you a great entry into the world of high-grade elliptical machines without the huge price tag.

It would be nice if these machines had web-enabled touch screens, but what you are paying for here is the quality, not the entertainment or extras. You truly won’t find better quality anywhere else.